The Mother khinkali looks like a gimmick, and it sounds like NYC has its share of Georgian food.
I must confess I’ve never met a khinkali I’ve liked… I had them three times in Tbilisi, and three times in the US. There must be many good ones I’m sure, but I’m still waiting…
A guy in Georgia told me that when he goes out for khinkali with his friends, they order them all steamed, and after they’ve had their fill, they get the leftovers fried. Taking the last one is ‘the khinkali of shame.’
Also, they are used primarily to soak up quantities of beer.
There are a lot of Georgian restaurants in Berlin. I had very delicate ones a couple of years ago at one of them. Some are better at khinkali than others.
I have eaten my fair share of khinkali (in Russia, Tbilisi, and NY) and I like them all. I would tend to give this restaurant the benefit of the doubt because I’ve eaten at two of this guy’s other places, one in Moscow and one in St. Petersburg, and both were very good, both food and atmosphere. This was in the early/mid 2000s and at that time they were probably the most “Western” and, to me, normal restaurants I’d ever been to in Russia. Not cheap, but also not draped in the usual blingy excess that was a hallmark of high-end restaurants there in that era.
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Its one of my least favorite Georgian staples. Dough usually too thick, and it can be messy. I’ll take a good XLB or Manti any day
I much prefer the meat filled kubdari, etc (fried or baked pastries) to the khinkali but I think a lot of people think they have to eat the knot (dough handle) on top of the khinkali which colors their view.
this presentation designed for the camera or maybe, more fairly a fancy party. turns me off totally. Maybe its the waste of food!
When we go to a Georgian place that’s frequented by Georgians, Khinkali is pretty much on every table.
I didn’t know that the first time, either.
