Marigold: First Impressions (on OPENING NIGHT!)

I was surprised by how upscale this place was. From the sign I thought it would be more modest. Turns out they have a full liquor bar and big wine list.

Dinner was on someone else, so I started out with a "Kashmir", a tasty light cocktail with some French stuff I didn't recognize. Our appetizers were the grilled prawn, Samosa ($5 for 2), and melon salad. The prawn was very tasty and nicely done but I didn't see what was Indian about it. The melon combined sweet, tart, and savory very nicely. A plate was plenty for three of us to share.

We also got a roasted beet salad (not my decision) to share, and it was a pleasant surprise. Arugula and other greens over roasted beets, yeah, but the dressing was wonderful, with strong spices (fenugreek? I'm not good with this stuff) that really saved the salad from being run of the mill.

My entree was the leg of lamb vindaloo, which was decent and quite spicy, but nothing more than a piece of lamb in sauce for $22. The very good nan came in handy here. I paired it with a glass of Barolo that I quite liked.

My fiancee had the chicken dish which she liked a lot. I had a taste and I thought it was very good, with a rich sauce with just the right amount of heat for someone not really accustomed to a lot of it. Our benefactor had the lamb chops, which came with a similar salad as we'd had already (minus beets) and some sort of potato or rice cake. Not very traditional, but he seemed to enjoy it.

Tab for three with only three drinks came to $120 not including tip. Service was decent, though there were a couple lags. The apparent owner, Sandeep, greeted us at the door and came to check on us toward the end of our meal.

A good, if pricy, meal in the neighborhood. I'd recommend for entertaining out of town guests if they have a little $$$ to throw around. The sign advertises "authentic" but I don't know about that. Anyway, definitely worth checking out.

Marigold
4832 N. Broadway
773.293.GOLD
http://www.marigoldrestaurant.com

We went last night with friends. It's in quite a hopping stretch of Broadway, just down the street from the Green Mill - lots of people outside on a beautiful night, chatting, eating, smoking, etc. One woman walking by told me my shirt was pretty, a group of guys smoking outside Silver Seafood sympathized with the DH limping along in his cast. Luckily there was no show at the theater there, so parking was not hard.

The food was tasty, and I was lucky - I didn't like what I ordered, but one of my dinner companions tasted it and said "oh, that's what I should have ordered" so we traded

For appetizers we had the duck leg confit, somosas, mango salad and calamari. All were good. They had a reasonable, if small, selection of beers and wines, as well as a full bar with a menu of interesting sounding froo froo drinks.

For entrees we had 2 lamb vindaloo, one chicken dish in a rich sauce, and lamb rogan josh (the dish I didn't like). All came with tasty, seasoned rice. The vindaloo came with nice yogurt that I liked much better than the teeny tiny side dish of cucumber raita we ordered (the waiter didn't tell us the vindaloo came with yogurt). We also ordered a side of saag paneer (excellent) and 2 naan orders for the table. The vindaloo is hot but not fiery, you can ask for the heat quotient to be notched up. One of our companions isn't fond of extraordinarily hot food, and was pleased with her chicken dish that was listed as a "4" on a heat scale of 1-10.

It's not terribly authentic, but it was tasty and we enjoyed ourselves. When we got there at 6:30 it was not very full, but when we left there was a line and the bar was full. There were quite a few Indian families (mostly parents with adult children, I did not see any youngsters).

The decor was nice, the wait staff attentive, and the food was good, if a bit expensive. I would go back. They take reservations and have outside seating.

Thanks for the report, leek. Anyone else with a recent review (second impressions) of Marigold? Some friends want to go there soon, and I am not sure if I should dissuade them or not.

I've only been once, probably in August or so, but I was pretty impressed. It was a bit afraid of style-over-substance, but the food was well prepared, and the style was pleasant, and for all that it was stylish, it wasn't terribly expensive. (Not to disagree with Leek, but just to point out that it isn't over the top.)

