New Yorker brings taste of India to Harlingen restaurant and bar

HARLINGEN - The aroma of exotic spices wafts through the lobby at the Harlingen Hotel & Event Center as diners in the next room order entrées off the only Indian menu in town.

Ricky Rao, a native New Yorker and owner of the hotel's Taj Restaurant and Bar, walks table-to-table welcoming new guests who are about to experience tastes and textures unlike those of any other cuisine.

Rao believes his Taj is the first Indian restaurant in Harlingen's history.

Indian cooking makes heavy use of vegetables and brightly colored creamy sauces that incorporate turmeric, garlic, pepper, tamarind, mustard seed and fenugreek, one of the spices combined to make curry.

"We use different spices like cinnamon, and there's a different way that we use it," Rao said. "Turmeric, which is actually an anti-cancer thing, is part of the spices we use. And then of course ginger, garlic and black pepper."

The cuisine most closely resembles Mexican food in texture, but there the resemblance ends in a burst of unfamiliar, delicious flavors. It's a far stretch from what one might expect from other Asian dishes, Rao said.

Saag Paneer, a spiced creamed spinach dish, is served with a cheese not unlike the crumbly queso fresco of Mexican origin.

Flat bread called Naan, baked while stuck to the walls of a large metal oven, resembles a thicker version of the flour tortilla - but with no butter or oil.

The arrival of Indian food in Harlingen means an exotic new dining experience, Rao said.

"People are getting to know about it and I'm already getting repeat customers," he said. "That's a great thing. Word of mouth is spreading like wildfire.

"I've gotten all the positive responses," he said. "Sometimes people say it's a little spicy, but it's not like people are reluctant to try it again.

"We can also customize it to the customers' needs."

The restaurant offers a varied lunch buffet from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and a dinner menu from 5:30 to 10 p.m.

"I would love for people to come and try it once before they pass judgment," Rao said. "For anyone who wants to try it, the buffet is the way to go. (It) is limited, but on the menu we have ... six to seven pages."

The restaurant's opening is the culmination of almost two years of remodeling the former Howard Johnson Hotel complex, Rao said.

He said the restaurant was almost ready to open last July when Hurricane Dolly set the whole project back about six months.

"There was water inside the restaurant area and we had to replace the carpet," he said. "We also had to replace some of the equipment in the kitchen."

Now the restaurant owner says he hopes to expand the Taj to include at least two more locations in the Harlingen area.

The Taj Bar and a banquet hall, which can accommodate 200 people, complete the three-venue entertainment complex surrounding the hotel lobby.

"This is new for me but it's been a great experience so far," Rao said. "It's the perfect location from any part of the Valley. I'm in the dead center, right off the expressway.

"This is only the beginning."

Indian dishes at Taj

Chicken Biryani - Chicken and rice in a sauce spiced with onion, turmeric, ginger, cumin and garlic

Naan - A thick flat bread cooked while stuck to the side of a large oven

Chicken Tikka Masala - Boneless chicken in a spiced tomato cream

Goat Curry - chopped goat and bones in a spicy pimiento, garlic and thyme sauce

Mulligatawny Soup - A spiced lentil soup garnished with vegetables

Saag Paneer - A creamy spinach spiced with mustard leaves

Aloo Gobhi - A cauliflower potato dish spiced with turmeric, coriander and garlic

The Harlingen Hotel and Event Center and the Taj Restaurant are at 6779 W. Expressway 83. For information, call 956-425-7070.