Here’s the UWS Dish: Swagat’s Aloo Papri Chaat

By Yana Krasnitskaya

The first time I had aloo papri chaat – a popular North Indian street food – was at a tiny Indian restaurant at a strip mall in New Jersey. I was heading to India in a couple weeks and my friend thought it would be a good idea to ease me into Indian cuisine before my voyage. I never forgot the surprisingly refreshing and vibrant bites of potato, savory wafer and chutney that make up papri chaat, and now I almost always look for it on Indian restaurant menus.

This past weekend I was thrilled to find it on the menu at Swagat, a relatively small restaurant located between West 79th and 80th streets on Amsterdam Avenue. It serves primarily North Indian fare, such as tandoori, biryani, and vegetarian items like dal makani and palak paneer. There are at most 20 tables in the whole space, and as soon as I stepped in, I felt a sense of coziness and comfort that immediately made me crave the warm and cozy spices of Indian food. It also felt a little bit like I was dining in someone’s home.

Swagat has been on my radar for a while, not only because it’s been around for so long – nearly 15 years according to my search – but also because I appreciate a restaurant with a vision and a little whimsy. The heading of each menu section is a play on words — for example, the appetizer section is “just a lil something” – so I had a lot of fun perusing the menu. There is something for everyone at Swagat but if you’re willing to be adventurous and explore a slightly nuanced flavor profile, I definitely recommend trying the aloo papri chaat ($14).

To sum it up in one sentence, aloo papri chaat is a textural explosion of crispy savory wafer, softened potatoes, creamy yogurt and a mix of chutneys and spices that create the perfect balance of sweet, spicy and tangy. Its roots hail from the rich street-food culture of North India, particularly the culinary traditions of Delhi and the surrounding regions. Papri refers to the crispy wafers, while chaat comes from the Hindi verb chaatna, meaning to lick, referring to the fact that the food is so tasty that it’s tempting to lick one’s fingers.

At Swagat, my utensil of choice was a lovely ornate spoon, which I dunked directly into the bowl to serve myself a heaping scoop of the chaat. The first thing I picked up on was the tang from the tamarind and green chutneys—the latter a combination of cilantro and green chiles, mint, and lots of lemon juice. Tamarind itself is a striking sweet-sour flavor and lingers with an almost licorice-like patina on the tongue.

Next comes the coating of yogurt, followed by the satisfying crunch of the wafer and the heftiness of the potato. This is a dish that will most certainly wake up your palate. It’s not an overwhelmingly heavy bite, but it’s enough to remind you of how unapologetic Indian food is in its flavors. And how addictive. I’d just done a long foliage filled walk through Central Park right before dining here so I was ravenous, but I kept coming back to this dish because it was just that delicious. In context of the entire meal, it served a purpose similar to that of a herbaceous salad – but with a little something extra.

Everything at Swagat is delicious, but I’d be remiss not to call out their butter chicken ($24). It arrived at our table in an attractive shallow metal bowl, the creamy tomato sauce a lovely shade of deep orange, with bits of herbs and healthy chunks of chicken floating within. It was garnished with a red pepper and swirls of yogurt throughout giving it a tangy, creamy flavor. It’s best when paired with a little bit of rice or scooped up with a crispy torn-off piece of garlic naan ($8). We had to ask for seconds of the naan, because we devoured the first half moon by dipping it through the chicken and the addictive lemon-limey juices at the bottom of the aloo papri chaat bowl. Delicious.

With the weather getting colder and the need for hearty, delightful fare rising, I know I’ll be back to Swagat to try their other dishes like the Lamb Rogan Josh and the Saag Paneer. And you better believe I will start every meal with an aloo papri chaat. A perfect way to kickstart the palate for the joy to come.

The Dish: Aloo Papri Chaat ($14)
The Restaurant:  Swagat, 411 Amsterdam Avenue (between West 79th and 80th streets). Open Monday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.