I can't recall exactly what we ordered, but i had some kind of grilled chicken which was perfectly prepared, and I recall enjoying a taste of a dining partner's channa masala as well.

So not all that recent, but still favorable. I would probably go to Marigold once for every 99 trips to Devon, but that's just because I'm perfectly satisfied with less stylish Indian food. If I lived closer I'd be more likely to go more often.

I had a not-so-good Marigold experience on Sunday night... my first time there and my wife's second.

The Good
- Nice decor and conversation level... it is an urban contemporary restaurant that serves Indian food. A good idea.
- The Duck Leg Dum appetizer was flavorful and juicy.
- House made mint chutney was fresh and tasty.
- I got an amazing parking spot right out front on Broadway... I executed a U-turn and parallel parked perfectly on the first try.

The Bad
- Lamb Rogan Josh - decent flavor, although somewhat bland, but the meat had two pieces of fat / gristle. I would expect better ingredients in a somewhat "upscale" place.
- Boti Kebab appetizer was bland and tough. Wouldn't fly on Devon.

The Ugly
- Rice served with main courses was a disaster, with many crunchy bits. To me, bad rice is the cardinal sin of any cuisine where rice is the primary starch. (E.g., in Japan they would put you in jail for this.) It's like stale bread on a sandwich... no matter what is in between the bread, the sandwich is nasty.
- Poor service - Our naan and our side of green beans were served first, even before the appetizers. I politely asked the waiter "aren't these usually served with the main courses?" to which he replied "if you don't want them, I can take them back."
- Murg Makhni - menu says the chicken is cooked tandoori style (I later rechecked this on their website to confirm). Waiter said the chicken is cooked on skewers in a tandoor. When I first tasted the flavorless chicken, I said "if this was cooked in a tandoor, I am Indian. (I'm not.) I asked the waiter and he repeated that it is cooked in a tandoor. I disagreed, and he asked the chef... chef confirmed that it is grilled, not tandoor roasted. Not a good dish, and lazy execution.

If you took the food from any average Indian restaurant and put it here, it would be worth a visit simply because the ambiance is somewhat unique among Indian restaurants. In my experience, the ambiance didn't overcome the food and service.

C Dave

We ate there last Saturday and had a good all around experience. However, we sat at the bar so maybe things move along a little differently there? With two bartenders taking care of a handful of people, we did not have to wait for anything and it all came out in the right order.

We like the wine list, and the generous pours in large glasses.

We had 2 appetizers - lamb kebabs, which were tender and smoky and served with a nice little salad, very fresh and crunchy; samosas which were good & spicy; then we split the vegetarian dinner which was 4 small plates. One plate had rounds of roasted corn which were totally different and delicious - I felt like a squirrel nibbling my way around them, but was happy to polish them off; one plate of basmati/saffron rice (I think the crunchy bits were fennel seeds, the rice was perfectly cooked); another plate had peas and cheese with a bit of tomato sauce holding it all togther, it was excellent; fourth plate was eggplant which reminded me of ratatouille and was nicely done.

4 glasses of wine and the food was 75$ without tip.

My first trip to Marigold, and it was good enough that I am sure to return. The space itself is really sharp. I loved the decor -- the colors, the interesting lights above the first handful of tables when you walk in as well as the ones above the bar, the floors -- you name it, it all looks good.

We had 8pm reservations and were not seated until 8:20. At least the server apologized for the delay, so I wasn't really angry.

Our waiter was outstanding -- very friendly and extremely knowledgeable about the menu. Best of all, when he recognized (and then asked) that one of my friends was not enjoying his cocktail at all and had only taken a few sips, he took it away and removed it from the bill. When we were debating between a couple of wines, he brought us out two large tastes to sample. This was some of the best service I have experienced in Chicago and we let the manager know that.

