Toddy Shop by The 6Pack Chef
Kothu Parotta – Multi Layered Flaky Flat Bread, Stir Fried Veggies, Chili Beef, Toddy Shop Assorted Chips
Pot of Biriyani – Fragrant Basmati, Chicken Masala, Ghee, Cashew, Raisin, Crispy Onion
Indian Chopsuey – Crispy Noodle, Chili-Garlic Gravy, Stir Fried Veggies, Char Grilled Baby Bok Choy, Bulls Eye
Kappa and Konj – Turmeric Mashed Tapioca, Shrimp Masala, Tempered Mustard Seeds, Curry Leaf, Whole Red Chili, Desiccated Coconut, Toddy Shop Assorted Chips
Say what you will about Hemant Kishore’s recent career trajectory, from early-morning hours baking at PublicUS to a high-end catering service delivering nutritious boxed lunches to clients focused on their health, there is little doubt that the man puts a lot of passion and integrity into every single project he approaches, Toddy Shop by The 6Pack Chef at Inn Zone on Rainbow hoping to entirely reinterpret Sin City’s idea of what constitutes “Indian” Food.
Not exactly the most likely location, a University of Michigan Bar that rivals any in Ann Arbor for the veracity of its fans, it was after a somewhat unfortunate incident that a repeat attempt was made to visit the small dining area tucked away next to a tiny kitchen where the young Chef from Southern India sets up each evening, the well-culled menu playing of the roadside shops and comfort dishes of Kishore’s youth.
Dining with a friend who has possibly visited every Indian restaurant in the 702, our palates often matching as relates to most things besides his disproportionately high tolerance of heat, it was in passing a television area completely decked out in Maize and Blue that we were greeted by Hemant’s partner at the small kitchen window before taking a seat in the small dining area, music from a nearby Jukebox playing at bar-loud levels with everything from rock to country as the basketball Wolverines were being trounced on a nearby screen by the UCLA Bruins.
Looking over a menu of all-day bar-food plus several Toddy Shop nightly specials, it was with a bit of sadness for the Chef that a patron actually had the nerve to ask whether he could bring in food from a nearby Mexican fast-food restaurant, the typical Inn Zone client most certainly not a foodie, let alone the sort to appreciate the quality or skill in the preparation of the restaurant-within-a-bar’s Farmer’s Market ingredients.
Eventually deciding on four plates, each more than sizable enough to share amongst a party of three or four, it was with a slow roll-out that each dish arrived at a four-top soon to be filled to capacity, the Kothu Parotta offering a whole lot of heat as Chili-rubbed beef was tossed into a stir-fry of Vegetables and flaky flatbread that soaked up a lot of flavor from the pan juices plus an assortment of housemade Chips that were tasty on their own, but even better when used as delivery devices for bites from the bowl with which they were mixed.
Having previously tasted The 6Pack Chef’s Biriyani at the Chef Series Potluck, here even better in a warm stone pot and certainly the most recognizable plate on a menu of dishes likely unfamiliar to all but descendants of India or those exceedingly well-traveled, Indian Chopsuey came across as an almost fusion-y plate of crispy Noodles amidst fragrant Gravy and Baby Bok Choy, the Birds Eye Chili melding nicely with a fried egg that mixed to leave each bite glistening.
Given a hard time by the bartender for only ordering two glasses of water, a comment questioning my manhood brushed off by a patron of the bar who referred to the Inn Zone employee as an A**hole, it was with a “poor man’s” dish of Kappa and Konj that dinner concluded, the Turmeric Mashed Tapioca an absolute stunning flavor when mixed with India’s version of the trinity, a few Shrimp cooked Masala style plus Desiccated Coconut that tempered the heat while giving the whole bowl a sweet and nutty perfume that lingered.
FOUR AND A HALF STARS: Setting aside my alma matter and the manner in which staff and patrons feel fit to treat their guests, Toddy Shop by the 6Pack Chef is a dessert or two short of being “destination” Indian food for those willing to explore the boundaries of more traditional fare.
RECOMMENDED: Kappa and Konj, Kothu Parotta, Indian Chopsuey.
AVOID: Wearing anything Scarlet, Grey, Green, White or other than Maize and Gold here during Football Season.
TIP: Offering delivery by way of Bite Squad, another worthy tidbit is Chef Kishore’s drunken Holiday Cake currently available for pre-order.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor.
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