Tyga opened just before last Christmas and is located inside the 47 Hotel on Peter Street. The building dates to 1868 and was originally a shipping warehouse. Little of that industrial heritage remains and serious money has been spent on the restaurant space. It’s sleek and modern with a mix of booths and traditional tables. The decoration is subdued but there’s elements of bling in the gold coloured cutlery and glassware. They’ve got the lighting spot on – bright enough to be able to read the menu, not so bright that you need your shades. As for the food, I suppose you might call it “Modern Indian”. Certainly rooted in traditional dishes but often with a spin to them. What it is not, is your high street curry house. Much as I hate the expression, this is a good attempt to lift Indian food in the city to a “fine dining” experience.
They have a good range of cocktails and mocktails. As we sipped our aperitifs and read the menu, we nibbled on a bowl of okra fries. Now, I’m not usually a big fan of okra but these were great. Big shreds dusted with chickpea flour seasoned heavily with salt and less heavily with chilli.
Masala dosa was one of the best examples of the dish we’ve come across. Crisp pancake, well spiced potato filling and a lovely vegetable sambhar. Chole bhatura was another classic dish done well and served in almost main course proportions. The chickpea element was perhaps the nicest South Asian dish I’ve tasted in ages. The chickpeas were cooked through but still had a little bite and came in a thick, clingy sauce, full of tomato, onion and lots of spices. The bhatura flatbread had puffed up nicely, just as it should, but was overly oily from the deep frying
A first choice main course was “off the menu” that night – which means we’re going to have to come back to try the Rajasthan venison curry (jungli maas). Second choice was the server’s suggestion. Google tells me that a “martban” is a Hindu word for a ceramic jar used for storing pickles but at Tyga, they use them to bake lamb. Means the thick sauce doesn’t evaporate and the flavours are concentrated. Smell was fantastic when the server took the lid off. Baingan bharta brought a whole baked aubergine, split open. It was cooked through but not so much that it had turned to mush. It sat at a bed of mashed aubergine, slightly sweetened by caramelised onion. We shared rice and a tandoori roti.
Service had been really good – friendly yet very efficient, with things happening just as they should. I’m sure we’ll be back – there’s lots more to try on the menu that you are going to struggle to find elsewhere.
