The Treasury

A Treasure in the heart of Burlington


“The Treasury”  announced its grand opening on March 1st, 2020. For many, it is yet another Indian fine-dining experience. Though for me, the announcement meant the culmination of the never ending wait to experience the culinary masterpieces we were anticipating... ever since we first heard about a fine-dining restaurant, many many months ago. “The Treasury” has been a dream for its founders, Archana & Prakash Khot and Sujata & Devendra Patil, to bring a unique fine-dining experience in the Greater Boston area, and boy, have they delivered!!! It took its time opening, but like  every project that requires perfection, these partners did whatever it took to plow through the hurdles to bring to us foodies, what they had promised to themselves.

The restaurant is opening in the Wayside Mall in Burlington, MA. When I first approached it, I was pleasantly surprised to see an entrance with two doors- one that opens to a trendy casual seating area that looked more like a fast food place and the other to a fine-dining place.  “The Treasury” actually has two kitchens, and one part is a Greek quick, grab-a-bite type of a place. That’s what one sees on first coming in. It has a pleasant, casual, well lit decor, and though I was curious about the cuisine, I left it for another day. Today was meant for the much-awaited Indian fine-dining experience.  

The first thing that caught my eye, as I entered the Indian Kitchen, was the subtly expressive  mosaic wall. Not only was it a great work of art that fit in beautifully with the decor, it was also a great conversation piece, and we spent a few minutes discussing who the lady in the art looked like. I turned around to the catchy bar backsplash, which I think centers the restaurant without overpowering it. The rest of the ambiance was upbeat and subtle. There was live music playing softly from the corner and I am hoping the music will be the regular faire. It felt like a place for a family to come in and relax over a fine dinner. Or for co-workers stopping in on Fridays or after work to enjoy some subtle Indian flavors. I could also imagine spending special occasions at “The Treasury”.

The ambiance is important, but as they say “the proof of the pudding is in eating”. And for the foodie in me,  the most important factor is the culinary experience. I knew that celebrity chef Harpal Singh Sokhi was a consultant chef to the Treasury.  I had also heard about the magical hands of the young, dynamic chef from New York who was leading the kitchen now. I know of the owners’ passion for delectable food. So I had nothing but high hopes. And I was not disappointed!

I was able to sample a variety of dishes, from appetizers, soups and salads to the main course and desserts. And each had some surprise tucked away - some surprised with interesting ingredients such as a pairing with burrata, some with presentation, some simply by the novelty of the dish and some were unique in their flavor. Overall, a delightful culinary experience! 


Among the appetizers I tried, the paneer tikka was marinated in exotic Indian spices; the samosa chaat was delectable, mixed with little, tiny samosas; the fish tikka was crisp on the outside, and cooked perfectly, with a distinct yet subtle Indian flavor; but the corn chaat took the crown! Among salads, my favorite was the watermelon goat cheese salad, presented in a sushi style. Then there were the soups - a pumpkin soup in coconut milk, but my favorite was the corn, cilantro soup with the zing from a dash of habanero peppers. For the main course, their breads - the stuffed naans and kulchas - were very unique, like never before. They carry all the regular veg and meat entrees, like chana, daal and paneer dishes, as well as the chicken, lamb and seafood. Their raitas (yogurt based) are very unique and I would especially like to mention the roasted eggplant raita. Desserts were unique too. I tried the pumpkin souffle and malpua pancake with kulfi. 

That was a lot of food tasting for a night. And while each delightful dish was working wonders for my palate, I couldn’t help wondering how much effort must have gone into designing the menu, fine tuning the dishes and the wines, making sure the presentation was just right, and working to get the ambiance just perfect . What Treasury has brought to us New Englanders is authentic Indian food with its diverse spices and flavors unique to each and every dish. It was a long journey for the owners from the restaurant's inception to the opening. I couldn’t agree more when someone said the baby is born, now it has to be raised. And having been a close observer thus far, I know the baby is in great hands! My best wishes to a bright future of the Treasury and to the many more visits to this awesome restaurant.

Comments

  1. UnknownMarch 26, 2020 at 8:13 AM

    Gauri discovered the author and food lover in you .Go ahead and write more because writing more gives polish to your writing . Congratulations to Mr Prakash Khot for developing such a nice food joint . Now that you are staying away from the food joint how do you satisfy the foody in you..

    ReplyDelete

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