Badmaash Bar & Restaurant
Located in Northside Apartments, Badmaash Bar & Restaurant is the latest addition to the restaurants in UTD’s vicinity. “Badmaash” is a word in Hindi and Urdu that roughly means mischievous, unruly, or notorious. As a full-time Indian who was often on the receiving end of this pejorative growing up, I decided to put to the test just how badmaash they are.
Their multilingual Indian party playlists can be heard from half a mile away every night, often drowning out the neighbouring bar’s music. So far, a good sign in terms of badmaashi. Upon entering Badmaash Bar & Restaurant, however, all expectations are incinerated by the hostess station, the gaudy chandeliers, and a general neatness that does not belong in a bar. Indian families with senior citizens and children at the tables are a poor sign for badmaashi, but indicate possibly good food.
The enormous menu features a wide array of rice dishes, curries, kebabs, and other meaty appetizers. Based on the waiters’ advice, the Deccan/South Indian items would be your best bet, which is suspicious considering the North Indian name. I ordered the Rajugari kodi, the karampodi chicken, and the chicken dum biryani. The chicken appetizers arrived, closely followed by the biryani, and the aroma was a pleasant surprise as I was beginning to lose hope. The karampodi chicken was doused in the spices promised. The meat was tender, with a crispy outer texture and rich flavour, with the overpowering tastes of red chilli powder and garlic blending perfectly. The Rajugari kodi delivered equally. It was slightly crunchier on the outside, just as tender inside, with crispy curry leaves, cashews, coriander, and onion flavours in the mix. Both the appetizers were deliciously spicy, though the karampodi chicken might be too high on the Scoville scale for some, so proceed with caution if you are American. Energised, I helped myself to the biryani and was utterly disappointed. This is one of my favourite dishes, so I have had a formidable amount of biryani in my lifetime, and the previous praise-worthy Deccan dishes had created expectations. The rice was not spicy, and the chicken even less so. Though the meat had been cooked to tenderness, it tasted woefully bland. The rice tasted like it had missing ingredients and there were zero whole spices to be found in the bowl. The saalan that came with the biryani was just as tasteless, unless you are especially fond of tasting oil. The raita lacked salt, was too thick, and was not enough. It was also too little biryani for $14. The appetizers, in contrast, had good portion sizes.
In conclusion, Badmaash Bar & Restaurant has zero badmaashi, to the point that you can take your parents and your children at the same time. If you do bother going, just buy the appetizers.
Food: 6.5/10
Price: 6/10
Vibes: 4/10
Kuppanna
Kuppanna in Plano is one of two branches this prestigious south Indian establishment has opened in DFW. Their story began around ten thousand miles away, in the hilly riverside city of Erode in India. Homegrown culinary experts Mrs. Rukmani and Mr. Kuppusamy opened Kuppanna, a restaurant serving Kongu Nadu food.
Kongu Nadu is a south Indian region where the food places heavy emphasis on the intricate blending of spices, and rice takes centre stage, with maida flour playing second fiddle. I was initially skeptical about Kuppanna because Indian franchise restaurants in the US tend to make their money from watered-down renditions of their food back home. However, Kuppanna’s menu looked authentic and promising.
The location was densely packed, with tables close together and portraits of the founders watching us dine. I ordered a mutton kari dosa, chicken kothu parotta, and idiyappam with chicken salna. The food arrived shortly, with an aroma that begged me to help myself immediately. The kari dosa looked beautiful and tasted divine. The layers of dosa, egg, and meat seamlessly combined into an explosion of flavours in my mouth. The mutton keema was perfectly fried, having been given the right amount of time to absorb all the spices while gaining the ideal texture. Served with a chunky coconut chutney on the side, the mutton kari dosa was a clear win. I directed my enthusiasm towards the chicken kothu parotta. However, upon digging in, I had to stop in my tracks. For the uninitiated, kothu parotta is not a dish served cold. It is also a fairly simple, common dish, so I did not expect to find anything wrong here. However, this was somehow cold and too dry, which resulted in an undesired chewiness. There was a good amount of vegetables, but it did not seem to have enough meat. After having finished half the bowl, the rest seemed rather unappetising. I moved on from this setback with the idiyappam and salna, and it was a restoration of hope, love, and peace upon the world. The idiyappam — gloriously fluffy, white, and ever so slightly sweet — was clearly freshly steamed. Garnished with coriander leaves, the chicken salna had a delectable consistency. The precise inclusion of coconut and tomato was evident in its outstanding flavour. The chicken was carefully cooked, the tender meat nearly falling off the bones. The delicious idiyappam and chicken salna immediately raised my spirits after the waste of $13 that was the kothu parotta.
I must say, Kuppanna’s Plano branch successfully delivers on the rich, spicy, South Indian flavours I grew up eating. The food tastes authentic and feels like it has soul. While the chicken kothu parotta may have been a disappointment, there is much to be enjoyed here. I stamp it as a worthwhile destination for anyone seeking South Indian food in DFW.
Food: 8.5/10
Price: 7/10
Vibes: 6/10
