Pippali is an upscale restaurant that serves imaginative Indian fare and award-winning wines in a modern, minimalist space on 27th Street. Headed by Mumbai-born chef Peter Beck (of Tamarind and Benares fame), Pippali is named for a long black pepper that combines spicy, tangy, and sweet flavors and serves a menu that does the same.
Focusing on lighter, veggie-centric versions of South Asian cuisine, highlights of the delicious changing menu include appetizers of rice papadum crisps served with a mango chutney, entrées of chicken tandoor madula with mild green chutney, anjeeri tikki beet patties with fig-and-mint stuffing, and peetalu kofta (a simple crab cake in sweet ginger coconut milk with a star anise finish). Finish off the meal with a delicate pistachio ice cream topped with bamboo rose syrup and sea salt.
129 E 27th Street, New York, NY 10016, Phone: 212-689-1999, Map