Went to a new restaurant called Ginger Olive in New Brunswick on friday night. This restaurant is right opposite the New Brunswick train station. After many years, we decided to take a walk along downtown New Brunswick, and we realized this restaurant was right next to the place where we parked our car. We stopped in front of it, to see the menu and were pleasantly surprised to find an Indian restaurant that we have not tried before.

We had vegetarian lentil soup and aloo paapdi chaat for starters.

The soup was just plain dal without much taste to it. We were worried if in the name of ‘upscale dining to the American taste’ the chef had killed the authenticity of Indian cooking.

Aloo Paapdi Chaat was a lot more nicer, with the right level of spices and it was really tasty. In fact, I even tried by adding some of the chaat into my soup, to create a new dish (should I call it Aaloo Paapdi Chaat Lentil Soup?) – In fact it was tasting quite good.

For the main course, we had chicken briyani, fish masala and pasta with prawns in it.

Chicken briyani was amazing. It was made the Mughlai style, very different from the South Indian style where it is made hotter and spicier. At Ginger Olive, the Chicken Briyani had a nice mix of flavours, that also brings in a slight taste of  sweetness to the briyani. Overall, this was one of the best Mughlai style briyanis I have ever had in my life.

Pasta with shrimp was also excellent. It was filled with lots of cheese and the pasta just melted in the mouth. We just loved this pasta and had to fight for it with my son as it was his choice. (We always pick one item each as our choice of food and then try to see whose choice is the best – I would say this one is a clear winner 🙂 )

Fish Masala was good too. This dish comes with naans and it goes as a good combination with this fish masala. I felt it was looking quite bland, but I guess it was tasting very good. So overall, all the entrees were very nice and we felt happy about it. Towards the end, I guess the quantity was too much for us to finish it, so we had to get it packed.

They had two kinds of kulfis, but we did not have the room to eat anymore. So we decided to skip it.

Ginger Olive has a nice decor and has a touch of elegance to it. The tables are arranged spaciously and because of this and their high roof, the seating is very comfortable.

Overall it was a very nice experience eating at Ginger Olive. If you are around New Brunswick area, you should try out Ginger Olive as I highly recommend it.