Nair’s Restaurant

Very disappointing experience. We arrived at 8:57pm and the moment we were given a menu, yes only one menu for two people, we were told that the restaurant closes at 9:30pm. We could certainly understand that and we would respect the closing time, however we were told we can only choose from five curry dishes. To make things easier, my party and I, both picked chicken curry. We were asked if we wanted boned or boneless chicken. We opted for boneless even though it was supposed to be more. We didn’t wait long for the food however when it arrived it was a huge disappointment. The chicken was chopped up in small pieces and had bones all over. I almost cracked my tooth on one of the pieces. A couple of pieces weren’t even cooked properly. My dinner companion was literally fighting to get some meat off the tiny bones. It was an serious undertaking. I ordered a glass of white wine, which was horrible and you could tell it was from a bottle that was left opened for a long time. The ambiance of the restaurant was less than inviting. A tacky, dirty decorations imitating Indian décor. 30 copies of the same book on the shelves. As we were walking out, and yes we left at 9:21 pm, more people were coming in. Nobody was returned around and told they were closing at 9:30. Stick with Japanese food while in Tokyo!

This is probably one of those reviews which go against everything I observe and give high fives for.
I was born in Tokyo and lived there most of my life (yes, I’m an Indian born in Tokyo.) The owner of this restaurant, Mr. Gopal Nair was a great friend to my father.
Yes, I ate traditional Indian food as we know it at home but since I was born in Japan and had the open palette to taste various kinds of foods, I will tell you right off the bat; not one India person I know has ever liked Nair’s food ever (with the exception of my Dad and myself.)
That being said, if you have an open mind to try out cuisine that has what I’ll call fusion flavors, go for it. But do NOT go here expecting your traditional food.
Now that I’ve been in the US for some 14 years, I haven’t visited this restaurant in nearly 15 years. That being said, I have some favorites which I will describe. These are dishes I absolutely miss. I can almost taste them in my mouth.
1. Rasam soup. Spicy. I think this comes pretty close to the real thing although I will admit that I’ve had various kinds of rasams. Hands down though; I love their rasam.
2. Kababs. These are not kababs you will find in any part of the middle east or even in India. Not sure where they evolve from but here they are. The outside is crispy. So crispy that the entire kabab is still intact in spite of the fact that the actual meat inside is so soft. But it’s not that crispy either that you will have a hard time biting into. It’s a PERFECT balance.
3. Murgi Lunch. Oh my murgi lunch how I miss you. You have probably heard of ribs falling off the bone it’s so tender. Chicken is one meat you have to know how to cook it to make it that tender, else it gets tough easily (yes, including dark meat.) At Nair’s, it is so perfect. When you order it and they serve it to you, they will actually come by and take the entire meat off the leg using nothing more than a butter knife and fork; that’s how tender the meat is.
Put that together with the perfect Japanese rice made with the Indira Curry Powder and the mashed potatos and cabbage. For me, it’s a delicacy.
4. Shrimp Curry. Again, on the spicier side but absolutely amazing.
5. This is something that’s not on his menu anymore cause it took so long to make it. Indo Lunch (Indian Lunch.) The perfect and large patty of meat that was ground to perfection and spiced with a sauce. This dish I think he stopped making it in the late 80s or early 90s.
Gopan San, Rajan San, Muthu San… Konnichiwa.