Mid-priced Indian with above average taste 

Sarah Tse
Wharton MBA and restaurant Munish Narula’s latest brainchild has become the third stake in his mod-Indian tripod. Tiffin Bistro provides a more sophisticated version of Narula’s Tiffin restaurant chains without reaching the level of his high–end Indian fusion, Tashan. In the heart of South Philly, Tiffin Bistro provides a welcome compromise.

When I enter Tiffin Bistro, there are three other people in the restaurant: all waitstaff, sitting around the bar and chatting. The hostess looks up, with some degree of surprise, and seats me at a table by the window before returning to her conversation. The restaurant has dim lighting and clean, white tablecloths. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but the setting provides a sophisticated reprieve from the campus–quick eateries to which I’ve grown accustomed.

I start with the pesto naan ($6). The naan comes with four slices for sharing with a pesto glaze that neither soaks nor overwhelms the bread. The flavor of the sauce is similarly understated. Next comes the cauliflower bezule. I put aside my childhood hatred for all things vegetable to the try the dish—and for good reason. The bezule makes for another excellent appetizer with a sweet coconut sauce. The fried cauliflower itself is delicate and flaky, coming apart with the stab of a fork.

As I continue eating, a few other patrons filter in, but the restaurant never fills. But it’s a Monday, and it’s barely six o’clock.  The waitress returns to the table with my entree: the Indian-British staple, chicken tikka massala ($14). The Tiffin iteration proves markedly standard. The chicken is a little tough but is drenched in a creamy traditional sauce that makes this shortcoming less noticeable. The dish does nothing to distinguish itself from any other version I’ve had, though to its credit, portions are generous and have me stuffed before making it halfway through.

Dessert is the kulfi fallooda ($6), a pistachio ice cream with a basil seed and rose syrup garnish. The ice cream is too frozen upon first attempt but after thawing for a few minutes proves light and satisfying. The rose sauce sweetens, the pistachio pieces add salt and the basil provides the finishing touch.

Tiffin Bistro is exactly what you’d expect from a mid-range Indian food: nothing more, nothing less.

Tiffin Bistro

1100 Federal St.

@TiffinBistro

(215) 468–0104

Don't Miss: Cauliflower bezule

Skip: Tikka masala

$$$

 

 

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