Zaiqa Will Bring Indian and Pakistani Cuisine to South Waterfront | Eater Portland

"I found that Zaiqa (which means “flavor” in Urdu) will open on June 14 in the South Waterfront neighborhood, taking over the space vacated by Bambuza Vietnam Kitchen at 3682 SW Bond Avenue. Owned by software engineer Adnan Ali—who also owns Sultan the Flaming Tandoor in Sherwood and is a partner at Naan N Curry in Welches—Zaiqa focuses on Northern Indian staples like curries and biryanis while including Pakistani-style dishes such as karahi and korma. The menu features Chicken 65 and a vegetarian Gobi 65, a popular deep-fried dish traced to the Hotel Buhari in Chennai, though the meaning of “65” is disputed. Chef Lal Khan, formerly of Maharaja Cuisine of India in Seattle, will run the kitchen, and another chef will tend the tandoor to lightly char breads like naan and roti and grill tandoori meats including bone-in lamb chops and kebabs. Tandoori samplers like the mixed grill (Afghani malai tikka, chicken tikka, tandoori chicken, lamb seekh kebabs, and lamb chops) and a bread basket with various naan and Punjabi paratha let diners try multiple items, and Ali says he developed the menu after researching local restaurants and wanted plenty of vegan and gluten-free options plus a customizable section where diners can choose the main ingredient—potatoes, paneer, tofu, chicken, fish, shrimp, or lamb." - Janey Wong