Secret Must-Try New Kapoor’s Akbar Indian Restaurant

Watch!  You have to be driving east to west to spot the inset Kapoor’s Akbar Indian Restaurant on the north side of Cesar Chavez Boulevard just outside of DTLA.  And, laughed owner Owner Avinash Kapoor, “you have to know our place is 701 West. Cesar E Chavez Ave., Suite 107, which is one of several restaurant spaces in the huge complex facing on the street.

 

“As a chef, I have a signature menu,” he said. “We are bringing many of our crowd-pleasing classics to the area, but I have created a few new dishes that I feel will be very popular in our downtown location.” When we last met Chef Avi, he was creating his watermelon salad in the Marina location.  This one is streamlined with paneer cheese replacing the more usual feta, and an Indian style vinaigrette flavored with chaat masala.  The sprigs of mint add a refreshing summertime touch.

Even Chef/owner Avinash Kapoor’s refined starters are rich and intensely flavored.  And there is usually twisted.  Below are the new lamb sliders with a lively mint chutney;

“Dirty Fries” are topped with spiced ground lamb masala and sunny-side up egg.  “It’s my take on poutine, which is so popular now,” explained Chef Avi.  It also is not laden with the usual heavy gravy that makes the fries soggy.

 

The practical prices menu offers the classics as well as some updated options.  Kapoor’s Akbar features a variety of naan (plain, garlic, green herb and stuffed with dry fruits) and paratha, a whole wheat unleavened bread.

The light, airy place with an heirloom mural on one wall and white resort shutters across the windows as necessary is inviting and friendly.   Diners are able to choose their heat level on most dishes… and it is heat rather than the spiky pepper.    (See the full menu here.)

Gracious, knowledgeable server and manager, Gabi, adds to the three generations of Indian culinary tradition that make the restaurant operate seamlessly.  Owner Avi is also on site almost all of the time

 

nuanced lamb vindaloo; perfectly seared salmon

The highly rated Kapoor’s Akbar has received plenty of praise over the years, being named “Best Indian Restaurant” for 20 years in a row by the well-respected Pasadena Weekly. The new spot is west of Grand, relocated from Pasadena, where the landlord wanted to put in retail space.

For details, please see: //akbarcuisineofindia.com

Kapoor’s Akbar Indian Restaurant, 701 W. Cesar E Chavez Ave., Suite 107, Los Angeles, CA 90012. (213) 372-5590.