Ananda – Maple Lawn’s secret
Tucked away in the sea of cookie-cutter luxury town homes in the Maple Lawn development in Fulton, Md., is a well-hidden secret. That secret houses the culinary masterminds of the Ambassador Dining Room, a fine-dining Indian restaurant in the Johns Hopkins Homewood area in Baltimore. As if the long-standing, well-known Ambassador did not have an extraordinary reputation itself, its brand new sister restaurant Ananda just upped the ante.
Modeled quite exquisitely after the Ambassador Dining Room, Ananda boasts classy elegance and and fine dining at its prime. The restaurant is rather hidden, typical of the Columbia area, and sits on the backside of a brand new building on Maple Lawn Boulevard. Old-school, British-Indian warmth adorn every square inch of the grandiose establishment, complete with roaring fire places, plush oversized pillows on the bench seats, cherry-stained book cases, and a beautiful, fully-stocked bar. For those who have been to the Ambassador, the amphibious al fresco dining area (enclosed in the winter and open to the fresh air in the warmer months) is also Ananda’s main seating area and appropriately guests’ choicest tables.
We had the privilege of dining in this unique outdoor/indoor greenhouse-like enclosure, and because it was freezing outside, the fireplaces caddy cornered at each end of the room were blazing and permeating nostalgia into the atmosphere.
Simply blown away by the beautiful aesthetics of the restaurant, I knew I was in for a real treat. We had come to celebrate my mom’s birthday. It was a big milestone (a number I will kindly not disclose for the sake of my lovely mother), so a fancy meal was certainly in the books. We couldn’t have chosen a more ideal restaurant.
The wait staff were extremely friendly and inviting, answering any questions we had about unfamiliar items on the menu. As most of you know, when dining out with the Starks, you must come with an anything-but-modest appetite. We always order more food than necessary, but somehow, it all gets eaten. I’m proud to say we were all members of the clean plate club yesterday evening.
For appetizer, we ordered the appetizer platter, an assortment of samosas and pakoras, and the kerala cake, a Punjabi take on the traditional crab cake. My brother and parents each ordered a salad as well: the avocado-corn salad and the organic greens salad with orange and fennel. Every one of these first tastes were absolutely delicious and presented with such delicacy.
Just when we thought our entrees to come could not possibly surpass their predecessors, each dish was even more well executed than the next, with floral and aromatic flavors of cumin, fenugreek, curry, turmeric, tamarind, ginger, coriander, and spicy chili peppers, just to tantalize your taste buds with a few. My grandmother and I ordered the murgh tikka (tandori-style, yogurt marinated chicken) and bengan bhartha (roasted baby eggplant stewed with tomatoes and spices), respectively, so we could share half and half with each other. My fiance ordered the chicken korma (juicy chicken simmered in a light almond cream sauce), my brother ordered the fish tikka (the tandori salmon with a jam-like tomato coulis), my dad ordered the shrimp adrak (colossal shrimp marinated in lime, ginger, and chili peppers, then grilled), and my mom ordered the chicken madras (succulent chicken in a creamy, coconut curry). My meal was so divine, I did not want it to end. I purposely ate slowly so I could savor every bite. Likewise, everyone of my family members simply could not get enough of their own dishes and tastes of each others that were passed around the table. We also shared a basket of freshly baked naan bread, which was devoured and used as a sponge at the end of the meal to sop up all the remnants of sauces left on our plates. I honestly think I would have licked my plate if I weren’t in public!
Finally, a few of us saved room for dessert, which traditionally at an Indian restaurant, is not usually the most popular item on the menu. The not-so-authentic items were the ones that lured us into the trap of temptation: salted caramel ice cream for the birthday girl (sans candle, unfortunately) and chocolate pots de creme for my dad and brother. I was too full to indulge in the sweet after dinner confections, but my dad proclaimed the chocolate pots de creme was even better than the one he had at the Mannequin Pis in Olney years ago (and that one was hands down his favorite chocolate dish he’d ever had; in fact he would go back to the restaurant just to get that dessert). And my mom polished off her cup of salted caramel ice cream without batting an eyelash.
All in all, I would say our meal at Ananda was outstanding. Sometimes mere words just don’t do justice, so I recommend going there yourself. But be sure to make a reservation, as the restaurant was packed even on a Sunday evening.