Jaclyn’s Pick:

T O 5 Bollywood Grill
7515 Pacific St
Fare: Indian
Cost: $72 for one appetizer, one soup and three meals
Reservations: Not needed

Greetings, Eaters and Readers!

As I pondered where Martha and I should eat this month, I browsed old posts to see which cuisine we haven’t had in a while. It became glaringly obvious we hadn’t had Indian in a long while – not since our 2021 visit to Zaika, eek!

I browsed my personal list of restaurants to see if any Indian places caught my eye. Curri Fine Indian Cuisine sounded appealing, so off we went.

And there we stopped.

Curri Fine was closed. Had I made a mistake in reading their hours? I checked Google, which said they were indeed open. Hmm. Now what?

I did another Google search for “Indian food near me” and found a place whose name I recognized only one minute away, T O 5 Bollywood Grill. So off we went a second time.

Little did we know, we were about to discover our next Certified Good Bite.

Walking in, we were first mesmerized by the ambiance. Indoor balcony overhangs, dark woods and stone, deep colors … it was magical. And then as our eyes kept searching, we noticed we were the only ones there.

Uh oh.

Was this a sign of a bad meal ahead? Do they eat later in Indian culture? We had no idea. But the bartender/host/waiter (a one-trick pony, he was) sat us in a booth in the back.  

We settled into our seats, both feeling awkward and unsure – but hungry nevertheless!

Bollywood Combination ($8.29) — Combination of vegetable samosa, paneer pakora, vegetable pakora and chicken pakora.

Vegetable Samosa: Patties stuffed with lightly spiced potatoes and peas.
Paneer Pakora: Homemade cheese fried in chickpea batter and stuffed.
Vegetable Pakora: Fritters stuffed with assorted fresh vegetables.
Chicken Pakora: Delicately spiced boneless chicken breast fritters.

Debating which apps to try, we ultimately landed on tasting them all with the sampler combo plate.

We’ll be totally honest, none of these apps were our favorite. I myself only finished the vegetable pakora, with many dips into the accompanying mystery red sauce. Could we have asked what it was? Yeah. But for now, just imagine an Indian sweet and sour. Neither of us tried the mint chutney, already knowing we haven’t cared for it on other occasions.

Martha seemed to like them a little more than I. Or, at the very least, she liked the chicken pakora dipped in the mulligatawny soup I’d ordered.

Neither of us finished our bites of vegetable samosa or paneer pakora. The samosa felt a bit dry and the paneer didn’t taste like cheese … or anything, really.

But hear us out – we ask that you take our opinion of these apps with a grain of salt. Humbly acknowledging our white, midwestern taste buds are probably not appropriate judges, we’d love to take some of our Indian friends here to get their opinion.  

Mulligatawny Soup ($6.29) — Chicken and lamb stacked with Indian herbs.

I’ve only had mulligatawny soup one other time at Pacific Eating House, which is not an Indian restaurant. But I really liked their version. T O 5’s is much thinner and spicier – and truthfully, not for me. BUT. I’d venture to say theirs is authentic and enjoyed by most, including Martha. She had many-a-spoonful on my behalf. And while she didn’t finish it all in one sitting, she poured the rest over rice for leftovers, assuring me it was just as delicious the next day.

Chicken Korma ($14.79) — Chicken cooked in a creamy sauce with coconut and raisins.

Next to Tikka Masala, chicken Korma is my favorite Indian dish. It has hints of sweet from the coconut and golden raisins, nuttiness from the cashews, and layers upon layers of aromatic spices. And T O 5 did it so right.

I don’t think my tastebuds have ever been happier. Truly. I’ve tried many versions of chicken Korma and without a doubt, T O 5 wins first place for me.

And while you don’t see it pictured, know that the rice we shared was light, fluffy and tastefully seasoned. The perfect sauce soaker for this creamy, dreamy Korma sauce.

Chicken Biryani ($14.79) — Chicken, herbs, raisins and basmati flavored rice.

When we thought we were going to Curri Fine, Martha noticed biryani on their menu. She had her stomach set on trying it and was happy to see it on T O 5’s menu, too. Picture your usual fried rice with a protein – we think this is it’s Indian cousin.

Out of comfort, she ordered the biryani with chicken (you can also choose lamb or shrimp). We both really enjoyed this dish – the rice is soft and delightfully flavored, and the chicken was easy to eat, too – not at all tough or dry.

And when you add some sauce from your main course? Stellar.

It came with raita (cooling yogurt-based sauce) but we didn’t even bother with it. We loved the biryani as-is or with a spoonful of our respective sauces.

Chicken Tikka Masala ($14.79) — Marinated chicken sautéed in a creamy tomato sauce with oriental spices.

Martha would have followed suit and ordered the Chicken Korma, but to differ our order just a tad, she got the Tikka Masala – a beloved, Indian menu staple. Martha coulda woulda slurped this sauce right out of the bowl – because who was watching in this empty restaurant? The flavors and spices of her dish were perfect – and not at all spicy if you’re someone who hears Indian and think it’s going to light you up.

When she gathered all her leftovers for the next day’s lunch – she felt like she essentially made an Indian “Famous Bowl” and just mixed it all together. She’s been dreaming about every fork/spoonful she had at T O 5 since we left.

Regular Naan ($3.29) | Garlic Naan ($3.79)

There were several different naans on the menu to pick from: cheese-filled, spicy, fried, wheat, stuffed with cherries and coconut … they all sounded intriguing. But we stuck with the classics, plain with butter and garlic.

They appeared to have been baked in a Tandoor oven, but without sneaking into their kitchen (and forgetting to ask), we’re not sure.

If you’re unfamiliar, tandoor oven-style naan gets its distinct flavor and texture from its unique cooking process. The intense, radiant heat and natural smoking effect as the dough clings to the hot clay is what gives the naan a soft, chewy texture. This naan resembled a Tandoor style of cooking as far as we could tell.

I loved them both, but I couldn’t stop stealing pieces of the garlic. Martha enjoyed them as well, allowing me to eat more of the garlic slices given how often I proclaimed, “This garlic naan is ridiculous. I can’t stop eating it!”

Final Bites

So far, we’ve only given a Certified Good Bite to restaurants who fed us mouthwatering morsels from the very beginning to the last bite. But this is where we break our own rules.

Despite having less-than-enthusiastic feelings for the appetizers and my personal dislike for the mulligatawny, we loved our main dishes so much that it felt wrong to not rate T O 5 so highly. If we didn’t have the appetizer, we both would have sat there that very evening and sang a song, through happy tears, about our latest Certified Good Bite.

Ok no, no singing. Except for where our other CGB rule/measurement comes into play. “If someone visited Omaha and asked me where to get some delicious Indian food – would I sing the praise of T O 5 and insist they go there?” That answer is an enthusiastic YES. In fact, we’re not above begging you to go.

Though the to-go orders were steady enough as we sat there and ate – it scared us a little that no one else sat with us to discover, devour and be delighted in all things T O 5. We will be devastated if this place…you know…

We can’t tell you how many times we commented to one another throughout our meal just how happy our mouths were. Our food-induced endorphins were running at an all-time high. We imagine this is the feeling most talented chef’s want their patrons to feel when enjoying their carefully crafted creations.

So it’s official – T O 5 is our latest Certified Good Bite and quite possibly one of the best accidental finds on our 10-year journey looking for good bites throughout the state.

T O 5 – we’ll be seeing you again very soon!

Cheers!
The Good Bite Gals

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