One of the things New York taught me was not to be afraid to try anything. Also, it would be a waste to be afraid to try new foods in a city so rich in gastronomy. In Brazil, I knew Arab, Mexican and Italian cuisine – but here I had access to foods that I had never experienced in life, such as Thai and Indian, which I learned to love! Indian cuisine offers so many delicious options – and not everything in Indian cuisine means spicy! The naan bread and the samosas are great examples of delicious, different and no spicy options. We already know some Indian restaurants here and, a few days ago, the blog was invited to meet Nirvana.
Nirvana is located in Murray Hill, a Midtown area that brings together several Indian restaurants, and the restaurant has been around for almost 10 years. Recently, Michelin-starred Peter Beck has joined the team and is the new Executive Chef. I thinks is good to elucidate how Indian cuisine is varied: there are dishes based on fish, seafood, lamb, chicken and also many vegetarian and vegan dishes. In fact, this is a very important detail: almost every Indian restaurant has vegetarian and vegan options – all super tasty!
Our experience at Nirvana was really good. We ordered a mango and mint drink, which was super refreshing. To start, we choose a dish called Kesamarvai, with aromatic mussels with tomato sauce, garlic, ginger, and curry. It was delicious – I had never eaten mussels with sauce. For the main course, we both bet on fish dishes: I chose the fish curry and Thiago got the Seabass. I love Indian curry! The super-seasoned sauce (you choose how do you like spicy) is perfect to eat with rice and the naan bread. This bread is one of the things I love the most! And I found it interesting that in Nirvana there are several options. We chose the garlic one, but there were another six other varieties. We loved our choices, everything was delicious.
Nirvana’s atmosphere is also cool – it’s a great choice for both couples and larger groups. And the prices are also great: the dishes cost from $13.
Address: 346 Lexington Ave – open for lunch and dinner.
Laura Peruchi is a Brazilian blogger, author, and entrepreneur. She has lived in Manhattan with her husband since 2014. Since then, she has shared on her blog varied content about the Big Apple. From travel tips, including unusual things to do, shopping tips, etiquette, restaurants, and a lot more, her blog has become a reference in Portuguese (also available in English) for anyone planning a trip to New York City.
