BITES ON A BUDGET is a toothsome and tasty series where members of the OC family forage for great food––under $10
Pakistan Tea House is a 25-year-old family business and cab driver favorite in Tribeca, with a line known to stretch out the door during lunchtime. Inside the small restaurant, a smiling man behind the counter, Kamil, patiently explained to me how to order while a TV played music videos from the Bollywood film Tashan. You can choose between plenty of dishes––cauliflower, spicy chicken, lentil, lamb––all in a wonderful color scale of ochre and terracotta. I greedily wanted to order them all but decided on the vegetable combo ($6.99), three types of vegetables with white or brown rice, or traditional naan bread.
The restaurant has a broad spectrum of customers: students ordering take-away, the regular who knows the menu so well he places his order without even glancing at it, and perhaps the best sign of good Pakistani food, Pakistanis themselves. I eat and eat away at my hearty vegetable and rice dish, so large it could easily have fed two people. I’m so full I don't even have room left for one of the delicious looking pastries I spot on the other side of the counter, but that doesn't stop me from thinking about what to order on my next visit. Perhaps one of their specialties––Tandoori chicken?
PAKISTAN TEA HOUSE
176 Church Street
New York, NY 10006
MAP
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Samil, Sofia, and Kamil
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My vegetable combo and mango lassi ($3.50)
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Pakistan Tea House is a 25-year-old family business and cab driver favorite in Tribeca, with a line known to stretch out the door during lunchtime. Inside the small restaurant, a smiling man behind the counter, Kamil, patiently explained to me how to order while a TV played music videos from the Bollywood film Tashan. You can choose between plenty of dishes––cauliflower, spicy chicken, lentil, lamb––all in a wonderful color scale of ochre and terracotta. I greedily wanted to order them all but decided on the vegetable combo ($6.99), three types of vegetables with white or brown rice, or traditional naan bread.
The restaurant has a broad spectrum of customers: students ordering take-away, the regular who knows the menu so well he places his order without even glancing at it, and perhaps the best sign of good Pakistani food, Pakistanis themselves. I eat and eat away at my hearty vegetable and rice dish, so large it could easily have fed two people. I’m so full I don't even have room left for one of the delicious looking pastries I spot on the other side of the counter, but that doesn't stop me from thinking about what to order on my next visit. Perhaps one of their specialties––Tandoori chicken?
PAKISTAN TEA HOUSE
176 Church Street
New York, NY 10006
MAP
Samil, Sofia, and Kamil
My vegetable combo and mango lassi ($3.50)
