Lotus SF

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No, it's not the name of the Spice Girls' US reunion tour. Just tell me what you want, what you really, really want. If you wanna be my go-to, you gotta get with my diet. To be perfectly honest, I had pretty low expectations about this isolated middle-of-Market spot. Turnover has been high since the space doesn't seem convenient to anyone without a broken shopping cart. It was Chris Daly's Buck Tavern for a couple of years and then a Japanese restaurant called Shido for the previous three years. When I saw the familiar generic banner highlighting familiar generic Indian dishes and the inevitable lunch buffet, I just dismissed it until I developed a severe hankering for something spicy and Indian one evening after a workout. When I walked in, the server didn't sing the opening lyrics to "Wannabe". He was more Posh than Scary if you know what I mean. I did a quick perusal of the menu and had my eye on the $14 Cauliflower Roast, which sounded like the healthiest of a varied lot. It was an intriguing dish of lightly roasted cauliflower florets mixed with a creamy, spicy sauce called lababdar masala and a soft blend of rice and lentils called khichdi (photo: bit.ly/2SUcc9Y). It was definitely comforting with a bit of a kick. It was also just ranked #55 on 7x7's 100 Best Dishes in San Francisco. A deeper look at their menu reveals some novel techniques like charring yogurt, using Meyer lemons on their tandoori shrimp, and making curry with a cheese omelet. Yep, I should come back again.