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Long Island's Indian Spice Rave If
you're looking to add some spice to your life, or just want some great Northern
Indian cuisine, we suggest heading to Royal Bukhara Grill in Hicksville. When they opened in August 2008 their
primary focus was Northern Indian cuisine, Punjabi, but now they also offer a
variety of Indian options including Indian-Chinese. Royal Bukhara Grill has
exclusive parking in the front of their building off of Broadway with additional
parking shared by surrounding establishments easily accessed via Jerusalem
Avenue. Royal
Bukhara Grill is owned and operated by Jasjeet Singh Ahluwalia, who comes from a
background of restaurateurs. His
father owned one of the largest fine dining restaurants in Nepal. Since a young age, Jasjeet has been passionate about the food industry. He has a hands-on approach to perfecting each dish by subjecting himself
to taste any new additions to the menu, which are never added until they meet his
high standards.
Upon entering, you are greeted by a glass wall separating the entrance hall and dining room, which has been decorated with an ornate orange Hindi design. As you walk into the restaurant, you will first notice the dark wooded bar accented by the hanging lamps above. The lamps are suspended from the ceiling by a thick rope, while the light source is encased by faux tree bark.
The
walls are beige and deep red with authentic pieces of Indian art. Across the majority of the wall opposite the entrance hallway is an
extended paisley cushioned bench of reds, oranges, blacks and golds. Once seated, you will notice a plaid folded napkin embroidered with Royal
Bukhara Grill. When we reached for
the napkin, we realized it was actually an extended bib. Authentic Indian music played in the background as we absorbed the
natural ambiance of our surroundings. At your first encounter with the wait staff you are so enthralled by the unique, thick and round menus handed to you, it was difficult to fully acknowledge the person. But alas we soon discovered, when they returned with copper water glasses and pitchers, they were all extremely professional. None of the waiters had a pad or pen when taking orders and each was able to fully explain any dish to customers. While many of the waiters speak a dialect of Indian, they are all fluent in the English language.
We
began by sampling two of Bukhara’s Lassi drinks. Lassi
is a traditional yogurt-based drink from the Punjabi region of India. It is made by blending yogurt with ice, Indian spices and additional
ingredients. The first was the
Mango Lassi (above left). The taste of mango was
incredible; it was so fresh and delicious. The Sweet Lassi was made with
sugar and was very creamy – similar to the
consistency of a milkshake (above right). The sauces, which are automatically set on table by the diligent wait staff, were a rather sweet and tangy tamarind sauce, a green minty sauce and a mild dark sauce. These were great to mix and match with everything, including the breads served to our table. The Naan choices offered to accompany your dinner are quite extensive, including plain, garlic, chili, onion and many others (below left). While we waited for our food, we also nibbled on a basket of Papas, which could be best described as a crispy circular tortilla (below right). It was prepared by mixing flour, lentils and salt together and baked in the tandoor oven. It was wonderfully tasty with the supplied sauces.
The
extremely colorful Mixed Grill consisting of a blossomed raw onion in the center
surrounded by carrots, lemon, Lamb Seekah and Chicken Malai Kabab was first to
arrive at our table (below left). A full order
of this dish was served on a sizzling platter. The Lamb Seekah was tender skewered ground lamb. The chicken had a mild spice to it with ginger and garlic, and was easy
to cut with a fork.
Mushrooms and Spicy Ricotta Cheese was served with a tea light candle burning in the center of a decoratively cut tomato (above right). The cheese was coated in a mild orange spiced yogurt base and below the dish was a delicious bed of onions. Most of the items we sampled were prepared by a tandoor oven, which is a traditional clay oven. The Tandoori Shrimp was jumbo shrimp marinated in yogurt, ginger and mace (below left ). The shrimp was crispy on the outside with a tender inside. Each bite had a nice amount of spice to it.
Adrak Ki Chaamp were the marinated lamp chops in fresh ginger and garlic (above right). This dish was extremely tender and tasted great with the mint sauce from the table. Our next dish, the Pan Fried Salmon, had an extraordinary breading, which created a salty and sweet contrast that we all thoroughly enjoyed. (below left).
A harmonious combo of black lentils was created by the Dal Bukhara, which was prepared over a slow fire (above right). This dish was smooth and complimented the bread well. Bhuna Goat was a baby goat meat stir cooked in spicy
sauce (below left). It had the usual flavor of
goat, but was deliciously accented by the Indian spices. We thoroughly enjoyed this option along with the garlic naan.
The table favorite was the Chicken Makhani (above right). Chicken pieces were roasted in the clay oven and then tossed in a creamy tomato sauce. This dish had been spiced to perfection with the combination of thirty plus spices. It was a delicious choice and we did not allow any of the creamy tomato sauce to go to waste using bread to get every last drop. The
Tandoori Chicken was marinated with yogurt and spices (below
left). It was advertised as the tastiest way to barbecue
chicken and they weren’t lying, it had a great flavor! The generous portion of legs and thighs provided plenty of chicken to
go around the table.
Royal
Bukhara Grill’s Grilled Vegetables was a unique twist on an average dish. The vegetables are prepared in the tandoor oven and
include broccoli,
carrots, cauliflower, eggplant, green and red peppers, onions, tomatoes and
zucchini (above right). Warm pineapples are added
to create a sweet flavor and guests
have the option to order this dish with chicken as well. As
we moved on to dessert, full from the delicious Indian cuisine, we were first
brought homemade Kulfi (below left). Kulfi is
a popular type of Indian ice cream prepared with milk but not whipped. On top
were tasty rice noodles. This
dish was sweet with a little tang. It
is most comparable to a creamy sorbet. We
then experienced an amazing rice pudding, Badami Kheer; cool rice pudding cooked
with almonds (below right). Both desserts were
great, tasty ways to end the evening.
Royal
Bukhara Grill has perfected blending and rationing spices for each of their
dishes. They are also known to
lessen (or increase) the spices to your liking. If you prefer your food one way, be sure to speak up when ordering. Their menu is quite extensive and includes a large variety of items. You will definitely be returning to try different dishes. Jasjeet is also in the process of expanding Hicksville’s Royal Bukhara
Grill to create a larger dining room in the back area, which will be at least
twice its current size. Due to the
establishment’s great success, the dining room tends to fill up quickly on
weekend nights. Royal Bukhara Grill
also offers an enjoyable all you can eat lunch buffet seven days a week and Monday through Friday, happy hour can be enjoyed between 5 and 7. This would be our recommendation to add some spice to your life!
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