WRITING CULTURE 2012: Film, Food & Beyond

(Pic:Steve McCurry)

On the corner of an indistinct street, tucked away behind the food trucks and bodegas that thrive off the cash strapped hustle and bustle of Baruch student life is Bamiyan, Murray Hill’s own little piece of Persia. The restaurant named after an area in northern Afghanistan famous for its large limestone cliff Buddhas opened in 1993 and is currently run by two brothers, one a former Afghan Supreme Court judge.

On the day we visited, it was 4.30 and unsurprisingly almost empty. Despite the decorative iron décor that surrounds the façade and the mosaic laden entrance as you head in through the front entrance, the place is an un intrusive vision amongst its bland neighbors.

Once inside, we are immediately greeted by the sole waitress who showed us cheerily towards our table by the window. The relaxing sounds of south Asian music, providing the perfect aural back drop to the myriad of Afghani maps, Persian rugs and art work that adorn the exposed brick and wood paneling. The vibe could be described as rustic. It’s as homely and authentic as I can imagine (having never been to Afghanistan) but the cracked paint on the walls suggest there may have been more profitable days in its almost twenty year history.

Bamiyan serves what is describes as ‘traditional Afghan cooking’ which if like me you are unfamiliar with what that is, translates to; lots of subtly spiced meat choices that come with rice, in particular chicken, minced beef and lamb, an excellent range of vegetarian dishes, several curries (lamb, chicken, seasonal fish and shrimp) and kebabs (kebobs), plus a choice of 9 teas including one with the customary Afghan blend of milk, sugar, cardomon and rose petals called Shir-Chay.

I chose to start by cleansing my palette with some green tea with ginger at $3.95 This delicious and comforting drink came piping hot in a beautiful silver pot for one within minutes.

As an appetizer, the table ordered the Fesenjan $8.95, a type of thick Persian stew made with tender boneless chicken and an appealing sweet and sour flavor, thanks to the presence of walnuts and pomegranate juice. As unimpressive as stews often are to the eye, the unique combination of ingredients in this dish were a delight to savor and easily shared amongst the table, helped along by a generous portion of fresh bread that we used to scoop up the satisfying sauce.

For the entre I chose Kabuli Palow with lamb $16.95. A rather uninspired decision on my part as there was no sauce at all and besides the rice (I opted to have the white basmati rice instead of the usual brown baked rice topped with shredded carrots and raisons) the dish simply came with a liberal pinch of onion on the side.

The lamb chunks didn’t disappoint however and were as juicy, succulent and expertly prepared as the chicken had been but there was no hiding from how safe and yes, boring it was. I suspect the local gyro food truck nearby could possibly have given this dish a superior run for half the money but the Mantoo, a lasagne-looking steamed beef dumpling topped with yogurt and meat sauce ($14.95), was being eagerly enjoyed by my dinner dates.

None of the four desserts including a baklava, home made vanilla ice cream (Malai e) fried dough (Elephants ear) or rice-flour pudding, really took our fancy, so we ended the lunch there, each of us vowing to return to try some of the more unusual items on the menu.