RESTAURANT REVIEW: Leaf's Indian flavors curry favor

In 2011, Banana Leaf (named for the wide foliage used as a serving platter in south India) entered a food truck scene then dominated by burritos and hot dogs. It parked near the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and established a bustling lunch business, catering to the hospital's staff and students, which include a significant Indian minority.

But in late 2015, the truck was parked and Banana Leaf established itself inside the downtown Simmons Tower building, across from the kind of flower-and-chocolate shop most often housed in large metro stations. The new digs are utilitarian and tight -- a configuration of green and yellow walls, a help-yourself drink machine and a cooler stocked with exotic juice and ginger beer. The few tables turn quickly, and it's easy to carry out, since everything comes packaged in plastic trays.

The menu, small enough to fit on a sandwich board, changes daily and most entrees are served cafeteria-style from a hot bar. Lines are the norm, but they move quickly. And every time I've been, the place is packed with South Asian businessmen, which seems an apt endorsement. (It also means that popular dishes and sometimes vegetarian items disappear long before the doors are locked at 2 p.m.)

The Chicken 65 ($7.50) is best explained to the American palate as a sophisticated take on chicken nuggets. Soft, extra-juicy bite-size chunks of chicken are marinated for hours in a combination of lemon, yogurt, chili, curry, garam masala and turmeric. Then they are battered, deep-fried and sauteed with curry leaves, garlic paste, chili seeds and other yummy stuff. And Banana's Leaf's rendering is perfect, a blend of sweet, tangy and spicy, with a chewy rather than crispy texture. As an unexpected bonus, orders comes with a few crispy, flavorful curry leaves, fried to transparency.

Another chicken entree, the vindaloo ($7.50), is a study in colonialism, as interpreted through the taste buds. It's an Indian reinvention of a Portuguese dish, and Banana Leaf's version includes tender bits of boneless poultry plus a few tiny cubes of carrot swimming in a tamarind- and tomato-based, spice-laden garlic gravy, with most flavors eclipsed by the clear-your-sinuses-heat. It came with buttery rice, which helped dilute the burn, and a sort of warm, cumin-y, butter-saturated coleslaw that was more oily and nutty than tangy and sweet.

In fact, this limp purple-and-white shredded cabbage concoction, mixed with peas and shredded carrots, was the only Banana Leaf item I did not enjoy. It was much, much too buttery. I could have been eating cabbage or paper -- it wouldn't have mattered either way, since the only thing I could taste was ghee (clear, slightly sweet butter with the milk-fat removed).

I also tried the chickpea curry ($7.50), which comes with Banana Leaf's standard basmati rice and dense, lightly butter-fried flatbread. It's mellow comfort food, a yellow curry (turmeric-laden enough to appear orange) with a tinge of sweetness and the teeniest hint of heat. The chickpeas are firm, and the overall texture is a creamy, oily lusciousness, with flavors so smoothly blended as to deceptively suggest the dish is simple.

Dessert is baklava ($1.50) -- layers and layers of papery phyllo dough lined with nuts, cinnamon and sugar syrup rather than honey. It's less sticky-sweet than the more familiar Greek and Turkish varieties and heavier on nuts (almonds, maybe? walnuts?) and spices (cardamom and nutmeg stand out).

In general, portions are more filling than they appear (the trays are tablet-size), and, if you haven't already gathered, chicken is the meat of choice. Vegans may be out of luck, but there is always a vegetarian option or two, often palak paneer (soft, cubed cheese in spiced spinach and tomato gravy), as well as a special.

The self-serve thermos of chai ($1.99 a cup) is a marker of Banana Leaf's authenticity. This cultural equivalent of America's midmorning/after-lunch coffee is made with extra-strong black tea, whole milk and spices, including a strong dose of cardamom. Often chai (which means "tea" in Hindi) contains more sugar than Southern iced tea, but the Banana Leaf version is unsweetened, with sugar available. It's supposed to have less caffeine than coffee, but a small cup kept me revved to a dull buzz for the rest of the afternoon.

Weekend on 04/14/2016