We started with a number of appetizers. A mussels special with curry leaf and coconut was very good. Perfectly cooked mussels (of course, almost impossible to screw up) and a very tasty broth. Our server let us know that we were going to want to lap up the broth and suggested an order of naan -- a good idea, although the naan ($2.95 for two large naans) was just decent . . . a bit greasy.

The Duck Leg Dum ($10.95) is a cured duck leg cooked confit-style and with Indian spices and served with stir fried green beans and a lightly spiced tomato chutney. The duck was absolutely delicious, easily my favorite dish (I should say "non dessert dish") of the night (I was practically gnawing on the bone) and the green beans and chutney were also quite good.

The Calamari Bhaji ($7.95) was decent. The calamari (also served with many really thin onion rings) were coated in chickpea flour, rice flour and ajwain, fried and served with a pretty spicy and delicious masala chili sauce. My only complaint with the dish is that the coating was a little soft and oily . . . I suspect the frying temperature was a little too low . . . easily correctable. Otherwise, the flavor was very nice.

A South Indian Spicy Coconut Soup ($7.95) was very good, but too similar to the mussels special described above. It was seasoned with sambhar, coconut and curry and contained mussels and calamari.

For main courses, a Coriander Crusted and pan-seared Barramundi ($18.75 -- the second most expensive entree) was perfectly cooked, but only decent in terms of flavor. It was served on black urad daal makhani which was ok, nothing special, and pakora style green beans, which had too much dough for my liking. I just didn't really notice any special combination of flavors or textures.

The Murg Makhni ($14.25), which was ordered extra spicy, delivered very well with heat -- lots of heat -- and it was good, but I've had better.

The Basmati Rice was fine and did not suffer from clumps that another poster noticed.

We also tried all of the Chutneys -- Mint, Tamarind, Mango/Roasted Fruit and Onion Date ($7.00 for all 4). They all were a bit too sweet for my liking, but I liked the Mint and Tamarind the most. These chutneys were a reminder to me that Marigold probably caters a bit more to American tastes, but I don't see that as a negative -- the minute you walk in this place you know that it's not competing for diners with the restaurants on Devon.

And then dessert . . . we split the Kama Sutra Chocolate Cake ($7.95). This might be reason enough for me to return. It was a flourless chocolate cake, spiced with Kashmiri red chili powder, dusted with cocoa and served with a slightly spicy pomegranate sauce. The cake was beautifully rich, smooth and dense. The subtle spicing from the chili powder was fantastic. I let the chocolate linger on my tongue to fully savor the addition of the chili powder. Matched with the pomegranate sauce, this dessert was amazing. The only flaw is that the dusting of cocoa was totally unnecessary, but I still loved it. Marigold took a largely ordinary dessert and with a couple of simple touches, turned it into a work of art.

All in all, a solid meal: I loved the duck leg and the flourless chocolate cake. I also very much appreciated the stunning decor and our excellent waiter. And although the restaurant can be a little loud, I still found it easy enough to carry on a conversation. And even the dishes that I did not love were still decent.

Almost one year after my first visit, I returned to Marigold and again came away very impressed. Service was outstanding from the moment we walked in the door to the moment we left . . . i.e., in terms of knowing when to approach the table, when to follow up, when to fill water, etc. Everything seemed to be a fine working machine.

Maybe more important is that someone in the kitchen knows what he/she is doing. No, not everything was to my liking, but almost everything. I noticed that the menu seems to have changed somewhat from my first visit, but many items remain intact.

My favorite dish last night was the Dahi Kabab ($9.95), which was basically a disc of yogurt, seared (and very light and easy to cut into), and served with a salad of micro greens with pistachios and figs, and served with a light orange and coriander vinaigrette. This dish was absolutely fantastic. All of the components worked so well together. It's described as a mid-course but would serve well as an appetizer.

I also quite liked the samosas (2 for $5.25). The exterior was beautifully crisp and delicate, not oily, and the interior was very flavorful. The samosas were served with a mint and a onion-date chutney which were both spicy and quite good.

