Vegetarian Fare at Thali Too in New Haven CT

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In the Broadway Historic District of New Haven, is Chef Prasad Chirnomula's  casual and fun dining experience, Thali Too. This all vegetarian restaurant features traditional Indian food in a unique setting amidst the Shops at Yale.  At Thali Too, you can dine inside or out on their spacious patio, and they also offer food "to go".

Thali Too on Broadway in New Haven
(next to the Yale Bookstore)

Chef Chef Prasad was the winner of both the 2011 & 2013 Elm City Iron Chef Competitions, and has also been featured at area food and wine festivals (Greenwich Food & Wine Festival, and Savor CT, Foxwood Resort Casino's Wine and Food Festival).

In addition to Thali Too in the Yale district, Chef Chirnomula is the owner/operator/chef at four other restaurants in Connecticut, Thali in New Haven, Westport, and Ridgefield, and Oaxaca Kitchen, also in New Haven.

Thali Too has a really unique menu - it's a tablet that allows you to view pictures of the items and offers a full description of the menu selection. What a great option this is for newbies to Indian Cuisine and Vegetarian food, like me!

Thali Too Menu Tablet

We started our tasting with some cocktails!  Of course!

Pictured left to right below are the TAJMO COCKTAIL (Svedka Vodka, Triple sec, fresh lime juice and cranberry juice), the MUMBAI MARGARITA (Matador Tequila, Lime juice, Stirrings All Natural Orange Liqueur with a spicy lemon chili rim) and FAITHFULLY GINGER (Gin, Elder Flower, Ginger, Lime and Turmeric)

L-R Tajmo Cocktail, Mumbai Margarita, Faithfully Ginger Cocktail

First on our tasting was BHEL POORI (CHAT) a sweet, sour ,and spicy emulsion of chat, puffed light rice and lentil noodles. This was sooo good and the flavor combo was incredible.

BHEL POORI (CHAT)

Next, we cleared our palates with a great Mediterranean style salad, complete with stuffed grape leaves!

GREEK GODDESS SALAD

Romaine lettuce, Bulgarian feta, olives, red onion, stuffed grape leaf, 

naan bread with garlic & lemon oil vinaigrette

There is also a flat bread pizza available. This is a great item to share!  The one we sampled was deliciously crispy and topped with my favorite eggplant!

Naanizza Flat Breads

Paradise Flat Bread with roasted eggplant, 

artichoke hearts & portabella mushrooms

We then munched on some nan bread served with a delicious chick pea dipping sauce. This was another of my favorites. The chick pea mixture was billed as spicy, but I found it to be moderately spicy. Not overpowering at all.

CHOLE BATHURA (H) (V)

Spicy chick peas and deep fried nan bread

Next was an Indian version of a 'taco' - served with a deliciously crisp salad!

PANEER TACOS
Corn tortilla, spiced paneer, and cilantro pesto, cucumber salsa

Another favorite was the Falafel which was served with a side of the most amazing crispy fried vegetables.

FALAFEL

Nan bread, chickpea and herb falafel, Tahini

The showstopper of the evening was the Dosa! A humongous crepe-like bread, served with dipping sauce. This was a fun item to share with friends! You just rip off pieces of the bread and spoon some of the toppings on your plate to dip (and double-dip!!) to your pleasure!

DOSA
A thin rice crepe served with dips

We then moved on to desserts, sampling GULAB JAMUN and some VANILLA ICE CREAM.

Yum!

GULAB JAMUN

Deep fried milk balls in just so slightly sweet honey syrup

And Yummmm!!!

ICE CREAM

Here's a quick picture of the interior of Thali Too.

And a picture of the outdoor dining area - my favorite area to eat in the summer!

Thali Too is a wonderful place to get some traditional Indian food and Indian Street Food. And it's located in such a great area with some wonderful retail outlets like J. Crew, Yale Bookstore, Urban Outfitters, and more. So much to do - and steps away from beautiful Yale  University where you can view some amazing Gothic architecture!

Be sure you stop and visit Thali Too soon!

Thali Too

65 Broadway
New Haven, CT 06511
 (203) 776-1600
http://www.thalitoo.com/index.php

Disclaimer: We were invited to Thali Too by members of their managment and marketing team, however all views expressed are our own.


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SomruS Indian Cream Liqueur Pairing at Thali New Haven

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I've always loved the subtle spices and flavors from the Eastern hemisphere.

