Nguyen Le Hung checks out one of the staple Indian restaurants in the middle of Hanoi to see if the establishment lives up to the hype.
Cozy: Guests enjoy Indian food at Foodshop 45.
The world loves its Indian food, especially the British. According to a report by Britain’s Food Standards Agency, there are as many as 17,000 restaurants serving Indian cuisine in Great Britain, setting the British back close to five billion pounds (USD7.5 billion). If you ask me, the love for spicy food is a remnant of the centuries-long British rule over the Asian country. Maybe it’s a bit different from London here, where it is possible to take five steps without bumping into a curry pot, but you still have various options for an Indian meal. And Foodshop 45 is one of them.
The location is fantastic, looking right onto Truc Bach Lake where the breeze is amazing. The place is quite big with capacity for 100 guests. As you drive up, Foodshop 45 looks simple but dashing, catchy but subtle. The interior design is charming with beige walls and matching curtains with small Hindu paintings hanging thoughtfully here and there. Though it is not exactly an authentic Indian atmosphere, you will certainly be comfortable enough to sit through your meal. The second floor, which is sometimes brutally air-conditioned, offers two types of tables. You can either sit on cushions on the floor or choose a more elegant western table. The tables by the window are consistently full because they offer a nice view of the lake; sometimes you need to call first for a reservation.
As soon as we found our place, a staff member came over with menus. The printed menu is less informative than its online counterpart which offers a spiciness ranking system for each dish. The place offers a wide variety of Northern and Southern Indian dishes which appear to be authentic, both in flavour and in preparation. However, some of the dishes we ordered were decidedly average.
Masablah: The Masala Raita is one of the many misses of Foodshop 45. It looks like Indian food, but is in short of spices.
The Tandoori Chicken (VND70,000/half, VND130,000/whole) arrived at our table tinted in an eye-popping shade of orangish-red. It should have been named the Jersey Shore Chicken! The shockingly red meat stood out in great contrast to the wilted bed of marinated raw onions and the stark white plate upon which it rested. The severity of the bird’s appearance was made even more pronounced by its black charred edges, which also accented the bird’s parched appearance. Not that it needed any accentuation – at first glance there was no hint of moisture in the bird whatsoever. A twist of a fork into the tender, moist dark meat was a welcome surprise. However, the lack of flavour was not, although it was certainly a surprise given the striking colour of the exterior. Even the exterior was lacking in flavour, which was baffling given that the depth of colour suggested otherwise. The white meat, while not moist, was not terribly dry, either. Unfortunately, it was seriously lacking in flavour with a taste akin to slightly over-boiled chicken. However, the Paneer Tikka Kabab, a vegetarian option including cottage cheese and vegetables marinated with yoghurt and spices, was exceptionally spicy, creamy and delicious.
You could also try some of the salads here, including raita and masala raita, but I really wouldn’t recommend them. If you are looking for authentic dishes like those you would find in downtown Mumbai, these salads are a far cry. Sure they have a hint of Indian flavours in them, but the authenticity is limited. We barely touched them.
Crispy treats: The kitchen goes very easy on the spices to suit the taste of local diners. However, the samosa is really good.
I opted for the Goat Rogan Josh. It was wonderfully tender but the gravy was under spiced to say the least. When I walk into an Indian restaurant, I expect to come out teary eyed, sweaty and dying for a cold beer. But this dish was just flat. So I immediately asked the waiter if the kitchen could spice it up some more. To my surprise, he was delightful and said that the cook had to go easy on the spices to suit the taste of most customers, and he took the pot of curry away. Ten minutes later, he returned with an even fuller pot of steaming curry. And boy was it curry! It went perfectly with the nan, which by the way, was a touch too thick and bready. The renewed goat curry was super spicy, leaving me short of breath. Be careful what you wish for because you just might get it! It went heavenly with a cold beer and a lassi, which is basically a blend of yogurt and fresh fruit. I tried the banana lassi, which was delicious. It was very thick and could only detect a slight hint of ice in the blend, which was awesome.
For dessert my friend tried the Gajjar Halwa (cashew sweetmeats with cardamom and cashew nuts) which was fantastic, and I went for a simple scoop of vanilla ice-cream which was savoury and magical.
Foodshop 45
Address: 59 Truc Bach
Telephone: (04) 3716 2959
Price per person: VND 100,000 – 200,000 (US$5-10)
Comment: Reasonably priced, nice view of the lake, attentive and helpful staff.
