Durbar

A gourmet Indian restaurant in downtown Milwaukee

Durbar has the most luxurious personality of any Indian restaurant I've been to in Milwaukee. From the outside you wouldn't guess it, except that the place is located on the east side of downtown (near the Plaza Hotel and Buckley's). When you walk in, you're met with a tremendous crystal chandelier, richly-hued drapes of fabric, and shapely archways to various dining rooms. Lots of wow factor.

We went on a Thursday, and the restaurant was pretty empty; if memory serves me, just three other tables were seated while we were there. I wonder if it gets much busier on the weekends? Durbar opened in May, so maybe it's still finding its footing — or maybe it's the inconspicuous location in the Park East Hotel.

Anyway, we ordered wine to start. Two words: Generous pours. And it wasn't just because I ordered the cheapest wine on the menu (keeping it real people!) — everyone else with their fancy wine enjoyed the same copious amount. What's not to love about that?

For dinner, I went with chicken tikka masala — an admittedly safe choice, but so delicious! You have to set the bar somewhere. My group wasn't all about full-on sharing, so I'd recommend going with a sharing crowd if you want to be a little more adventurous. The entrées are served in silver bowls (drool!). The portions don't come off as huge, but I took half of my meal home, so trust me — they feed you plenty. Plus, we got vegetable pakora as an app (love it!), and that wonderful thin crispy bread is complimentary.

There's also a whole section of the menu devoted to fresh-made bread. Following one of my fellow diner's leads, I went for the aloo paratha: naan stuffed with potato, coriander, green chili, and Indian spices, all topped with butter. Super tasty, though I was eyeing the garlic naan from across the table and might go that route next time. One order of bread is definitely enough for at least two people.

After the leisurely eating came the Durbar flaw — waiting. We waited. And waited. And waited some more. We waited for our check to come. We waited as our waiter held on to our credit cards for a solid 20+ minutes before we finally asked for a status report. Turns out the system was giving them trouble — who knows. But it was an ordeal! And this was with only three other tables occupied. Point is, maybe you should bring cash when you visit Durbar — and maybe you should make sure you're not in a hurry. Do that, and I think you'll thoroughly enjoy the experience. Save for the waiting, I know I did.