Flavors like saffron, nuts, cardamom, tumeric, mints, and more ... so I was beyond pleased when we received an invite to a cocktail and food pairing, featuring a new Indian Cream Liqueur, SomruS,  that was being held at Thali on Orange Street in New Haven's Ninth Square.

Although this wasn't my first time sampling SomruS Indian Cream Liqueur, it was my first time eating at Thali, despite having met Chef Prasad Chirnomula at the Greenwich Wine and Food Festival and being totally enamored with his passion for cooking.

After our group had assembled we got to learn all about SomruS' inception by an Indian businessman who realized that the existing cream liqueurs, while good, didn't have the beautiful light and subtle flavors of his background, and hence the development of Somrus Indian Cream Liqueur, that blends cardamom, saffron, almonds, pistachios and rose, which results in an all-natural, gluten free and Kosher liqueur.

Learning about SomruS, the original Indian Cream Liqueur from the SomruS marketing team

SomruS, a rum based liqueur, whose name translates to "Nectar of the Gods" is delightfully light and smooth, with a slightly sweet and aromatic quality.

What a perfect compliment to the exotic flavors from Thali Restaurant!

We started our pairing with SomruS on the rocks. Here's where we could truly appreciate the unique flavors developed and infused in this liqueur. On just the right side of sweet, it's truly a wonderful accompaniment to Eastern cuisines.

SomruS - On the Rocks

Paired with our "Somrus on the Rocks" we sampled Gobi Manchurian and Samosa.

Thali-Orange Street New Haven CT
Gobi: Cauliflower in a spicy cilantro garlic sauce
Samosa: Amchur potatoes and green peas in a handmade pastry shell

For our second course we sampled the Somrus Kama Sutra, a more bold mixing of flavors meant to enhance our light seafood served with it. While this was tasty, I think I'd prefer it without the Green Chartreuse, whose heavy blend of spices overpowered the light flavor of this SomruS cocktail.

Kama Sutra
Somrus Indian Cream Liqueur, Chambord Raspberry Liqueur, Green Chartreuse

The Kama Sutra otherwise paired well with Shrimp Kabob with Saag. The bold cocktail had a great balance with this light and flavorful course.

Thali, Orange Street, New Haven, CT
Shrimp Kabob with Saag: Shrimp sauteed with butter over a bed of Indian style spinach.

Our third course paired a variety of Thali dishes with the SomruS Mayan Rickshaw, a mixture of SomruS with Casamigos Reposada tequila.

Somrus Mayan Rickshaw
Somrus Indian Cream Liqueur and Casamigos Reposado tequia

Our dishes were Chicken Tikka Masala, Kadai Ghost, Rice, and warm flatbread.

Here's where we really experienced the pairing at its finest. The hearty cocktail enhanced and elevated the spicy and flavorful accompaniments. This was my first time eating Kadai Ghost, which was goat in a spicy sauce. Sooo good!

Thali, Orange Street, New Haven, CT
Chicken Tikka Masala: Chicken, ginger, garlic and cayenne in a creamy tomato sauce
Kadai Ghost: Goat roasted with toasted spices and peppers

For dessert, we paired a Somrus Chai with Sormus Rice Pudding. This was another successful pairing. The black tea and spice with SomruS - and the rich rice pudding illuminated why SomruS truly is  ... the "Nectar of the Gods".

SomruS Chai
Somrus Indian Cream Liqueur with Black Tea

This rice pudding was so good, brothy, flavorful and aromatic due to the infusion of SomruS. That's right! You can cook and bake with Somrus too!

SomKheer: Indian Rice Pudding sith SomruS

SomruS is now available in Connecticut! Look for it in fine dining establishments and spirit shoppes!
Find a merchant near you ==> http://www.somrus.com/where-to-buy.php

I can't wait to come up with my own recipes for cocktails using this exotic liqueur. 

Sompriya Premium Spirits Company 

(makers of SomruS Indian Cream Liqueur)
http://www.somrus.com/welcome.php

Like them on facebook ==> https://www.facebook.com/EnjoySomrus
Follow them on instagram ==> https://instagram.com/enjoysomrus

Thali - New Haven

4 Orange Street, New Haven, CT 06510
(203) 777-1177
http://www.thali.com/restaurants.php

How about you?

What would you pair SomruS with?

Disclaimer: We were invited to Thali for a Somrus Cocktail Pairing by members of Sompriya's  marketing and management teams. However, all opinions expressed herein are entirely our own.