You are no longer allowed to complain about the chain restaurants around the Maine Mall. Nor should you ever discuss any Indian restaurant but this one: Aroma. (In fact, I wish I had not written about any others, but in the interests of probity I will not delete the posts.) If you find yourself anywhere in South Portland, or simply have a craving for Indian food, go straight there. Full stop. No excuses.
In eleven years of living in Queens, I ate in many Indian restaurants, in Jackson Heights, Long Island City, Richmond Hill, and Flushing, and even the canteen of a Hindu temple. Aroma was better than all of them. In fact, it was the best Indian food I've ever had outside of London.
I might not have even realized it was so good if not for a misunderstanding. The Little One wanted a child's mini dosa. (That they even have mini dosas on the children's menu is itself fantastic. They also have mini utthapams.) The waiter misunderstood Hot Librarian's order to mean that we also wanted a regular dosa for ourselves. When it came out and we expressed surprise, he insisted on taking off our check, even though we would gladly have paid for it. Very gladly.
Until now, the dosas at the Ganesha Temple Canteen had been our gold standard. For those who do not know, a dosa is a thin crepe made of a mixture of rice flour and lentil flour, and rolled into a tube. It can be, but need not be, filled with a fragrant stew of potatoes and mixed vegetables, and/or a variety of spicy chutneys. Whether filled or not, they are traditionally served with sambar, a thin but richly spiced, sauce-like soup of beans and vegetables, and a coconut chutney that both heats and cools.
Regarding the dosas at Aroma, there's a slight difference of opinion between me and HL. For HL, who does not use the sambar and only slightly dips pieces of dosa into the coconut chutney, the dosa at Aroma was as good as that at the Ganesha Temple. Aroma's has a pleasant nutty flavor, different from but just as good as the slightly fermented flavor of those at the Temple Canteen. For me, however, the sambar and the chutney elevated Aroma's even higher. The sambar was perfectly seasoned. The chutney was redolent of coconut oils, and the red chili flecks used instead of green chili gave it a slight smoky flavor. As far as I am concerned, it is the best dosa I've ever had.
The other things we ordered were all delicious as well. HL got a massive order of tamarind rice that was flecked with nuts and crispy bits of urad dal and studded with red chilis and other spices. I was in a bit of a chili-head mood, so I got the chilli chicken--an Indo-Chinese dish, roughly the Indian equivalent of General Tso's chicken, and an appetizer of cut mirchi (basically deep fried chilis). There are a number of Indo-Chinese dishes on the menu, mostly under Chef's Specialties.
Go to Aroma. Keep going to Aroma. Order everything off the menu. That is what we'll be doing. I pray it's open on Christmas.
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