Why Are Maraschino Cherries on My Kofta Malai?

Curry In A Hurry
119 Lexington Ave.
New York, NY 10016
(212) 683-0900

MURRAY HILL LOCALS affectionately refer to this stretch of Lexington Ave as "Curry Hill." Curry In A Hurry is quite literally its cornerstone. Yes, there are finer Indian restaurants in the city. There are certainly ones serving better food. Honestly, most are faster. But until you've eaten curry that glows like a neon-green Putt-Putt golf ball while gazing out of a dusty, hazy second-story window, you haven't eaten at Curry In A Hurry.

Indian food is big-city soul food, and places like Curry In A Hurry are proof of the fact. A menu full of cheap goodies encourages ordering a variety of stuff to share, which might be why Sir Aaron Hitchcock and Lady Natasha dragged me here for my birthday. We ordered a couple of samosas, a plate of veggie fritters, and fish tikki. Our waiter brought us three samosas (because there were three of us), chicken wings, and fish tikki. Curious. The samosas were good, the chicken wings were chicken wings, and the fish tikki tasted like cat food. We ate it anyway.

For a main course, we successfully received our eggplant, shrimp tandoori, and kofta malai along with a few orders of naan. Both the eggplant and the shrimp were excellent. The naan was fluffy and hot. The kofta malai, however, was positively radiant. In fact, I'm certain that if the lights had gone off it would have glowed.

Normally, my experience with kofta malai has consistently been one of soft veggie dumplings smothered in a sweet and, shall we say, understated sauce. Not so at Curry In A Hurry. The dumplings are three monster croquettes. The sauce is a thick, blazing yellow. And, to my horror, there are slices of maraschino cherries taunting me from atop this creation.

The dumplings are somehow soft and sweet, the sauce manages to be calmer than its hue, and along with the eggplant and shrimp, we made quick work of everything on the table, though we were unable to finish it off. Not bad for three people and less than thirty bucks. Not bad at all.

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: Sure. But I still don't understand the maraschino cherries.