Kabab & Curry

11121 N. Rodney Parham Rd, Suite #36 B, Little Rock, AR 72212

I have long enjoyed Indian food, going back to the seventies when my sister married a man from India and the wonderful spices and dishes at the wedding reception hooked me. For years now, there was really only one local option when it came to Indian food and that is the Star of India restaurant off of Shackleford in Little Rock.

One has to figure that the food there is hard to improve on, and Mr. Sammy is known for his hospitality (and remembering your name.)

But the Kabab & Curry restaurant in the Market Place Center takes Indian cuisine to a higher level. At lunch it is a buffet, but as buffets go, this one is fresh and well tended.

I started with the nan, which is the tandoori baked flat bread with olive oil that is so crisp and delightful you keep going back for more (particularly good if you dab it in the hot mint leaf chutney). And around it, I added a small dollop of everything else to give it all a try.
The tandoori chicken was exactly what you would expect, but there was, I think, a dish called masala chicken that was spiced differently than anything I’ve ever tasted. It was tender and juicy and really wonderful.

Highly recommended, also, is the cabbage stir fry. But the one dish just stunned me was the Bhendi Masala. This is a stir fried okra dish that was beyond description. Perfectly cooked sections of okra in a heavenly concoction of spices. I found myself getting seconds and thirds.

I finished off with a helping of kheer (rice pudding) and gajar halwa (carrot) and would recommend either or both (as in my case) as being sweet and flavorful desserts.

Final Thoughts? Mr. Sammy, I’m sorry. I’ve enjoyed your restaurant immensely, but I think I found a better Indian restaurant.

Don’t hesitate to try Kabab and Curry. For directions or more information, call 501-978-8920, or email kababncurry@yahoo.com

June 2007 UPDATE Recently tried this place again and was sorely disappointed. The food had been sitting a long time on the steam tables and was not as good as I remembered from the time before. It was peak lunch hour and we were the only ones there. Appears to be well in the process of floating to the top of the tank.