I don't like to generalize. As a matter of fact, I HATE to generalize, as generalizations are the most blatant expressions of ignorance. Yet, at the risk of ridicule, I have to generalize about Indian cuisine. Indian cuisine is so good, so good, that it seems as if the gods must have been given the inhabitants of India the key to unlocking all flavors, all possible flavors in cooking, even flavors the world didn't even know existed. That's it, said it. If you disagree, fight it with the Europeans in the Middle Ages who literally dared ventured to the end of the world in search of a route to Indian when blocked over-land by the Ottoman Empire. Their cooking, their flavor and their spices are directly or indirectly, the sole reason America was (quote on quote) "discovered".
Which brings me to this particular review and the 5 stars you see above. 5 well deserved star. Well, let's start with the fact that I'm currently on a trip to Belgium with some friends, and I had a couple of hours to kill close to Heathrow Airport. Not just a couple but an entire day and night. It also happens that a couple of months ago I finished a book by one of my favorite authors - Salman Rushdie. A man whose genius I both adore and whom I envy on accounts of his ex-wife. Well, in his most lauded book - the one that shall remained unnamed - you know! The one that cause that fatwa, that eventually kind-of caught up with him, to be placed on his head, well, in that book a big part of the plot takes place inside a London Indian restaurant. And so, the moment London came up in my itinerary there's only one thing I've been craving, and that was Indian food, but not just any Indian food, but London Indian food.
This is where Kaniz comes into the picture. When I opened Yelp and saw the first review, it was as if the clouds had opened and answered my prayers. Like the reviewer, a fellow Yelp Elite, mentioned, they don't open until 5:30pm. I waited a bit outside, seated on a bench until they did. And when they opened, I was awkwardly the only person in the restaurant.
The first impression you get is that this place is fancy. It's perfectly decorated for a romantic dinner. The service is impeccable and the waiter treated every action, every detail, as if he was the owner of the restaurant himself.
I ordered a glass of Cabernet and It wasn't long until I was joined by other patrons, a couple, and then another. By the time they had arrived I had ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala appetizer, and what a revelation it was. The chicken was perfectly cooked, the serving dish and the chicken, and the onions, were still sizzling from the clay oven, and the flavors, oh! The flavors. They were out of this world! Then I asked the server - whose name I failed to remember and should have, what he recommended. I told him I wanted to try something creamy. And he said two words, well a couple more actually - he said: "May I recommend the Orange Chicken, sir!" - you know with that British accent.
Like everything Kaniz, it was incredibly. It came with rice and a side of salad. I also ordered naam to go with it- don't judge me. I was famished! - which I used, as you're supposed to, to soak up the cream of the orange chicken. Again, I can't rave enough. The flavors, the combinations, the spices. It's as if the rest of the world is afraid to fully play with spices, and India restaurants all around the world, like Kaniz in London, say hold my drink and then start doing somersaults with them.
If you ever find yourself close to Heathrow. Do yourself a favor, make a stop at Kaniz. Ask the server to recommend something based on what you feel like eating, and run with it. You won't regret it. read more