New Indian Restaurant Challenges Nobu for Most Anticipated New Galleria Restaurant Title: Everything You Need to Know About Spice Route

Variety is the spice of life. In many ways, variety is what makes Houston, the most diverse city in America, special. This is true for the city’s multifaceted food scene too. There’s nothing mundane about the menus here.

But some would argue that we could take the variety in our cuisine even further. A new Galleria restaurant aims to do just that.

Spice Route, which will open in The Galleria’s fancy new wing later this year, is an Indian restaurant unlike any Indian restaurant you’ve ever seen before. This ambitious new spot will show some serious love to the underrated and overlooked flavors from northeast and western India.

Spice Route’s chef duo Mayank Istwal and Shivek Suri plans to throw a curveball at American diners used to a certain type of Indian food.

“The restaurants in the U.S. mostly dish up kebabs and butter chicken as Indian food,” Istwal tells the Hindustan Times. “The traditional items from the northeast or the western part of the country have barely found its way to menu cards here. So, we thought it’s time to serve tradition with a twist.”

By the second half of 2018, foodies in Galleria VI will be able to eat up authentic dishes such as Garlic locho, a recipe Istwal and Suri discovered in Gujarat, the western most state of India. Made with green chutney and a sprinkle of masala, it’s a winner from the west. And it will be competing against some powerhouse new Houston restaurants.

Galleria VI’s 110,000 square feet of retail space, anchored by Saks Fifth Avenue, will also feature highly-anticipated new restaurants Nobu and Fig & Olive, along with 35 stores.

The first renderings of Spice Route show an ornate setting with plenty of gold and a hip-looking bar.

Spice Route Chef Journeys

Istwal and Suri were both trained at the Institute of Hotel Management, Istwal in Guwahati and Suri in Aurangabad. The chefs left their posts in Bangalore and Delhi in 2016 to head to Houston.

A friend introduced them to Shammi Malik and his wife, who were interested in creating their own high-end Indian restaurant. The foursome’s collaboration led to Spice Route. Well, that, and a 100-day voyage across India to gather secret, stellar family recipes.

Their travels took them to Alleppey, where they discovered duck curry and to Maghalaya with its sesame pork. Manipur’s snail dishes, Nagaland’s non-veg pickles and The Kashmiri’s Wazwan food also caught their eye.

Spice Route’s food will provide a stark contrast to traditional United States Indian food. Indian food in America is pretty limited, with most menus billing butter chicken and kebabs as top Indian mainstays, Istwal tells the Hindustan Times.

Istwal and Suri aren’t stopping with new dishes. They’re also blending modern cooking techniques with conventional preparation methods. An 18- to 20-course tasting menu is in the works, which will include one dish from almost every Indian state. Foodies will be able to take a tour of India without ever leaving their seat in The Galleria.

Now, that’s a Spice Route.