an indian secret garden

after a night of tequilla shots and rock band, I took a mandatory trip top dog the next morning, but I've already done a post on it and don't want to bore you. (I tried the garlic for anyone wondering and found it pretty darn tasty). and for anyone in socal who wondered about top dog, i read in oc weekly's stickaforkinit (i always read it as stick for a knit) that Berkeley Dog opened in orange county (mission viejo which is pretty damn south but a brea one to open soon) and is being supplied by top dog.

for lunch, I wanted to try something new, so my sister took me to vik's. as you walk through the colorful eye pleasing entrance, you go past the bored looking cashier and down the aisles filled with wonderful aromas of spices and other things i know nothing of then you make a left, another left, a right, and then spin 3 times in place and a robin will come and help you find the key to the locked gate, and through it...

you are greeted by utter chaos and madness. we were herded like sheep into the line, goaded into taking our order quickly before we were trampled to death by the moving crowd.

Panicking, I tried to scan the menu (this shot is for Dennis, the most meticulous food blogger I ever did meet), hoping to find anything familiar or appealing, but it was no bloody help at all! Click on the menu for full size and you'll see why.

So just like on a multiple test exam, I picked blindly and desperately prayed for the best, going for the chicken biryani. Underneath the rice were three small chicken pieces, some with bone. And along with it some yogurt sauce w/ cucumbers in it. The dish was sneakily spicy and really good...but I have no idea what it was made with.

My sister got the dosa(think thin crepe) with masala filling. Filled with potatoes and peas. Should have taken a cross section pic. I'm not quite sure what the other stuff along with it is.

to drink I got both the mango lassi

and some cold refreshing coconut juice. What I also liked about this place was that there were three cans for waste: one for trash, one for recycling, and one for compost. Respect mother earth!

there were a bunch of desserts on display, and I wish I had tried one.

I have no idea what any of them were though, which made it all the more appealing! I felt like a kid in a candy store. Overall, a pretty interesting and good place (i hear norcal has better indian than socal), one that I would go to again, but not without doing some research beforehand so I wouldn't have to feel rushed.

Stuffed, we headed back for me to get my things and head back down. But not before I tried an It's-It, generously (albeit drunkenly) bought for us by my sister's friend, who mysteriously disappeared for the weekend after a night of beer and soju shots (forgot my camera to do a post on that joint though)

The makeup.

And an ugly inside look. The chocolate overpowered the cookie for me, but the ice cream was pretty good. It's inspired me to bake some cookies at home and create my own ice cream sandwich. After a short nap and armed with an audiobook (into the wild, which I only got through the first disc haha), I got my nicely shaped rump (i've been doin those squats and yoga mang) back on the road and drove home.