BY GABE HERMAN | Indian restaurant Roasted Masala opened earlier this year on the Upper West Side, and offers incredible northern Indian dishes made by those who know the area well.
Owner Samson Severes, who was born in Goa, has worked in the restaurant business in both India and the U.S. for over 25 years. Chef Jawad Rehman, longtime friends with Severes, learned to cook from his grandfather in India, who would create big wedding feasts and always experiment with new dishes and flavors. The restaurant features these recipes that Rehman learned while growing up.
The restaurant opened in January, and is at 914 Columbus Ave., at West 105th Street. The space seats 46 and features high ceilings in an open space. It is beautifully decorated, by Stellar Design, to invoke Indian themes, such as gold and red inspired by lavish Indian palaces, and plants and other greenery to pay tribute to gardens in those palaces.
The menu has plenty of vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. Appetizers include samosas, spinach chaat, a tandoori vegetable platter, chicken tikka and crab cakes.
Chicken entrees, which go for $14.95, include chicken vindaloo, tikka masala, butter chicken and chicken kadai, with bell peppers. Other offerings include entrees with goat, lamb, beef and seafood, plus vegetarian and vegan dishes. There are also plenty of breads, biryanis, and kati rolls, which are ingredients wrapped in bread and are traditionally a street food.
Desserts, for $4.95, include gulab jamun, a golden dough puff with organic honey, and kheer, which has rice and orange peel cooked in milk with shredded coconut.
There is also a 50-percent-off lunch special for those seeking a deal, and weekly special Indo-Chinese and tandoori dishes, which change based on the seasons.
Roasted Masala has been popular with diners, averaging four and a half stars on Yelp. “The food here is consistently excellent,” one man wrote on the site. “The owner is experienced, and super friendly. As frequenters of several Indian restaurants in the area over the past few years, my wife and I have happily settled on ‘Roasted’ as our go-to spot.”
Roasted Masala is open seven days a week, and more information can be found at roastedmasala.com.
