My new kitchen still isn’t done. If I’m honest, I doubt it will be done by the time the next edition of this goes out either. In the meantime, my takeout adventures continue.
That doesn’t mean I can’t have any fun with my continued food purgatory. Last time, I mentioned that I went on a bit of a bolognese bender. This month I’ve been exploring the biryani, the Indian-Muslim rice dish. I love a nice biryani. In the universe of “global” Indian dishes — think tandoori chicken or chicken tikka masala — I think it’s underappreciated.
Trying biryanis from different Indian restaurants nearby has been surprisingly educational. While I’m not sure I could pin down what distinguishes a good biryani from a bad one, there’s definitely a difference. The most recent place I tried also happened to be the worst. It was too sweet. If I had to guess, they used too much tomato paste or at the very least didn’t cook it out very well. This is especially weird because I’ve yet to see a biryani recipe that involves tomatoes (paste or otherwise) whenever I’ve tried to make one.
Fortunately, unlike the bolognese pastas, price seems to have less of an influence. It’s fascinating how biryani prices in the greater Boston metro area support the idea from economics of the Law of One Price. Despite my deliberate attempt to find a posh biryani at a higher price, I’ve yet to find one outside the roughly $14-18 range. Considering it’s possible to get “grilled salmon to go” for anywhere from $13 to $100, that’s pretty impressive.
All of which is to say: my winner thus far is Mela Indian in the South End. It’s more expensive than some of the other Indian places I’ve tried by a few dollars, but the biryani is very reasonable, and it’s the best one I’ve had so far. The rice is really nicely cooked, and their biryani has the warmth (rather than one-note heat) from the spice mix.
For anyone keeping score, my modal choices remain Dig (boring, but excellent value) and Café Landwer (I appreciate the Middle Eastern twist).
Given how much longer this project is going to go, I may have to give in and order more delivery, for the variety. On weeknights I really have no desire to trek an hour out of the way to try more exotic food in my “everyday takeout” price band. It feels so indulgent, though.
I’m struggling to come up with my next “classic takeout” dish to sample. I already know where to get great falafel, and I’ve already basically explored all the cheap and cheerful Thai and sushi places nearby. I’ll be honest, much as I love the state of Massachusetts, I don’t think there’s any exceptionally great ramen to be had here.
The renovation project has beaten me down a bit. I hesitate to even speculate on how far along the new kitchen will be by next month. But there is progress. I really hope I can return to regularly scheduled programming soon.