Harvest of India

An enchantment with Indian Cuisine

By Alexander Greeley

In the mid 1980’s, America was swept with a passion for all things Indian. Everywhere we looked, epic movies such as “Gandhi” and “A Passage to India” and the television series “The Jewel in the Crown” brought us India in Technicolor. We heard Indian music, saw Indian art, watched Indian dance.

Fortunately, Indian food was not far behind. And for foodies, the real enchantment with India must begin with its food creamy curries, rose and cardamom-scented sweets, fragrant grilled meats and seafoods, and hot textured breads. Saffron and ginger. Cinnamon and sjwain, fenugreek and poppy seeds. Hypnotizing, sensuous words that seduce the senses.

Indeed, Indian food seduces the senses, and Indian recipes read like poetry—in particular, read Yamuna Devi’s tome “Lord Krishna’s Cuisine”— and the food tastes as poetic as it sounds. So we are lucky that the fancy for Indian cooking has not been a passing one and that so many good Indian restaurants have opened up and stayed open in the metro areas.

Not as many years ago, however, you might have found maybe one or two in Northern Virginia. But today, almost every town or area has its own Indian eatery. In fact, in Fairfax, in about a five-block radius, you’ll find there such places: Bombay Bistro, Connaught Plave, and Noor Mahal.

With as many good choices available, you’d be hard-pressed not to find puffy tandoori breads, silken curries and sensational dals. Consider this partial list and enjoy.

At one point, Herndon offered two Indian restaurants, and now only one survives, the Harvest of India. Located in the K-Mart shopping center, this small packs them in on Saturday nights, and if you arrive beyond the early dinner hours, you may have to wait in the crowded entryway. But once seated, you’ll immediately catch the drift of the restaurant’s name: Harvest scenes and collages of seeds provide the decor here.

The menu is nicely composed, with plenty of choices in every category. My friend was very impressed, as we worked our way through the meal, starting with the chicken pakoras—which tasted much like a long and slender version of some restaurant’s chicken tenders in batter—and the much more intriguing aloo papri chat, a combo of chick peas with potatoes and a chutney-yogurt sauce.

She loved her tandoori chicken, but I loved even more the lamb vindaloo, properly spicy and not-too hot for the her tastes—and the garlic nan, generously studded with bits of garlic. This was a treat and one of the better versions around. Their mango ice cream was also delicious, though the serving size was a bit skimpy. Theirs is a very full menu, and the restaurant makes a good destination. The only drawback was the slow service. It seems like the wait staff was a bit overwhelmed the night we ate there, and perhaps management was one person short. Otherwise it was a good experience, a fine meal.