Description
Indian Clove may just be the best all-around Indian restaurant in the five boroughs. Grounded in Punjabi cuisine, the menu strays all over the subcontinent, even including some Sri Lankan, Afghani, and Indo-Chinese dishes. The tandoori menu is especially comprehensive, including such oddities as bihari sheek kebab (ground lamb and chicken formed into a cylinder, perfect for absorbing smoke) and nilgiri kebab (chicken marinated in minted yogurt). Plenty on the menu for vegetarians, too, including the biggest malai kofta you’ve ever seen, and baigan hyderabadi – eggplant in an ethereal peanut sauce. The dining room is more formal than it needs to be; the focus is a glassed-in tandoori booth and a bar serving invented mixed drinks. --Robert Sietsema