I was not enamored with the chicken tikka kabobs ($6.95). I thought they were slightly dry, not all that flavorful, and it was served aside a light salad which was way too heavy in raw onions.

Main courses featured a couple of stars: a tasty Tandoori Chicken ($17.95), which featured a bone-in breast of chicken, and Lamb Vindaloo ($19.95), which was a lamb shank served on the bone in a spicy (although not spicy enough for me), but perhaps a tad too sweet (strangely), vindaloo sauce. The lamb was so tender and flavorful and the sauce was good but not great. The Kalonji Chicken ($18.95) was also very good, also featuring a bone-in chicken breast, but this one was marinated in a turmeric yogurt sauce, grilled, and served on a toasted almond/raisin palao.

My favorite dessert is still the excellent flourless chocolate cake. I also tried the ginger creme brulee last night, but was not so impressed. The ginger flavor was perfect, but the custard was a bit overcooked and the crisp, sugar top a bit too thick.

All in all though, a very good meal at Marigold, and I really like this place. I like the fact that it's sexy and has a great vibe. I like that they don't rely upon merely the attractiveness of the dining room, and that they also offer beautifully presented and creatively designed ethnic food. This is certainly not where you go for the most authentic Indian food in Chicago, but if you're looking for creative ethnic food, I think you should check out Marigold.

A quick visit to Marigold last evening. Bottom line: this is not an Indian restaurant serving traditional Indian food. This is an Indian restaurant taking classic Indian cuisine as a starting point and then venturing off. Sometimes the dishes stick close to the original, sometimes there is little in common. We’d been stand-offish, largely because of the pricing: virtually all the regular entrees are over $16, which strikes us as steep. Still, we decided the time had come and so were pleasantly surprised to be seated and to see the “specials” card had about half a dozen entrees, all of which (if memory serves) were well under the “regular” prices.

The restaurant seems to have two rooms: the front room which is much lighter, thanks to a large window fronting on Broadway, and the “back” room, behind the maitre d’s stand, partly obscured by a curtain and apparently much darker (neither of us had occasion to wander back that way. One thing immediately struck us: the substantial amount of room. Tables, at least up front where we were, are quite widely spaced. It’s unexpected, unusual, and very nice. After so many places trying to cram in as many tables as possible, it’s a very nice change of pace to have so much room between tables. I don’t know what’s behind the curtain, but in the front it was spacious and that helped contribute to a relaxed feel.

We arrived early—about 5:30 and there was one other couple there. By the time we left, perhaps another ten couples (or larger groups) had arrived. Furnishings are relatively sparse but the interior felt comfy and vaguely Indian (thanks primarily to some hanging light fixtures). Otherwise, it could be a restaurant of any indefinite ethnicity.

Our server, Brian, was excellent. He knew the menu, the ingredients in the dishes, the heat level, and was extremely accommodating. The Lovely Dining Companion has virtually no tolerance for spicy heat (whereas I enjoy very spicy food). Brian made a comment early on, in the course of a discussion about various dishes and their spice levels: the spice level is, in general, calibrated to midwestern tastes. We found that interesting and somewhat disappointing. In the event, I didn’t order something that was spicy, so I have no easy way to judge. There is a vindaloo on the menu and I managed to forget to ask just how spicy it was/is.

The menu itself is not particularly large, though the dishes seem to be carefully chosen to reflect a reasonably wide range of choices. We ordered samosas and a “special” app, dal makhani (as reported on by BR, two posts previous to this). Urad, or black, lentils, with tomato, among other things. It’s ordinarily a creamy dal but this was much heavier and richer; I enjoyed it more than BR did two years ago). The samosas (two of them) came with a mint chutney and an onion/date chutney. The former was fine, if unexceptional, and the latter, sweet, spicy, and with a very nice depth of flavor—albeit not particularly including onion. We both enjoyed the beginning and thought the two apps auspicious.


Samosas as presented, with mint chutney and onion/date chutney


Samosa, mid-bite.


