"With a menu originally supervised by actor and cookbook author Madhur Jaffrey, Dawat is an East Side white tablecloth joint founded in 1986 behind Bloomingdale’s. The food is adventuresome, while remaining traditional, with more emphasis on North than South. Tandoori cooking is a specialty, and Mughal vegetarian dishes like saag paneer and malai kofta are rendered with superior subtlety. The menu is best, though, when it strays over the map, as in Keralan Jewish Cornish game hen, and Hyderabadi sliced lamb kebab." - Robert Sietsema