"Taking over the bi-level space that formerly housed D'Artagnan,
this pleasantly appointed Midtown Indian sallies forth with a roster
of tried-and-true subcontinental classics; bargain-hunters have
already sniffed out the $9.95 lunch buffet, served seven days a week." Zagatsurvey
2005 New York City Restaurants
"Opening to New Heights
Slowly but surely, the owners of Jackson Heights' popular Indian Taj
have branched out, to Greenwich Village and on Long Island. Darbar,
their latest and most elegant venture, occupies the east-midtown
duplex recently vacated by D'Artagnan, and foie gras fanatics still
in mourning can take some measure of comfort in Darbar's thoughtful,
hospitable service and extensive menu (not to mention its $9.95
lunch buffet). In addition to standard korma and tandoori
preparations, the kitchen experiments with fusion fare like
"trans-ethnic" Maine crab cakes and Indian-spiced potato croquettes
stuffed with goat cheese--both of which can be paired with
trans-ethnic drinks like Taj Mahal beer and North Fork Chardonnay."
NEW YORK magazine
August 16, 2004
"This This bi-level Indian eatery offers a gracious welcome, dark wood
paneling, a skylight ceiling upstairs, and one of the most amazing bargains in
town with its $9.95 lunch buffet: a dozen choices of fragrant main courses and
accompaniments, all help-yourself style, turned out by a chef direct from
Bombay. During the day, Darbar draws tourists and nearby office workers, while
at night the scene settles down with a sophisticated clientele mostly drawn
from local residents -- although anyone more accustomed to dining on Sixth
Street should certainly consider making a trek uptown for the wide-ranging menu
(goat-cheese croquettes; garlic venison chops; 'trans-ethnic' Maine crab cakes
with curry and ginger; cilantro-pesto tandoori shrimp; rosemary naan) as well
as the most serene setting."
Rhonda Markowitz
(from AOL cityguide)
"The snug duplex space that was D'Artagnan is now home to a chic
Indian spot from the owners of Jackson Height's Taj. This
elegant Midtown eatery offers traditional tandoori dishes as well as
contemporary plates like Indian-spiced goat cheese and potato
croquettes. There's also an unbeatable $9.95 lunch buffet."
Andrea Strong New York Post newspaper
"Creative chefs don't fade out,...At Kishti, Apu Gomez's delicately
spiced dishes that drew inspiration from different corners of India
attracted a faithful band of customers. Kishti closed down
about a year ago but Gomez has not been idle. He helped the
owners of Indian Taj, one of the best buffet places in Queens, open
an opulent restaurant on Long Island and a restaurant on the
ever-busy Bleecker Street. The Taj group has also opened
Darbar In the east Midtown duplex...Gomez offers many tasteful and
eye-catching dishes, especially the Trans-Ethnic Maine Crab Cake
($10) at Darbar. When the menu says the dish is made of chunks
of crab flavored with ginger and curry leaves, it is not mincing
words. Rarely have I eaten crab cakes that are so flavorsome
and filled with genuine crab meat...Another winner among the
starters is the humble but ever-so-abused Vegetable Samosa ($4).
The potato and pea filling is tastier than the Samosas found at most
New York restaurants. The dish has very little oil too...I am
intrigued by Beetroot Malai Kofta ($11). But more than any of
the above dishes, I would want to investigate the lunch buffet.
At Kishti, chef Gomez used to whip up an amazing buffet for $11.
Here, the weeklong buffet costs $9.50. Every time I have
passed by Darbar, I have seen a full house - it seats about 80
people for the buffet - between noon and 2pm. Soon to be
introduced is a taster's menu, $80 for non-vegetarian and $60 for
vegetarian. The price is a bit stiff for Indian taster's menus
but the dinner comes with wine. Beguiling items include the
Appam Roll, which was a big hit at Kishti, and which isn't available
on the regular menu as yet. The non-vegetarian menu includes
Garlic Venison Chops and Lobster Balchow, the vinegary Goan classic.
In the vegetarian section, I am intrigued by the Jack Fruit Pakoras
and the Methi Corn Tikki. Onion and Black Pepper Kulcha comes
with vegetarian and non-vegetarian taster's menus. What makes
the dining experience a bigger pleasure is that there is no Indian
vocal music or recorded sitar music. Instead, there are lovely
instrumental numbers from some of the most melodic Hindi films.
Manager and part-owner Manek has a sense of humor. When
he saw the chef greeting a customer, Manek refused to charge the
man, without realizing he was a food writer. 'If the
chef knows you so well, how can I charge you?' Manek asked, adding
the customer was dining at Darbar for the first time. 'Its our
office policy,' the writer said, 'to always pay for the food.'
Manek hesitated for a moment. 'In that case, I think I should
charge you double,' he said with a smile."
Arthur J Pais India in New York newspaper
October 8, 2004