Dal makani


A nice presentation, to be sure. But a bit hard to navigate.

Unfortunately, it was not quite to be. LDC had the fish special, a sea bass crusted with smoked paprika (!) and served on a bed of lentils—again, flavorful without being spicy. I thought her fish had a fishy-ness to it that I didn’t care for. She didn’t find it fishy in the least and, since she’s generally much more sensitive to that issue, I’ll defer to her judgment. She enjoyed her dish quite a bit and even I will concede that the fish was cooked nicely and tasted good. When LDC detected some spice (which I couldn’t find and Brian couldn’t account for), she ordered a side of cucumer raita. It was pleasant, chock full of cubed cucumber, but the yogurt was less tangy than I expected.



I elected, in the end, to go with a classic: chicken korma. I was unprepared for the chicken, which was largely dark meat, or for the sauce, which instead of normally creamy smooth, was not at all. The flavors were muted at best. This was a classic example of why not to calibrate (or in Brian’s immaculate phrasing, “dumbed down”) the flavors. It just didn’t work. It might work for someone completely new to Indian cuisine. But for someone expecting an iteration of a classic dish, it just didn’t make it. Very disappointing in the end. I’ll echo what BR noted above, albeit less enthusiastically: “this is not certainly not where you go for the most authentic Indian food in Chicago.” Creative, perhaps, though I’m inclined to say the food is not authentic because the intention has been to render the standard spicing more bland.


Marigold’s take on chicken korma

The naan was downright odd. Not at all “pillowy” like the bread normally is, the two pieces served had residual pools of oil from the fryer.


Odd, though fine-tasting, naan

Dessert, which I reluctantly agreed to share, was a revelation. Kheer: a rice pudding with rose water and cardamom, with pistachio and slivered almonds. Intensely flavored, rich, almost buttery. The single best dish of kheer I can remember ever having. Too often, it is watered (or milked) down and shorted on the expensive ingredients. Not this version, though. Everything that is supposed to be in the dish was and in abundance. A simply spectacular version.


Kheer to die for....

Bottom line: great apps, great dessert, one good/one fair entrée for $63 before tip. Too expensive in our combined judgment. Spicing aside, the food was well-prepared and nicely presented, but as germuska said upthread, there’s a distinct sense of style over substance. We wouldn’t get kheer like this on Devon (at least I never have) but the other dishes would have been as good or better and probably half the price. Will we go again? Probably. But with a much better understanding of what we (at least) think is going on.

You know, about that sea bass, last night at a totally different restaurant we sat next to a couple who were sharing each other's plates. She said "oh, this is so so fishy" and he said (about the same item) "there's no fishyness to this at all!"

The best thing about my one meal at Marigold was that the place is only about a mile from Natalina, so a satisfying conclusion to the evening was not far when the lackluster dinner ended.

"South Indian Coconut Soup" was thicker than peanut curries served as Thai main course, and the thick, starchy mud really had no business being called a soup at all. Of the four less-than-fresh-tasting mussels in the bowl, half were barely edible, and those representated the best of the lot.

Shrimp malabar claimed to have "spicy malabar sauce tempered with aromatic curry leaves," but that description belied what ended up being a relatively tasteless tomato puree. Spicy? Not even close.

Kalonji Chicken was a skin-on breast that seemed to have been cooked under weights, and the flesh came out juicy while the skin crisped up nicely underneath beautiful grill marks. A very good grilled chicken, but the advertised "tangy" marinade was indiscernable, and the pilaf was in desperate need of seasoning.

Saag paneer had the driest cheese I've ever eaten, and the spices in the dishes seemed to have been toasted well beyond perfumy goodness, making the whole dish just taste burnt.

I have nothing against modern Indian cooking that appeals to a wide array of palates. At Veerasway, I think the concept is executed quite well. Based on my visit, that does not seem to be the case at Marigold.

$20 for $45 Groupon deal today - http://www.groupon.com/deals/marigold-r ... &c=btn

I got the Groupon this morning- looking forward to my first meal at Marigold... could never justify the high prices before...

