Laura Glesby Photo
Pataka co-founders and brothers Romy and Harry Singh.
If you ask for a Chana Kulcha, Harry Singh will give you two pockets of homemade pita, overflowing with a fruity mix of sweet chutney and warm spiced chickpeas. The pomegranate seeds on top will burst with tart flavor like the fireworks after which Singh’s restaurant, Pataka, is named.
The dish — a street taco — is one of Singh’s specialties at the fast-casual vegetarian Indian restaurant he and his brother, Romy, have launched at 140 Howe St.
Pataka opened its doors in mid-September, right in the middle of the pandemic that has devastated the restaurant industry.
Take-out and delivery orders will prove crucial to the ability of local restaurants like Pataka to weather the pandemic during the coming months as Covid-19 cases climb and cold weather sets in. Pick up a Chana Kulcha or other dish to go by showing up in person, calling (203) 891‑5133, or ordering online here. The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. all week.
Singh is no newcomer to the restaurant business. He has spent his whole life in New Haven, living as a child in the Annex. Growing up, he would watch his father prepare food and sift through inventories at the family’s Grove Street restaurant, Sitar. In his teenage years, he would help out in the kitchen; his father would teach him how to cook.
After studying business and finance at Southern Connecticut State University, Singh co-founded his own culinary business: House of Naan, a restaurant and bar that’s been a source of life two blocks down on Howe Street since 2016.
Singh decided to start Pataka with his brother after slowly shifting towards vegetarianism in his own life. His parents mostly cook vegetarian food at home, he said. “You notice that there’s a huge difference in your energy level, the way you’re working … there’s a whole change that you feel yourself.”
Singh mostly eats vegetarian food now. He said he’s moving toward a vegan diet, as the largely plant-based menu at Pataka reflects.
“We’re trying to put out in front of people that vegetarian food is not boring,” Singh said. In Hindi, “Pataka means firework.” He wants the name to convey a “bold rush of things” — a nod to the rich flavors prepared inside the eatery.
The brothers found their niche as a fast-food style restaurant, adjusted to focus on healthy options with Indian roots from a more local supply chain.
Pataka is starting a partnership with Woodbridge-based Massaro Farm, and Singh hopes to acquire more local produce in the future. He envisions having a portion of the menu dedicated to dishes made from locally-sourced ingredients. Some of the proceeds from those meals would go back to the agricultural community, he said.
My fellow diner, Ikenna, gave a warm review of the Cauliflower and Chickpea Kati Roll: “Veggie, healthy, and yummy?!”
The freshness of Pataka’s ingredients is palpable in the Chana Kulcha. The distinct flavor of each of the taco’s components stands out as much as it harmonizes with everything else.
The team makes the pita from a combination of flour, yeast, baking powder, and salt, pooled thick enough so that the bread can later be opened, Singh said. The Chana Kulcha’s filling comprises fresh chickpeas, flavored with cumin, coriander powder, and red chili; tomatoes, red onions, potatoes; ginger and coconut chutney, mango powder; and a topping of thin chickpea noodles and pomegranate seeds.
While opening in the thick of a public health crisis stalled the restaurant’s opening, Singh and his brother have made the best of the situation. “It’s been giving us time to learn,” he said.
In the meantime, while business hasn’t matched what it might have been before Covid-19, New Haven has by and large showed up for local restaurants, Singh said. “You do see that the community itself is coming out and supporting each other.”
Previous coverage of recommended take-orders to help keep local businesses survive the pandemic:
• Today’s Special: Haci’s Napoletana Pie
• Today’s Special: Fred & Patty’s Brie On Baguette
• Today’s Special: Nieda’s Moist Falafel
• Today’s Special: Qulen’s Vegan “Wings”
• Today’s Special: Aaron’s Peruvian Rice Bowl