Thursday, January 15, 2009

Raavi's Cumin - Crows Nest, Sydney

I must admit I am a HUGE fan of curry in all forms, flavours, consistencies and colours. So I am very surprised that I have not done a post on an Indian restaurant as of yet. I don't really know that many good Indian curry restaurants in Sydney but Raavi's Cumin is one of my favourite spots to fill up on some creamy curry goodness.

Articles about Raavi's Cumin
I especially found the Japanese clipping to be amusing :)

Raavi's Cumin serves Punjabi cuisine, which is from the Punjab region of Northern India and Eastern Pakistan. As soon as you walk in the modern styled setting with Indian decor is very striking, full of deep rich reds, and makes you feel right at home. The aroma of cumin (naturally), saffron and other masalas hit you as soon as you enter the restaurant and activates the salivary glands. The lighting the perfect dining mood as it is not too bright to pierce the eyes but bright enough to see what you are eating.

Rug
Here Comes the Food

Pappadums
Crispy deep-fried flaky pappadums are the perfect start to the meal. Each bite results in a satisfying crunch and served with mint yogurt, each bite is also cool and refreshing.

Mango Lassi
I love mango lassi! Cool, refreshing and sweet makes the perfect compliment to any food. The one here is particularly thick and creamy. I think that is why they give the double straw, because with only one straw our faces would going red from trying to suck up the delicious but thick nectar.

Lahoree Champ ($15.50) - Ineffably aromatic and succulent Lamb Cutlets studded with fresh ground peppercorns and chargrilled to perfection - Another mouth watering creation by our Chef/Owner, inspired by the Lahore region in the Old Punjab
These lamb cutlets were succulent indeed with a beautiful chargrill flavour and tenderly soft meat. The taste of these cutlets are amazing and the only problem I found were that the portions were too small.

Murg Makhani ($17.90) - Otherwise known as Butter Chicken! No menu is complete without this all time Aussie favourite!! Smoked marinated Chicken cooked in a rich creamy tomato sauce, subtly flavoured with Fenugreek leaves
I know this is nowhere near what traditional curries are, but I just adore the richness and creaminess of Butter Chicken. The sweet and tender chunks of chicken just explode with the flavour of the curry and I have to restrain myself to not lick the bowl clean afterwards.

Beef Korma ($17.90) - Beef pieces cooked in a cashew and almond gravy, laced with mild spices and yogurt
The curry for this dish was perfect as the thick gravy produced a wonderful combination of flavours that dance across the tongue. The beef was the disappointing part, as it was a bit tough and dry. I recommend the Korma curry but with Lamb instead as the lamb is a much more tender and succulent meat.

Palak Paneer ($15.50) - A traditional blend of cottage cheese cubes tossed in Spinach and finished with a tempering of chopped garlic and cumin - This is one of the most popular contemporary dishes with the Vegetarians that never goes out of style
Another one of my favourite curries is this blended spinach and cubes of soft squishy cheese ^^! It may have the texture of mush but that is also part of why I like it because it all just works together, the flavours, textures and colours. There is another dish (Palak Makai) which uses corn kernels instead cottage cheese which I want to try next time.

Jeera Pulav ($5) - Fragrant basmati rice laced with a tempering of royal cumin - A great alternative to plain rice
Basmati rice is great as it is low in GI and tastes fantastic, especially when smothered in beautifully creamy curries like I what I had haha. The lacing of cumin also added another dimension of flavour to the rice and made it just a tad more compatible with curries.

Plain Naan ($2.50)
Nothing beats fresh Naan out of the tandoor. There were wonderful crispy bits and beautiful fluffy bits which soak up the curry and gives everything a delicious floury hit. This is the best Naan for eating with curries and you can get the full richness of the curry without anything to distract you from it.

Garlic Naan ($3)
Another tasty Naan with a sprinkling of garlic on top. Simply delicious.

Cheese Naan ($3.50)
Cheese + Naan = Heaven ^^! The hot stringy cheese inside the soft fluffy Naan is pure gold and I could eat this as a meal in itself. Although if using to clean up curry, the cheese may divert your tastebuds from the full flavour of the curry.

Pudina Paratha ($3.50)
Layered wholemeal bread with a touch of mint is deliciously crispy and crunchy. Different to soft and fluffy Naan but still very good and worth ordering!

Gulab Jamun ($6)
This dessert was a great note to end off the meal with. The dough was slightly fried and then allowed to swim in a pool of sweet maple syrup. The interior is hot and soft and each bite is like biting into a pillow of deliciousness ^^!

Raavi's Cumin is close to home and serves good hearty curries which is why I will keep coming for more until I drown in curry or overload on cheese Naan XD You may have noticed why I have only ordered mild curries this time and that is because I was dining with my cousin who is a complete chilli wuss haha. Next time I will hopefully add some heat to the post ;)

I love curry and I am definitely Addicted to Curry ^^! For any other people out there that are nerdy enough to read manga like me, Addicted to Curry is the perfect manga! A mixture of comedy and food is the best!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Addicted_to_Curry

Other Curriful times:
Cafe Mix - The Rocks, Sydney
Samy's Kitchen - the photos I promised!


Raavi's Cumin
2 Burlington St
Crows Nest, 2065
Ph: (02) 9436 3669

FFichiban

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

LOL at the Addicted To Curry Manga! I like the double strawing of the mango lassi too and it has been aaages since I had Indian food but I love it!

Howard said...

I love Palak paneer. With the naan bread I like to combine garlic + cheese :D

Miss Honey said...

I totally agree - butter chicken rocks! I can never go past it either. Great looking dessert too - deep fried and dripping in syrup, YUM!

Anonymous said...

NQN - ^^! Haha yes, I am a nerd :P I am craving it again all of a sudden XD

Howard - Palak paneer is one of my favourites ^^! Ahh I don't know any places that sell garlic + cheese naan but I guess you can just buy the two and DIY :)

Miss Honey - Hee hee yup sweet sweet butter chicken and that dessert I could eat a pile of those, they were that yum!

Annie said...

That dessert looks delicious! I always plan to try dessert at Indian restaurants, and then end up eating so much that BF has to grease the door to get me out so dessert is always left behind!

Anonymous said...

Annie - Haha that is true. We were so stuffed from dinner that we shared that teeny tiny dessert haha