Dear Patron:

I hope all is well with you and your loved ones. Business at Ajanta continued to be good in January, after a good month in December. We have been very busy, especially on the weekends. So, reservations on weekends are advised. It also appears that we will be very busy on Valentine's Day. Please call ahead and book your table if you plan to visit Ajanta on that day. We will be offering our awesome 'Best of the Best' chef's tasting menu on Valentine's Day, February 14, which includes tastings of three appetizers, four main dishes, rice, bread, and a choice of dessert.

While on the subject of reservations, I would like to talk about OpenTable. We signed up with OpenTable a little over a year ago. While it provides a free and convenient way for our customers to make their reservations, it costs us money. We are charged $1.00 per customer for reservations made through OpenTable.com. At our price point, this is quite expensive. The fee paid by us is significantly lower if you access OpenTable from the Ajanta website or the Ajanta Facebook page. So, if possible, please make your reservations by calling the restaurant or by accessing OpenTable through our website or by clicking 'Reservations' on our Facebook page. Also, if you are unable to find a table through OpenTable, please call us. We block some tables for customers who call us directly, especially on the weekends.

We were happy to note that Ajanta appears on the list of 'Ten Places to Eat at Now' on Tablehopper.com. We are also one of the Bay Area’s highest rated Indian restaurants on Gayot.com. It feels nice to know that our hard work is appreciated.

Many of you remember the San Francisco Chronicle Baylist Best contest and voted for us during the past three years. With your help, we were voted best Indian restaurant in 2009, 2010, and 2011. During the past year, the Chronicle Baylist morphed into an ‘A-List’ and is now sponsored by ABC 7 News. Voting for 2012 kicks off on Feb. 6 and continues through March 30. Ajanta is nominated in the Indian Restaurant category. We would very much appreciate your vote. Click here to vote.

All the new dishes introduced last month were very well received. The Scallop Curry and the Crab Cakes were the best-liked dishes. We will leave the Crab Cakes on the menu for one more month. The new dishes being introduced for the month of February 2012 are as follows:

Mangalore Chicken Curry: Named after the city of Mangalore, located in South India, this chicken dish has many flavors that distinguish South Indian cuisine: coconut, fenugreek, mustard seeds, peppercorns, and dried whole red chile peppers. Boneless organic chicken pieces are sautéed and then simmered in a sauce made with onions, lemon juice, coconut milk, garlic, and spices. The spices include cumin, coriander, turmeric, and paprika. As is common in South India, the spices are roasted whole and then ground up just before being added to the sauce, giving the sauce a distinctive flavor not found in North Indian curries.

Chicken Biriyani: Most of you know that we feature only one biriyani at a time on our menu, while other Indian restaurants have three or four biriyanis on their menu. The reason for this is simple: we do our biriyanis using a long, elaborate process. We hope the extra effort is justified by better tasting biriyanis. Our chicken biriyani is based on a recipe from Hyderabad, located in South India. Boned and skinned organic chicken pieces are partially cooked in a thick curry sauce. Separately, the rice is partially cooked using half the amount of water needed for full cooking. The partially cooked rice and chicken are then placed in layers in a steam-tight container and cooked further by baking in an oven. In this technique of cooking, the steam generated by the heat is locked into the container and does the cooking, giving biriyani its unique textural quality. The dish is served topped with caramelized onions, nuts, and raisins. Each morsel brings you a mélange of flavors and textures, making this dish very memorable.

Andhra Shrimp Curry: This new dish from Andhra Pradesh became very popular when introduced for the first time a couple of years ago. In Andhra Pradesh, this dish is served very hot. The sauce for this dish is made with onions, ginger, garlic, coriander, cumin, grated coconut, green chile peppers, whole peppercorns, and coconut milk. The shrimp are marinated in turmeric, mango powder, and red chile powder. The marinated shrimp are cooked in the sauce, along with mint and curry leaves. Order this dish as hot as your palate will permit. This dish will not be available in less than medium level.

The following dishes will be discontinued to make room for the new dishes:

1. Galina Shakooti

2. Madras Jhinga Masala

3. Nawabi Tarkari Biriyani

As always, it is a pleasure to see you at Ajanta. Please visit us on our Facebook page, ‘like’ us, and share your dining experience at Ajanta. Your comments and feedback are always appreciated.

Sincerely,

Lachu Moorjani