Indian food

Ed Grzyb tweeted last night:

Enjoyed dinner tonight at Shanti in Roslindale. Food: great. Service: good. Tables: Mostly full. No alcohol license yet.

Shanti goes before the Boston Licensing Board on Wednesday to request a food-serving license for the old Rialto site, 4197 Washington St. Restaurants seeking only food-serving licenses usually only go before the board when they are within a couple of weeks of opening.

Shanti is proposing hours of 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. for what would be Roslindale's only Indian restaurant. Jamaica Plain currently has two Indian restaurants; West Roxbury has one.

The board's hearings start at 10 a.m. in its eighth-flooring hearing room at City Hall.

A big sign in the window at the late Cafe Rialto on Washington Street now advertises the impending arrival of an outpost of Dorchester's Shanti.

The Boston Licensing Board decides tomorrow whether to grant licenses to three new eateries:

Boston Restaurant Talk rounds up the news on the imminent departure of the Bombay Club to Washington Street (where Pho Republique is now) in the South End.

Bukhara to get competition.

And so Roslindale's dining transformation will be complete. Adam Rosi-Kessel reports Himalayan Bistro of West Roxbury will be opening a second location in the Washington Street space now occupied by NuVo. No more long, wearying trips all the way up to Centre Street for momos!

Also: Emack and Bolio's is now owned by the owner of the Blue Star, who will be renaming it Select Cafe. If they know what's good for them, they will keep the frappes and couches - they don't want to face the wrath of the kidlet, who loves sipping a frappe while all comfy on one of the couches.

Scott Stearns thought he was just stepping into the Kebab Factory for some lunch. He was really stepping into the novel he was reading.

Third Decade says the meal at Legal Test Kitchen was so bad (both food and service) it took a good meal at JP's Dogwood Cafe to help get rid of some of the taste.

Titanjockey says Chipotle in Medford is worth the trip for its to-die-for fajita burritos.

Andreas Matern asks: If you haven't been to the All Star Sandwich Bar in Inman Square, what the hell are you waiting for?

Mark writes that Bengal Cafe in North Cambridge is OK, but that there are better Indian options in the Boston area.

Chris and Erin say that Taste of Thailand in Dorchester Lower Mills is much better than you'd think from its plain exterior.

Anna Kushnir reviews five restaurants in the Longwood Medical Area.

Rachele Rosi-Kessel says the food at Salute in Roslindale changed from excellent to disappointing when the chef changed.

Marc: Classic India in Quincy still rules!

Seth Gitell compares Punjabi Dhaba Roadside Restaurant in Inman Square and Mantra in downtown Boston. He finds Punjabi Dhaba serves good food at good prices, but writes that Mantra is overpriced and seems more concerned with setting a scene than serving food worth the extra cost.

Marc also says Dolphin in Natick has good food but absolutely atrocious service.

Stang8s says the dim sum at Hei La Moon in Chinatown is awesome:

We found everything to be great today, much better then we had remembered even.

Boston Chomps recommends Muqueca in Inman Square for Brazilian seafood stew:

... My favorite however, was the cod capixaba. It's made from salt cod, and stewed in coconut milk. The stew also includes plantains, olives, and boiled eggs. A strange combination but DELICIOUS. It tasted even better after adding the hot sauce served at every table. ...

Not up for Brazilian seafood? What about Brazilian meat meat meat. Bill Ives savors the Cafe Belo in Somerville, one of a whole chain of Brazilian meat joints.

Of course, local eaters are supping on more than just Brazilian fare:

Pocheco explains why she found a painting at Shalimar creepy.

Boston Chomps on Petit Robert Bistro downtown: We'll definitely be back.

Lyss on Zocalo in Brighton: What a pleasant first experience at a restaurant.

Lewis Forman on Kashmir on Newbury Street: I have never seen a grumpier group of servers ever. Except at McDonalds.

Yoav Shapira on Om in Cambridge: The bar drinks were amazing.

Himalayan Bistro opened yesterday, bringing relief to long suffering Indian-food fans in West Roxbury, Roslindale and East Dedham. It also doubles as the Boston area's first Nepali restaurant.

We stopped by tonight for some takeout. I admit it, I wasn't feeling so adventurous, so I got chicken curry with some naan.

Very good! Only quibble: I'd asked for mild and the curry was relatively hot - which normally I like, except when it's already wicked hot and humid out like it was before the downpour.

The restaurant takes the place of the old Yoo Hoo's ice-cream parlor. It's an amazing transformation. Yoo Hoo's was a narrow space, but Himalayan Bistro is this huge (well, by West Roxbury standards), high-ceilinged, wood-panelled room (with small candles on every table, even).

And, oh my God, they have brunch on both weekdays and weekends. I am SO there.

Himalayan Bistro is at 1735 Centre St., across from West, and a block away from the Holy Name rotary. Map.

There are now two golden Buddhas in the window of what's going to become Himalayan Bistro, the first Indian (and Nepali) restaurant in Boston south of the Arboretum (it's on Centre Street in West Roxbury where Yoo Hoo's used to be, or, for you old-timers, Brigham's). So opening soon?

Update, 6/1: It's open.

Krissy recommends Khushboo at 1709 Mass. Ave.

... Yesterday, I went to what I consider to be hands down one of the best Indian restaurants I've ever been to ...