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Business & Tech

The Kebob Factory: For the Die Hard Fan and the Novice

This week food writer Clara Park reviews The Kebob Factory in Garrett Hill.

While I realize how fortunate I have been to travel as much as I have and to try so many different kinds of cuisines, I no longer see certain cuisines as all that exotic. I think sipping yak butter tea in a Tibetan restaurant in Manhattan is out of the ordinary. Eating live octopus at a raw Korean seafood restaurant in Flushing is strange. However, enjoying samosas, vindaloo and mango lassi do not qualify as extraordinary to me. I've been eating at Indian restaurants since before I could drive. My fifth grade classmate's family owned an Indian restaurant and so I was exposed to the world of naan, kulcha and tandoor chicken at a young age. I took two relative Indian food novices to The Kebob Factory and they were very confused by the menu. While the menu has many wonderful options, there are no explanations of the items. 

I took control of the ordering and we began with vegetable samosas, and papri chaat. The duo of fried vegetarian dumplings were filled with potatoes, peas and were more heavily spiced than other versions of this tasty starter. I could taste fennel seed and coriander and the filling was a a deeper almost purple color instead of the bright green and white color I'm used to. The magenta tamarind chutney brought to the table was an ideal dipping sauce. The papri chaat with cool chunks of cooked potato, chickpeas, lentil wafers and both mint and tamarind chutneys was a fine rendition of this street food. Generous in portion and a fantastic array of flavors and textures in every bite, this chaat was enjoyed by the whole table.

For our main courses we had the beef boti, chicken tikka masala and the lamb vindaloo. The cubed beef chunks were served with "salad, rice and naan bread". The salad was a bed of chopped iceberg lettuce, the rice was a buttery basmati and there was one lone piece of naan. The beef itself was very well done and a touch dry as a result. The spice rub on the outside was indeed tasty with a little kick of heat. The succulent morsels of rice were so good we added on another order.

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The chicken tikka masala here was bathed in a flavorful tomato sauce. While other versions of this favorite usually have some heavy cream or ghee added, the sauce here was more tomato than anything else. My newbies actually commented that it tasted like pasta sauce. It was more complex in flavor than tomato pasta sauce but the spices were a bit understated. The chunks of white breast meat were abundant and hearty.

The lamb vindaloo was the big winner of the evening. We had been hoping for a really spicy dish and the vindaloo delivered. The brick red vindaloo sauce was wonderfully thick and multi-layered. It was savory, spicy and different. It was a sauce that took plenty of time to make and the slightly chunky texture draped over the rice very nicely. We were scraping the bottom of the dish to sauce our basmati by the end of our meal. While I wished for some more morsels of lamb and fewer large pieces of potato, this dish was neverthless highly enjoyable.

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The one piece of naan was lonely so we also ordered some onion naan which was outstanding. The sweet and soft bits of cooked onion with chopped fresh herbs and a touch of oil elevated the plain naan to something special. Both naan were delicious but the onion naan was far superior. There was a slight char to the outside and the inside was pillowy soft with steam rising out of each tear of bread. 

We had mango lassi (of course), a Sierra Nevada Summer Ale and lychee juice for our beverages. The lassi was cool, thick and creamy with a nice mango flavor. The Sierra Nevada was light and refreshing and the lychee juice nothing to write home about. It didn't have the brightness of the other drinks. It tasted like canned lychee juice.

The decor is mostly dark and cherry woods with splashes of color from marigold cloth napkins and colorful patterned seat covers. It's most definitely a warm and welcoming space. Although the dining room is a respectable size, I felt downright cozy. The space looks to be a former bar and grill so the bar is a substantial part of the dining room. It didn't detract from the ambiance at all and you knew you could order whatever drink you wanted. The restaurant is still very new so they are in the process of getting their cocktail and beer list together. We were told to just ask for what we wanted.

The service is wonderful. We were greeted and seated immediately. Our questions were answered quickly and efficiently and dirty plates were cleared immediately. Water glasses were constantly filled. Everyone who came by our table had a smile and was so polite. The husband and wife team running the restaurant looked genuinely pleased to have us as guests. The food did take some time to come out but I would chalk that up to growing pains. Most restaurants take some time to work out the kinks before the kitchen and dining room can become one smooth flowing machine. I'll definitely head back and I advise you to as well. The menu may need some clarification if you are not well versed in Indian cuisine but the staff are more than happy to answer any questions you may have. My newbies enjoyed their dinner very much and learned a little something about Indian food along the way.  

The Kebob Factory
157 Garrett Ave
Rosemont, PA 19010
610-519–0500

http://www.thekebobfactory.com

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