2013 has so far turned into the year of weddings and
thirtieths. Some people want big parties, others want smaller more intimate
affairs. It was with a small 30th get together in mind that we headed en masse
to Indie Dhaba. Indie Dhaba is not your usual run of the mill Indian restaurant but
instead has decided to shake the food scene up by offering Indian tapas. Now to
be honest we were a little bit sceptical at the beginning - Indian tapas we exclaimed, they won’t
fill us up and it will work out really expensive too as a group! Turns
out we were wrong, oh so wrong.
Indie Dhaba is situated on St. Anne Street in what used to
be Venu. It is a big space and on the afternoon we were there only about four
other tables were filled. This didn’t matter to us as we were a group of eight
girls who could probably fill the place with enough chatter to make up for the
lack in atmosphere. The menu is lengthy with choices of small plates, large
plates, dhaba plates and Old Favourites among others. Our waiter explained to
us the concept behind Indie Dhaba and some of the dishes on the menu. Being old
pros at eating out in groups we co-ordinated our tapas so that we could have a
bit of everything! We each choose two small plates and a main thinking that if
we were still hungry we could always order more.
So to make life a bit easier as there were so many dishes,
here are a selection of what we ordered (I think I have all the names right!).
PAPPADUM BRUSCHETTA: Mini Pappadums and Fryums topped with
Indian Vegetable Ratatouille
CHATPATEE CHUTNEY MEZZE: Roasted red-bell pepper, aubergine,
chickpeas and cumin, spicy olive, mathari sticks
NANOZZA: Indian Fenugreek dough, makhni sauce basting,
vegetables, fondue of buffalo mozzarella, a.k.a. Jasuben’s Gujarati Naan-Pizza
BAGDA CHINGRI: Tiger prawn with Philadelphia Cheese, carom
seed, toasted yellow peas flour
PALAK-MISSI TOAST: Sautéed
spinach and mushroom, Indian spices, garlic, maize and chickpea flour tortilla
TANGRA
CHILI CHICKEN: Indo-Chinese stir fried chicken, Calcutta Chinatown style
TIWARI JI KI RAJ KACHORI: Giant Flaky-Dough hollow shell
dolma, ragout of sprouted Green Mung-bean, baby gem, red kidney bean, natural
yoghurt baratte and Tamarind chutney
BANGLA CRAB CHOP: Pacific crabmeat and crayfish with spiced
beetroot, house-made tomato and plum chutney
We also ordered fig and goats cheese naan (one of the best
naans I have ever had!) and garlic, onion & coriander naan and some Basmati
rice for the table. The great thing about all the small plates were that they
came out divided into four so they were perfect for sharing. One thing we did
notice was that there wasn’t much size difference between the large and small
plates but the large plates are where you will find the more expensive options of meat and
fish. The flavours of the food were amazing and so different to what we are
normally used to when we think of tapas. The food was vibrant, intense, fun and
was a joy to eat.
The only dish I was
slightly disappointed with was the Bangla Crab Chop as it was just a bit bland
and didn’t live up to the experience created by the other dishes. Another plus
was that our meal cost us around €20 each. That was for 2 small plates and a
large plate X8 so yes it did feel like plate after plate was arriving at the
table. For me this meal was one of the
standouts of the year so far. I love the concept behind it and the creativity
in the dishes. It also won’t break the bank, is great for groups and they also
have Darren, an award winning mixologist, working in house who makes Dublin’s best cocktails (well I think so
anyway!). So all in all Indie Dhaba was
the perfect choice for a small 30th – it was good food and good
cocktails all at an affordable price. Could we really ask for anything more!
