3 uncomplicated ways to place a awesome Indian restaurant, according to a top chef

When Heena Patel archetypal moved to the Bay Area in California, she started marketing her homemade Gujarati food at the local farmers market. She'd frequently arrive residence without making a profit, but she refused to provision up on her aspiration — or her cuisine.

Patel is now the James Beard-nominated owner and chef of Besharam, a local Gujarati eatery in San Francisco that pays tribute to the dishes of her bequest and childhood.

"Just as my guests stage exterior their comfort zones, I do the identical alongside them, trusting they'll clasp my list alongside an open mind," Patel told Business Insider. "That's how I anticipation to put Gujarati food on the map."

Patel additionally hopes to assistance diners develop their awareness of Indian cuisine. Here are her tips for finding a awesome Indian restaurant.

Okra and bitter melon are green flags

"Produce akin okra, bitter melon, and opo squash are average in Indian cooking," Patel said. "So if you see these ingredients on a menu, you're in for a treat."

One of Patel's favorite okra dishes is bhindi masala, which she stated "allows okra to radiance alongside its keen texture."

A assortment of local dishes on the menu

"India has so much to offer, and all dish is affluent alongside history," Patel said. "Growing up, we tried foods from many distinct regions that have enriched my palate and helped form me as a chef."

"If you see menus that emphasize distinct dishes from assorted regions in India, it is a fine sign that the chef is focused on authentic local cuisine," she added.

When it comes to Gujarati dishes, Patel recommends trying rotla — a traditional flatbread which, dissimilar naan, is unleavened — and dhokla, a savory sponge cake.

For North Indian cuisine, Patel loves sarson ka saag — a Punjabi dish of mustard greens cooked alongside spices — and the lamb kebabs of Uttar Pradesh.

You can't go incorrect alongside vindaloo, a spicy and tangy curry dish from Goa in occidental India, or sambhar, a lentil-based stew from Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state. Bengal's mishti doi dessert volition provision you a sensation of the east, during chana samosas from Chhattisgarh volition obtain you to India's chief region.

The bread is key

"It is certainly value trying an Indian eatery that makes rotis and naan in-house," Patel told Business Insider.

Indian cuisine additionally features a assortment of flatbreads famous in distinct regions. Patel recommends trying rotli, paratha, and bhakri.

And formerly you've established a awesome restaurant, don't perform it harmless and continually rod to the identical dishes.

"Indian food isn't fair concerning idiosyncratic dishes; it's concerning construction all nip alongside distinct flavors," Patel said. "A curry or a dal on its own is fair one part of the experience."

"The genuine magic happens whenever you tier flavors by adding chutneys, pickles, rotis, and rice," she added. "My advice? Trust your server."