This is a surprising place... and an eclectic one. When I saw the mixed-up cuisine-focus on the…read moresign I was a bit confused at first. Touted primarily as an Indonesian Restaurant, it also qualifies itself as an Indian eatery, as well as presenting the cuisine of Suriname - and doing it all under the umbrella of being Halal (which may also mean "Pradesh"). Now that's a lot of cuisines, all from different corners of the globe. But then I recalled my week shooting a movie in Belize a decade ago, and there was the connection. In Belize there seems to be an unwritten rule (or tradition) that was proudly announced by our liaison from the film office. And that was that ALL OF THE GROCERY STORES (the country only had small mom & pop places) in Belize City were owned and run by Indians from India; and the most popular food, being Chinese steam table take-out joints like we have in America (fried rice, spring rolls, noodles, sweet & sour chicken/shrimp, spicy saucy stir fried meat & vegies, etc...), and these places were always packed with lines around the corner. They were also ALL OWNED AND RUN by Vietnamese extended families. And the Vietnamese community mixed very well with the Indian families, having similarly imported ingredients from afar, as well as exotic flavors, similar spices, rice based cuisines, and they both cooked curries.
Now for Suriname and Indonesia and how those two food cultures fit into the menu profile at Restaurant Riaz. I have eaten a lot of Indonesian food in my day, and its flavor pallet is very similar to India, Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand, all using coconut milk, peanuts, chili-peppers, potatoes, green peppers, fish-sauce, vegies, and similar meats and seafoods, plus blends of sweet and salty and spicy and sour; and all of them use rice. Now the thread that sews Suriname to these others is that it was also a Dutch Colony, as were Indonesia and parts of India (like Sri Lanka [Ceylon at the time]). So the Dutch created huge incentives for the Indians in their empire to relocate to the sparsely populated Suriname; and these Indians brought their food with them. So when I ate lunch in New York City at a Surinamese place in The Bronx, I was surprised to see the menu filled with Curries, Chutney, Samosas, Fried Pakoras, and everything was served with rice and Indian Roti, (an oily flour tortilla-like bread), often accompanied by a small bowl of rich brown Curry-Gravy to dip into. The food from Suriname was Literally INDIAN FOOD.
Thus the culinary story of Restaurant Riaz and its diverse menu started to make a lot of sense. The Indonesian food complimented the Surinamese meals; and the Indian dishes blended seamlessly with the other cuisines. And the Roti and Curry-Gravies went perfectly with everything. Restaurant Riaz is a big success story in my book. I can't wait to come here again - and this time I am going to bring a whole bunch of friends.
