Monthly Archives: January 2011

Did a “drive by” at Delhi Dhaba & Chaat in San Pablo (CA)

Chicken wrap with masala fries from Delhi Dhaba & Chaat in San Pablo

Chicken wrap with masala fries

Matthew and I were hungry (what else is new?) while taking care of a Smart & Final shopping trip in San Pablo recently.  It was pouring rain so we didn’t want a production, and decided that he would run into the new Indian place, Delhi Dhaba & Chaat, with $20 and buy a few things to snack on in the car.

He came back with pakora and a chicken wrap with masala fries, costing something in the neighborhood of $10.

Here’s a quick run-down of what we thought:

1).  The pakora, little vegetable fritters, were served in a paper bag to absorb the oil.  They were OK, but a little batter-heavy and veggie-light.
2).  The masala fries were regular fries with a little powdered seasoning.  Fine, but, you know, decent fries with a little something on them – what more can you say?
3).  The chicken wrap was fabulous. Lots of really moist, flavorful chicken with fried onion and green bell pepper.  All kinds of  juices so it wasn’t dry.  The naan was warm and charred.  I’m happy to have this available because I’ve been missing the chix wraps at Curry Cafe on Solano in Albany.  They used to have a great chicken wrap, but when the place changed over to House of Curries, I didn’t, and still don’t, like their version.

The proprietors at DD&C, according to Matthew, are very nice and have years of experience in the restaurant business.

Matt and I’ll go back for a full meal and report to you soon.

If you go, though, try that chicken wrap.

Affogato: Quick, wonderful dessert

Affogato at Pasta Pomodoro in El Cerrito

My son’s friend, Ed, introduced him to affogato a few years ago, and I’m glad.

Affogato means “drowned” in Italian, and involves pouring a shot of hot espresso over a scoop of vanilla gelato or ice cream, and is quite delicious.  I’m glad to have learned about it because it’s an easy way to serve a lovely dessert on the fly.

If you don’t have an espresso machine, a very strong shot of regular or good instant coffee works, but, really, you can go to Marshall’s or Ross and get a stove top espresso maker for around $10.  You don’t need some expensive job from Sur La Table.  One can of Illy and a quart of decent ice cream in the freezer will make you dessert-ready.

Ideally, serve the ice cream in a cup and the espresso on the side in a little silver pitcher or creamer, allowing your guests to pour said espresso over said ice cream.

The photo above is of a mini-affogato we had recently at Pasta Pomodoro in El Cerrito – which you can generally order even when it’s not listed on the menu.