A cafe so nice I had their food twice this week. I had noticed Masala Kraft a couple of times when I was in the neighborhood and when I wanted a noontime walk on a recent sunny day, I headed straight in that direction.
We shared a couple of really good dishes: aloo bhindi and a falafel sandwich. The first was the daily special, a nice and spicy combination of potatoes, okra and other veg, served with dal, rice and a buttery flatbread, lentil paratha. The veg were fresh and a little crisp, each with a distinct flavor and texture rather than stewed into an amorphous mass. Garnishes included fresh ginger and cilantro. Unlike some people, I'm a huge cilantro fan.
The sandwich was made with a chewy, pillowy whole-wheat pita stuffed with crisp, hot falafel, shredded iceberg lettuce, diced tomato, parsley, and cilantro, topped with tahini and a a mildly spicy yogurt sauce. I liked the combination of textures and temperatures. Another good choice.
Customers order at the counter, and a server brings food to the tables. The service is friendly and accommodating. After we sat down I remarked to my companion that I was going to want a glass of water. The server must have overheard me, as she delivered it to the table before I got around to asking for it.
The immaculate open kitchen contained about four people doing food prep ballet: cooking, wiping, plating, packing to-go orders, never seeming to get in one another's way.
Lunch for two, including a soda, cost about $20 and it seemed really reasonable.
Masala Kraft has the most interesting decor and beautiful dinnerware of any tiny mostly takeout place that I know of: Creamy ceramic tile on the floors and the walls up to a copper colored chair rail, heavily urethaned dark-wood tabletops with crackle-glazed gold-leaf centers, and comfy chairs. Even the ceiling is interesting: copper-colored pressed metal, surrounded by a lighting soffit. The pottery dinnerware has a nice heft and artisanal look: matte black, nonsymmetrical oval serving dishes and small, square plates, all with the cafe's name embossed in the stylized logo script.
I ordered takeout the next day, it was good, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much. The daily special, a biryani dish with green beans, cauliflower, and other veg, was spicy hot and tasty, but not amazing. $12 seemed a little steep for a dish that was mostly rice, though it did come with raita and paratha.
Tasty chana bhatura, chickpeas in a spicy tomato onion sauce, too, seemed a bit pricey, about a one-cup serving for $8.50, served with puri.
I'd definitely go there again, but I'd be more likely to eat there and enjoy the food at its hottest, freshest point.
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