Shangrila -- A Slice of Tibetan Paradise
May 17 '01 (Updated May 18 '01)
The Bottom Line Shangrila, recently opened in March, is a tiny slice of paradise located in the EastVillage. It is an authentic Tibetan restaurant with an elegant modern décor, and delicious well-prepared food.
Shangrila, recently opened in March, is a tiny slice of paradise located in the East Village. It is an authentic Tibetan restaurant where there are so few nearby. The food is elegantly presented, and delicious. The gems are momo, or dumplings, a Tibetan favorite that is steamed, fried, or served in soup. Equally good are the Chasha chicken dishes, or Thukpa noodles. The prices are quite reasonable with filling portions.
The restaurant itself is unassuming; one can almost walk by without noticing Shangrila. Inside, however, is a whole other world. You would be hard pressed to find something this nice around St. Marks Place. It is an elegant, and contemporarily designed space with seating for 26. Lighting is backlit from above and below. The ceiling resembles a Tibetan timbered roof with thatching, the twigs of which arranged to allow light to filter through. The rosy lacquered tables are rustic, yet beautiful. Each with a tiny painting at its center – the tables resemble a Mandala, but unintended as such.
On the restaurant’s sandstone walls is a sketch of Lhasa, its surroundings faded into the luminescent stone much like a dream, or a memory. In the background, Tibetan chanting and music softly play while a delicate scent of incense wafts through the air. The bathroom is clean, modern, and had the same music piped in.
Food:
For starters, I went with Shogo Momo, $4.00. These pan-fried dumplings filled with mashed potatoes and scallions were quite delicious and had a sublime taste, slight crunch and chew to them. The dumplings also came with a bit of coleslaw seasoned with rice vinaigrette that nicely complemented the flavors and texture. One could also order various other appetizers such as the Shogog Khatsa, which are baby potatoes served cold on a bed of greens and tomatoes, $4.50.
Accompanying my meal was a killer hot sauce made of chilies, garlic, and other spices; it is not to be missed. The flavors in the sauce have this wonder base flavor of black pepper with fiery chilies that burns the tongue and made a lot of food come alive.
The salads and soups selection were fair. There are some Japanese items like miso soup, $2.50, a cloudy white miso soup containing cubes of silken tofu and scallions. I tried this, and found it a tad salty, but good.
For main course, I had to choose wisely because it was table for one. So I asked the owner, Tsering, if they had anything special, and what would be good. She said the most popular dish was the Tsel Nezom, a dish of 12 different fresh vegetables sautéed with ginger and garlic, $8.75. So this I tried. After 15 or so minutes for the dish it to be prepared, it was brought before me in a square, rustic looking, yet elegant Japanese serving bowl. The food looks good, very colorful. The vegetables were fresh, but the taste overall was somewhat bland. I knew I made a mistake here. I thought popular meant people ordering it for its good taste. I was wrong, “Popular”, Tsering later clarified, meant popular with Americans because it is a healthy vegetarian dish. OH!!
I should have ordered the Chasha Shamdhe, a chicken curry marinated in herbs and yogurt, $9.50; the Chasha Khatsa, a spicy tender chicken dish sautéed with chili peppers, $10.50; or the Gutse Ritu, a hand rolled pasta dish served in a lamb broth with a dollop of cottage cheese, $8.50. These would be better choices. Next time I will try this and revise my review to include it.
Also available are momo, and these are hard not to love. The shogo momo appetizer was good, but they only contained potato and scallions. For entrée, you can have an additional four flavors -- spinach and curd cheese, beef with scallions and ginger, chicken with onion and sesame, or vegetable -- $8.50 steamed, or $9.50 fried and accompanied with a bowl of vegetable consommé.
Entrees come with white or brown rice, Bhalae (whole wheat bread), or Ting Mo. The choices here would naturally be bread so I choose Ting Mo. It is delicious steamed bread dusted with saffron and fenugreek. It has a lovely honey aroma and delicate melt-in-your mouth taste. If you ever had Chinese steamed bread, ting mo is similar but better. The end of the meal brought with it some barley tea.
I did not partake in dessert, but there are some nice choices. There is Deysee, a sweet rice pudding flavored with raisins and yogurt, $3.50; and Bhaktsa Markhu which is hand made Tibetan pasta toasted with barley flour and sautéed in brown sugar and butter, $3.50. Ice cream and sorbets are also available.
The beverages selection was decent. Beer, either Sapporo, Heineken, or another I forgot which; wine, water, soda, and tea. The wine list was tiny, but listed excellent California choices. A glass is $4.50, or by the bottle, $22.
Notes:
Shangrila is a family restaurant, and her brother does the cooking. Prior to opening this restaurant in New York, Tsering, the owner previously owned a small restaurant in Simla, India, but the decor was “Not as nice as this”.
In lieu of a la carte dining, there is also an early bird special that is pretty good allowing you to choose appetizer, soup, any entrée, plus wine for $12.00. Only the choice of appetizer is limited, not the entrées. I got this and it is worth it.
Rating
Food and Presentation – 4 stars
Ambience and Décor -- 5 stars
Quality of Service -- 5 stars
Overall -- 4 stars.
Location:
Shangrila
129 Second Avenue (between 7th and 8th Street).
Visa, Mastercard accepted.
212 387 7908
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