397510 Wed May 02 01:59:46 -0700 2007 0 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 2533565 i went to lahore karahi tonight with a friend before a birthday party on polk. another friend of mine who lives in the tenderloin, and usually has impeccable taste in everything from clothing to food, emphatically said that we should go to lahore karahi over shalimar. so off we went. we ordered some basics: lamb korma, saag paneer, rice, and something new to me, sesame naan. i'm not the most avid fan of north indian/pakistani food, so maybe i sound like a complete novice, but i have never seen sesame naan on a menu before. that's a shame, because the sesame seeds were nicely toasted from their blasting in the tandoor, and i thought they were a revelation. but it kind of stopped there. the owner gave us a bit of grief with our ordering. i almost said, "then tell us what we should order here." i wish i had, because afterwards i did ask that question (after being chided for ordering "what everyone else orders") and was told to go for the tandoori fish and apparently anything with garbanzo beans. a quick search here on chowhound just now showed several recs for the fish. though he says it is seabass, the menu clearly said chilean seabass, which is not the same fish at all. nevertheless, i will go back for more sesame naan and try the tandoori fish. oh. also he was kind of a pain in the ass about spiciness. we wanted the saag paneer medium, and the lamb spicy. he kind of looked us over and said he'd give us both dishes medium. no, we said. THIS medium, THAT spicy, please. he seemed perplexed, and i finally had to say, "i don't necessarily want my greens to be all that spicy, but i definitely want my LAMB to be spicy." he argued with us for a minute, before writing the order. i was afraid that he'd dumb it down anyway. he didn't. the lamb was super tender in an almost smoky sauce that had a slow burn that built up with each bite. it was so good with the sesame bread. the spinach? i've already forgotten what it tasted like. while i appreciate the place's obvious pride in what they do, some of which they obviously do quite well, it was a little frustrating to have the owner making pained faces while we ordered without offering suggestions (at least until after we had eaten). especially when otherwise the printed menu is indistinguishable from other north indian/ pakistani places in the city. regardless of the pushy but grandfatherly service, i did enjoy most of my meal and i do intend to go back, mostly to have him make good on his boasts. because the place smelled like he can back them up. i know this place has been covered a bunch, but a lot of those threads are a few years old. can anyone else steer me right? and also, (again, i'm a very infrequent customer at indian/pakistani places) where else can i get toasty, fragrant sesame naan?! thank you. Wed May 02 01:59:46 -0700 2007 27741 augustiner