19th October 2012, 2nd December 2012.
Ansan, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
One of the things a long overseas trip does to you is definitely the realization of how one had took the common local food in Singapore for granted. One such cuisine is Indian food. Here is the land of kimchi, Indian food is the exotic and unsurprisingly the expensive.
Nonetheless, once in a while, Indian food is a good fix for a moment of homesickness especially the magical combination of butter chicken and naans….transports you back straight home almost instantly.
One of my favourite Indian restaurants is Kantipur, formerly known as the Namaste Restaurant recommended by Ansan Answers and a satisfactory rated Indian restaurant on Wingspoon located in the foreign enclave of Ansan. For us exchange students, Kantipur is now even more accessible than ever with a new branch at Handaep Station.
Kantipur is lavishly decorated with Indian-esque ornaments featuring camels, deities or figurines of Sikhs with their iconic turbans. The interior is extremely colourful, the décor itself seeks to excite your senses (at least visually).
The menu features many of our favourite Indian classics such as Tandoori Chicken, Butter Chicken, Naans and Biryani….all along with a range of curries (including some new ones that I haven’t seen in Singapore such as Sag Curry). There is also a modest selection of Nepalese dishes at the back of the menu. There are also set menus available ranging from 25000 – 85000 KRW range.
My friend went straight for the Aloo Paratha (3500 KRW), so called Indian Pizza made up of potatoes and bread, very savoury and appetizing stuff. How could I let this pass my very nose in Singapore? Crispy, warm naan-like bread stuffed with tiny chunks of seasoned potatoes and served with a herbal dipping sauce.
The Lamb Biryani (9500 KRW), basmati rice cooked with diced lamb and biryani sauce was average. The rice was slightly dry and could have been more flavourful. Lamb is not a common meat in Korea, so it was a treat to taste it again at Kantipur. Pity it could have been more tender and juicy.
The Naans (approx. 2000 - 2500 KRW) in general are pretty good here. Baked to the point of fluffy with a nice crispy exterior and distinctly fragrant, these classic Indian breads are the perfect complements to the range of curries Kantipur serves up.
One of the more interesting curries we found at Kantipur is Lamb Sag Curry (9500 KRW), lamb cooked with spinach, a rather creamy lamb curry with bits of spinach in it.
Setting itself apart from those restaurants that serve one or two vaguely Indian dishes, Kantipur also serves a selection of Indian desserts. The Fruits Raita (5000 KRW), a yogurt based dessert with pineapple and banana tasted like a normal fruit yoghurt.
The Gulab Jamun (5000 KRW) however, a warm delicate sweet, made up of milk and honey served in thick sugary syrup was interesting. Two huge mocha-like sweet tasted like a date pudding with notes of cinnamon and honey. This dessert seem to go pretty well with the Chai Tea.
The curries at Kantipur were notably sweeter than the curries we had in Singapore, probably to cater to the appetite of the Korean populace here. The Chai Tea (2500 KRW) for example was overwhelmingly sweet with evaporated milk. Still, Kantipur serves up a rather “authentic” and decent Indian fare, great for an occasional splurge.
Kantipur 칸티푸르
경기도 안산시 단원구 원곡동 794
031-493-9563
and the reference from Ansan Answers Website
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