Aab India Restaurant

Aab India is the new Indian restaurant located amongst the endless sea of fine dining in Grandview. Aab's fare is flavorful and presents plenty of options for vegetarian diners.

Aab India Restaurant is owned by the same family that owns Ambar India, Cincinnati's favorite Indian establishment. The menu consists of a variety of choices from Northern and Southern India.

The interior of Aab is tastefully decorated. The tables are topped with a white table cloth, which ends up covered in chutney and other sauces when a barbarian like me is eating. The decor is mostly brown and beige interspersed with primary colors. The staff is capable although the service is somewhat uneven. Hopefully they will work out the kinks as time passes.

The chutneys at Aab are extremely flavorful. The mint chutney was chunky and fresh. The tamarind chutney had a bracing acidity. The onion chutney had an interesting pickled flavor.

I sampled the vegetarian appetizer platter. The paneer pakora was great. Paneer cheese is given a thick coating of batter that adds a crunchy element to an already tasty ingredient. The vegetable pakoras were crispy and satisfying. The aloo tikki (breaded mashed potatoes) is also delightful. The samosa, which was made with mashed potatoes rather than whole pieces of potato, was good but served slightly cooler than it should have been. Although the appetizers were delicious, additional care could have been taken to make sure that the items were evenly cooked and served at a uniform temperature.

Aab offers a wide range of breads, from naan to paratha. They are flecked with everything from onions to garlic to paneer. The paneer naan was mild and delicious, with a perfect texture.

I got the aloo vindaloo as a main course. Potatoes were cubed and prepared in the classic Southern Indian spicy sauce. The potatoes were cooked to a tender consistency, and they soaked up the notes of red chiles, cardamom and tumeric. The vindaloo was excellent.

The bar at Aab features a full selection of beer, wine and cocktails. Aab also offers lunch and dinner portions of meals. The dinner menu is much larger than the lunch menu.

Overall, Aab shows a lot of promise. With the exception of a few miscues in service, the experience at Aab is definitely good for vegetarians.

Aab India