I love summer, but I hate Tibetan Kitchen’s annual summer break. This year, a sign in late June announced the restaurant would be closed “through the second week of August,” a maddeningly vague endpoint come early August, when fans like me were really jonesing. I get it, of course: A large portion of TK’s customers are Yale students, whether grad or undergrad, and business slows way down when, in summer, they go where they go.
Now where they’re going is here, back to school, so I assume it’s no coincidence that Tibetan Kitchen is back as well. Catching wind of the reopening, I walked over for a late lunch and started with the Dhang-tsel ($7), a fresh shredded cabbage dish that keeps the lovely vinegar tang of coleslaw but replaces its creamy sweetness with an addictive umami dressing.
I then tried the Avocado Salad ($8), which was really more of a potato salad. Dressed with a pulverized mash of the eponymous avocado, it was simple and spare in its flavors, the hearty heap of soft potato lumps singing best where the lightly seasoned avocado had gathered. To zest it up, I used the restaurant’s not-too-hot and pleasantly crunchy chili blend, which is oil-steeped in small metal pots and placed like table salt on every two-top.
That chili blend paired especially beautifully with my next dish, the Shogo Moktak ($15), an octet of fat crescent-moon dumplings that were creamy, chewy and crispy all at once. Steamed and pan-fried, with a turmeric- and onion-infused whipped potato filling, they were warming and comforting on their own, though a bright, herbal and lightly spicy dipping sauce was too good to leave off. So was an included bonus helping of Dhang-tsel, which brought freshness and a less subtle crunch. And, of course, I sometimes added that tasty table chili, which layered in a slow, lingering heat and even more depth.
I finished with the Tsel Tofu ($16), choosing a heat level of two out of five. This tomato-based soup made with Indian spices was my go-to before summer break, and I’ve now confirmed it’ll be my go-to after. As before, I loved the potent yet balanced spices, which function almost as a dry rub (yes, in a soup), and I craved the central pile of medium-firm tofu and scrumptiously al dente veggies (broccoli, tomato, bok choy, carrot, onion), their native flavors subtly surviving the powerful spices. A dome of moist white rice was both a palate cleanser and a worthy layer of its own, whether dipped or dumped into the earthen red broth.
Soon unable to eat another bite, I departed with leftovers, as well as a thought that has surely crossed many of the minds now returning to New Haven: It’s good to be back.
Written and photographed by Dan Mims.
