It is an ambitious undertaking to open a new Indian restaurant on the North Shore.
We are seriously spoiled over here with some of the city’s best scattered around our various neighbourhoods, with one of the very best anywhere, in my opinion, situated in West Vancouver. New restaurants already have such a high rate of failure, to position one against such stiff competition takes steely resolve and gumption. Pawans Indian Kitchen has moxy, I’ll give them that.
They are situated a block down from popular Indian Fusion and a stone’s throw from community pillar Palki. What is the point of difference that will set Pawans apart from its peers?
This was the question that I considered as I visited the fledgling eatery recently with my wife, DJ, and our three kids, The Boy, Blondie and Baby N. It was DJ’s birthday and, being English and therefore innately partial to curry, she was keen to give the newbie a try, despite having some well-established favourite dishes from direct Pawan competitors.
Pawans’ space is small; I counted 36 seats in total. The interior design is minimal, with clean lines and no clutter, a few splashes of colour from bright blue napkins and sparse wall art. There is a big TV mounted to one wall, which I find a touch off-putting outside of the sports bar landscape, but the volume was off and it was easy enough to tune out, I suppose. Still, to me one of the great mysteries of modern dining is the insistence on putting TV screens nearly everywhere, including places the esthetic of which seems anathema to it. Are the TVs there because diners insists on them or because restaurateurs infer that they are wanted?
Now, on that question of the distinguishing features of Pawans: naturally there is a stylistic interpretation of common Indian dishes (the menu will seem very familiar to anyone who eats Northern Indian cuisine with any frequency) by accomplished chef Pawan Kumar, who has helmed a number of kitchens prior to this personal venture; Pawans’ front of house service is swift and considerate; the kitchen is clearly efficient as there was very little time to wait between ordering and eating; the dishes were, without exception, ably executed and tasty. But what is the fundamental point of difference here? What is going to keep people coming back?
I would cite value for your money to best answer this question. Our meal was $70 before gratuity and included an appetizer of veggie pakora, four curries, a mountain of rice, four giant naan, and an order of Raita. There was food enough for two meals for all of us and we were keen to come back to the leftovers given their deft seasoning and depth of flavour. Pawans provides a solid, well-priced meal.
While every dish had its charms, the stars of the show were the Lamb Methi Malai and Channa Masala.
The lamb, served in tender, generous cubes, was immersed in a thick, creamy, intensely rich sauce studded with fragrant fenugreek leaves (methi) and was an excellent showcase for the malai style of curry (broadly speaking, those curries prepared in a thick and creamy style, malai translating roughly to sour cream or thickened cream). The chickpeas (channa) were fully coated in a deep and rich, mahogany-hued gravy with deep flavours of toasted cumin and coriander, fresh cilantro and loads of potent garlic.
When ordering, we weren’t asked to identify how hot (spicy) we’d like the meal to be. I quite like this approach, actually, as it puts the onus on the chef to determine the best heat factor for each dish. On the whole, the meal was quite spicy, especially an order of chicken curry ordered by the kids, who, to their credit, tucked into the dish readily. A final dish, Shahi Paneer, or homemade Indian cheese in tomato gravy, was pleasantly mild and a great accompaniment to its spicier counterparts.
Pawans Indian Kitchen. 1925 Lonsdale Ave. facebook.com/pawanskitchen. 604-770-3650
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Relish Gourmet Burgers’ North Shore project is currently on hold according to a company spokesperson I recently reached through email. The Fredericton, New Brunswick-based burger joint, which boasted some Coming Soon fanfare in a storefront on Lonsdale Avenue earlier this year, is re-evaluating the location and is currently uncertain about future opening plans on this side of town.
I suppose the North Shore’s own Vera’s Burger Shack and Texas-based Mooyah Burgers, Fries and Shakes can hold down the fort for the busy summer burger season ahead.
Faubourg Paris, the Park Royal Village confectionery, will host a unique instructional series starting this month. Macaron classes will run for four hours every Tuesday and will teach budding bakers how to craft the delicate treats that have maintained their stronghold on dessert lists worldwide for many years now.
Chris Dagenais served as a manager for several restaurants downtown and on the North Shore. He can be reached via email at [email protected]. North Shore News dining reviews are conducted anonymously and all meals are paid for by the newspaper.
