Taste of Bombay

Most kitchens within walking distance of the Niagara Falls hotel strip cook to a tourist's expectations. Taste of Bombay cooks to someone who knows the difference between butter chicken and Nihari — the Pakistani veal curry, simmered overnight over low heat until the spices go deep, that it files under Bombay's Specials rather than the standard curry lane. The give-away is how much of the menu lives on the Pakistani side of the kitchen — the simmered specials and long-cooked braises that take the better part of a day, and that reward a diner who came looking for them. The familiar Indian comfort food is here too, and done right, but the cooking that sets the kitchen apart is the part a visitor passing through rarely thinks to order.

The breadth is the first thing a newcomer notices. Butter Chicken anchors the comfort end — chicken and herbs in a creamy butter sauce, served with rice or naan — while the biryanis run three ways, Bombay-style basmati layered with spicy chicken, lamb, or vegetables. The Pakistani side carries the dishes worth a second trip: Haleem, a hot blend of nine lentils and meats tempered with spicy herbs; Chicken Karahi cooked fast in a wok until the sauce tightens; Seekh Kabob and Keema Mattar built on veal rather than the usual beef or lamb. From the tandoor come Chicken Tikka, Paneer Tikka, and Chicken Shashlik skewered with vegetables, with Garlic Naan or plain Tandoori Naan and roti to carry it all.