A recent trip to Junoon, a modern Indian Restaurant located on the West Side of Manhattan left me wanting to go back weekly! This was my introduction to Indian Cuisine and it definitely did NOT disappoint. We were greeted immediately in their beautifully decorated reception area and whisked away into a comfortable booth with a great view of everything Junoon had to offer.
General Manager and our Personal Sommelier for the evening, Guy Goldstein welcomed us to the restaurant and we discussed what would be our personalized wine paired menu for the night. We started with Champagne toast and we were on our way! Operations Manager, Deepak Shah also stopped by our table and greeted us. We truly felt welcome from the start.
Our waiter, Rahul, explained that the first course was the "chef's welcome" to us. Its true meaning is "First Taste" in Hindu. We enjoyed a yummy potato soup with a hint of warm coconut.
Immediately following we sampled Chicken Tandoori, Cauliflower florets with a hint of Indian Spices, tomato and garlic sauce and my personal favorite Curry Shrimp with garlic sauce and peppers.
Course three; paired with a white wine, was a pan seared Wild Striped Bass Malvan with green chili's. The fish was laid over a delicious spinach and cilantro sauce with green chili's blended together with coconut milk. Mr. Goldstein explained the sauce is prepared 4 times a week for the restaurant. It did not disappoint.
The Main Course, paired with a wonderful Avalon Pinot Noir, was Chicken Murg Lababdar served with Punjabi Kadu (dumplings) that were simply amazing.
After freshening up with a hot towel, we were ready to tackle dessert. We sampled an Australian dessert wine called Tokaji Aszu with a delicious caramel and molasses infused flavor. This was appropriately paired with a Spiced Chocolate Cake (infused with chili's for a nice sweet meets spice taste) and the Coconut Rice Pudding (with bruleed bananas, dates and a rum glaze) served over ginger ice cream.
This first timer to Indian Cuisine will most certainly be back. The delicious food, coupled with the perfect wines and beautiful ambiance is something I can truly get used too. Thank you to everyone at Junoon for a wonderful experience!
Junoon is located at 27 West 24th Street, New York NY 10010. For reservations, please call 212-490-2100. Visit their website www.junoonnyc.com. They can also be found on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Junoon/207513495932269?fref=ts.