Apsara Indian Restaurant, Port of Spain, Trinidad
Darryl February 16th, 2008
Apsara Indian Food Restaurant
13 Queen’s Park East
Port of Spain
Trinidad
(868) 623-7659, 627-7364
http://www.apsara.co.tt/
Monday - Saturday • 11:00 am - 11:00 pm
When we wanted to celebrate a bit of good business with our new Trinidad associates, we thought it would be interesting to experience the original flavour at the root of Indian-inspired dishes of Trinidad.
The Apsara had been the first recommendation of several people we asked, well-known locally as the place to go for authentic classical cuisine of northern India.
Seated on a Friday evening, we were immediately very comfortable in the surroundings, a mix of traditional Indian art and local Indian-inspired folk pieces. The muted colour scheme featured folk paintings of birds in the window arches and around the doors. Intimate lighting created a warm ambience.
We started with Santa Rita Reserva, 2001, a Chilean merlot served generously. Nancy had the house version of lemon-lime bitters, her new favourite Trinidadian beverage.
The appetizer we chose was Aloo Samosa, quite delicious, but with the pastry a bit too thick, over-powering the channa potato filling.
Our main course consisted of Mutter - a curry of peas and shitake mushroom, Nav Rattan Korma - mixed fresh vegetables in cashew nut paste, and for our friend, Husseini Boti Kebab - lamb marinated with poppy seeds and exotic ground masala - all accompanied by delicious nan and Bharwan Aloo Paratha, a whole wheat bread filled with seasoned potatoes.
The dishes were served on small individual braziers of hot coals, adding a wonderful smoked essence to our table. All dishes were well-prepared and tasted wonderfully. Portions were satisfying, enough that we were able to eat well, plus have more than enough for a tasty lunch the next day.
One item of note - we seemed to be served by three people who kept asking the same questions. It seemed that the restaurant could use a little organization.
The cost of our meal was just over $150 including wine and service, a price we considered well worth what we had enjoyed.
The Apsara is a Trinidad dining experience that should not be missed.