Restaurant Review: Marigold

For the legions of fans I've picked up since my first post, I wanted to share my first restaurant review. My reviews will be short and to the point. I'll say what I like or don't like and don't expect me to talk about the balance between salty and sweet-I don't know what that is, but I know when something tastes good.

A few more notes before we get to Marigold...

My wife and I are huge restaurant fans. Yes, we like the fancy stuff, but I also have to deal with my wife's "taco tooth" at least once a week (you're welcome Allende for the decade of patronage...and it's a travesty that Yelp only gives 4 out of 5 stars for this place, but I digress). We love to cook, but letting others cook for us is even better. In fact, this restaurant thing was most of the inspiration to actually start my own blog, and a little restaurant called Marigold was actually the restaurant that inspired me to pull the trigger... So here goes:

Let me take you back about three months. At the time I refused to have a "favorite restaurant" for no other reason than there are too many restaurants in this city to constantly go back to the same one (other than the aforementioned Allende, of course). Well, I found myself and my bride-to-soon-be sitting at Marigold for the fourth time in eight months. Why? Its unbelievable, that's why.

My favorite experience at Marigold is the first five to ten seconds after walking in the front door. I get sent into a near panic attack by the anticipation that is triggered by the intensely rich and deep aroma and tastes filling the dining room (Do you remember the first time you smelled Play-Doh? If so, its like that but for grown-ups). This anticipation is shear torture, and I love it.

The food is amazing, and let me stress that this isn't your father's Indian food...this is a contemporary Indian restaurant with amazing flavors; it does not have any of the textures nor overly-pungent odors of some other Indian restaurants (after spending two months in India, I have a somewhat legitimate opinion on the matter). Well, we've had two-thirds of the modestly-sized menu and have eaten more naan than one can shake a stick at - its all fantastic. But, my favorite restaurant serves my favorite dish: Lamb Shank Vindaloo. Rich, deep, spicy, intense vindaloo sauce served with a perfectly braised lamb shank. Its unbelievable. I sweat like I'm sitting in a sauna (note: I sweat while I eat ice cream - yes, really). I also love it when the dish of yogurt that's supposed to help cool my mouth is gone within the first six to seven bites. There are no flaws in this dish - it makes me happy, and it will make you happy.

The service also makes the meal, which continues to confuse me considering they only have one server. Well, actually, I don't know that for sure, but we've had the same guy every time and I don't think I've ever seen anybody else in there. So, this message about the service is dedicated to him: he takes the intimidation out of Indian food. He hasn't missed yet and my wine/beer glass is never empty. He makes suggestions and doesn't care if you ignore them; he answers your questions unpretentiously; he leaves his table time to a minimum (pet peeve: when servers spend half of my meal trying to be my friend). I wish he worked for me.

Luckily, I get to add two more benchmarks to this experience. After months of begging two of my friends to try Marigold, they each went there within the last seven days. They each loved it and raved about it. But, best of all, one of the two sent me a text that read: "Marigold is now, hands down, my favorite restaurant in the city." I guess that makes at least two of us...

Cheers!

Bonus recommendation: Fat Cat is next door and one of my favorite bars (who else serves Stiegel?). Its an eccentric locale to check out before or after a meal (their food is pretty damned good, too) or, as you'll read in future posts, a show at the Riv or Aragon.