Oklahoma City, OK
(405) 942-7813
Rasoi Chaat Cafe is a small restaurant connected to an Indian grocery store (Spices of India), and apparently only serves takeout and delivery for the time being (I ordered delivery through one of the services). As far as I know this is the only Indian restaurant in town that has thali (a sampler plate that is common in west coast Indian restaurants). Although it is not the only restaurant in town that has the Indian spicy pickle to go with the food, it is the only one I have found that includes it in delivery orders. This is also the best pickle I have found recently (I have not been to Taj in a while and I do not know what they currently have).
These factors alone put Rasoi Chaat way ahead of many other Indian restaurants, but of course the food itself is also an important consideration. I will admit that I did not think some of the items were as good as ones I have had in other restaurants. The difference in flavor is not great but technically I liked the chana masala (made with chickpeas) at Naan Indian Restaurant better than the choley (chickpea) curry here. The fact that the one here came with pickle made this a better meal in my opinion, but some restaurants do have individual items that compete well with the food served here.
With thali (a sampler plate) the sum is greater than the individual parts, and the overall experience here was very good (especially for the price you pay). My only issue with the thali is that I had some in Seattle that were better, but the food here was a solid five stars all the way through the menu.
The spice level here was about right–I would say typical of North Indian restaurants (ones that are authentic and not Americanized).
One important factor was that the masala tea was excellent–something I really need to complete the perfect Indian meal.
Thali
Thali is a traditional Indian sampler plate that gives you small portions of a number of items. At Rasoi Chaat you can pick any two curries and the bread you want. The salad, yogurt, dessert, rice, pickle, and papad are standard on all plates. I believe all the curries are vegetarian (something I did not notice until I looked at their menu on the Internet because I usually order vegetarian dishes anyway).
Thali has so many items they come in two separate boxes, with the main items shown above. On the bottom left is Red Chori Curry (with adzuki beans). At the upper right is Choley Curry (with chickpeas). The truth is that both are equally good, but I rated the chori curry as one of my favorite items because it is something I have not seen in other restaurants. The choley curry is very similar to the channa masala dishes I have eaten elsewhere. I must make mention of the Puri (fry bread) which I really liked, and thought was a good alternative to the naan served at most restaurants (and which is available here as one of the bread choices).
The curries were spicy but not more so than I find at most Indian restaurants.
This container included the Pickle which was medium on the spice level and very good in flavor. The Papa (called papadum in most restaurants) was the best I can ever remember having. The Salad was very good, and the Raita (yogurt) made a good dressing which was somewhat spicy. At the top right is the Rasmalai which was a dessert made with milk, sugar, and saffron.
As I said in the opening comments, the sum is greater than the parts with thali. The great thing about it is really the way the different items go together rather than how much I enjoyed any particular part of it.
Drinks
The Masala Tea was very good, with the right spices. I got the 12 ounce size (it is also available in 8 oz.).
Other Comments
The fact that they have thali makes this one of the best choices I have found for Indian food in Oklahoma City. The food is excellent as well, A good example of this is the papad, which is the only really good example that I have found anywhere (and the pickle that goes with this and the other items is excellent as well).
The curries are where I think some of the other restaurants in town become very competitive. For me it is a choice of whether I want the best main dishes (which are at some of the other restaurants) or whether I want the best overall dinner (which is here with the nine items served on thali).
RATING: 24
Cuisine: Indian
Cost: $$
Hours: Closed Mon.
Accessible: N/A
Smoking: No Smoking
Alcohol: No
Most Recent Visit: Oct. 8, 2020
Number of Visits: 1
Best Items: Red Chori Curry, Puri, Rasmalai, Papad, Masala Tea
Choley Curry | |
Red Chori Curry | |
Puri | |
Raita | |
Salad | |
Papad | |
Rasmalai | |
Pickle | |
Masala Tea |
What a delicious compilation !! Can’t wait to try a few!Thanks for including good north indain food too with chaats. To check- https://www.kailashparbat.com.sg/