I very much enjoyed a pre-Green Mill dinner at Marigold this weekend. We sat at the bar (everything was reserved from 6:00 ib), which turned out to be a very comfortable place to eat, served by a most hospitable bartender.

As for the food, I've eaten at a number of places that have tried to upscale Indian cuisine, starting back many years ago with Klay Oven. In each case, I found that upscaling translates into taking the zest out of it and I walked away wishing I'd gone to Devon. Indian good needs to be bursting with flavor. Marigold, I'm pleased to say, was the first such restaurant in Chicago (I liked Tabla in New York) where I thought the food full of flavor with good spiciness. If I wanted Indian food and location was not an issue, I'd probably still go to a place on Devon, but this will likely be our go-to pre-Green Mill dinner (I've been to Silver Seafood, but not Demara).

There was a great band at the Green Mill Saturday, and I have to say, dinner at Marigold and two sets of jazz was about as good as it gets.

Jonah

We ventured to Marigold for the first time on Tuesday night. They are running an anniversary special right now -- 3 courses for $25. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are also "wine passport" nights where a selection of bottles are $15. (Note to anyone with a Groupon or Open Table Spotlight certificate: your certificate can be used for the wine deal, but not the 3 course for $25 deal.) Mr. X and I shared the Shrimp Malabar to start. He then had the Daal Tarka soup (yellow split lentil soup, finished with roasted cumin, with garlic naan crouton) and I had the Roasted Red Beet Salad (garam masala rubbed beets, garbanzos, almonds, cilantro-lime yogurt dressing). I would agree with posters above that the sauce with the shrimp was pretty toned down. I did really like the cashew/yellow lentil upma that was in the center. It reminded me of polenta. Any spice that was lacking in the shrimp dish made it in the soup. It was a heat that hit the back of the throat immediately. I didn't love the soup, but Mr. X had no problems, except for a runny nose. We really enjoyed the beet salad.

For entrees, we split the Murg Makhni and the Lamb Vindaloo. Our server, who was great BTW, noted that the Vindaloo had a heat the would build and recommended alternating bites of the lamb followed by the chicken. It was sound advice. We enjoyed both dishes. Authentic or not, I'm a sucker for Murg Makhni and was not disappointed with this version.

For dessert, we split the chocolate cake described above and agree with everything BR said about it. Absolutely delicious. Our $15 bottle of wine was a Tempranillo. It went fine with the food and was probably a fine version of the style. It was a little too jammy for me, but it was a bargain.

This $25 3-course special is a great deal. I thought the price per portion size for our entrees was high for a la carte, but fine in this deal. I don't know how long it's running, but is worth it. (Sundays through Wednesdays.) I still have a certificate to use, so we'll be back at least one more time.

This past nasty Saturday evening my wife any I stopped in to try the Naanwiches. My wife had sag paneer, and I had one with lamb. They are served in a basked with on newspaper, papadum for "chips." Each order contains two naanwiches, which are about the size and shape of generously filled tacos, except with a thin naan for the bread. Mine had lamb and some rice, which the sag paneer was pretty much sag paneer. This food is more fun than innovative, because it's not much different than scooping up a dish with naan; they've just made it easier to do. If you like the food at Marigold (which I think excellent), this is a reasonably priced and fun dinner. I think they were around $8 to $10 each, and with one side dish, it was a very filling dinner.

Jonah

They reopened last week in Andersonville.

5413 N Clark
773-989-4300

My wife and I had a nice meal at the new Marigold at Clark Street. Our waiter told us that they are under the same ownership and have the same chef as in the previous incarnation on Broadway, but the menu has been redesigned a bit and includes more lower-priced dishes. One can easily eat here for $15/pp. We had a calamari appetizer, a black lentil curry, and braised lamb shank. I thought all three were quite interesting and well cooked. The sauces and chutneys were spectacular.