How Much Is Sunday Night Buffet In Akbar Restaurant In Garden City.ny

Restaurants

July 14, 1989

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July 14, 1989

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Akbar

Akbar, the decorous Indian restaurant on Park Avenue, has always been a steady, reliable spot for Mogul cuisine, the refined and highly seasoned northern fare that is widely known in this country. Mogul cooking is characterized by yogurt-marinated meats, butter-and-cream-enriched sauces, the intoxicating perfume of saffron and tandoor-roasted meats. Recent visits have found that many of Akbar's bench-mark dishes still challenge the palate with a complex alchemy of herbs and spices while others inexplicably fall flatter than a punctured poori.

The spacious dining room is decorated in dark reds and white with crepuscular lighting, ornate white pilasters separating wall mirrors, a back-lighted stained-glass ceiling and snug little alcoves along the walls. The service is occasionally sluggish, and getting dish descriptions from waiters beyond ''very good'' and ''pretty spicy'' is like trying to chat about the weather with a New York Telephone operator.

The kitchen has a tendency to be heavy-handed with red peppers, which suits me fine, but if you are sensitive to heat, let them know. The weakest part of the menu is probably appetizers. Indian fritters called pakora, filled with either chicken or vegetables, used to be delightfully light and cleanly fried here. This time they were oily and heavy; likewise the vegetable patties called samosas.

The minced-lamb patty called shami kebab was dry and mushy, with so much ginger the meat was camouflaged. If you want to start out with lamb, try splitting an entree portion of seekh kebabs: juicy minced lamb, onions and fresh coriander molded around skewers and roasted in the tandoor. Another good option is chicken pakora, deep-fried squiggles of well-seasoned chicken. Mulligatawny soup was pleasing, mildly peppery and redolent of clove.

Seafood tends to be overcooked, like the shrimp bhuna. It's a shame, because the sauce is sensational, layered with garlic, ginger, coriander and pepper. Fish tikka, a tandoor-roasted dish that features cubes of red snapper rubbed with a peppery blend of spices, is preferable, as are the large prawns similarly cooked.

The tandoor method is most successful with kalmi kebabs, or marinated chicken legs, and chicken ginger kebab, in which the chicken is moistened with yogurt and ginger before roasting. The standard tandoori chicken, however, had a dry and reheated texture. Much better is a non-tandoor dish called chicken jalfrezi, in which the meat is slowly braised with firm cubes of fresh cheese in a lovely sauce sweetened with onions and green peppers. Vindaloo of lamb, a fiery dish from the southwestern state of Goa, is still recommended for its skillful blending of heat and counterbalancing spices, specifically cinnamon and ginger. Dal, however, another traditional side dish made with lentils and dried peas, is insipid.

All the Indian breads are well turned out here. Particular favorites are the onion-filled nan called kulcha and the hot unleavened whole wheat paratha glossed with melted butter.

Vegetarians can always find solace in Indian restaurants, and Akbar has a dozen options, including bhurta (mashed, garlicky eggplant), matter paneer (cubes of fresh cheese with firm fresh peas in a tingling hot sauce) and alu gobi (cauliflower with lots of fresh ginger and coriander). The house special biriyani, a traditional Basmati rice dish combining chicken (both dark and white meat), saffron and other spices, is moist and aromatic.

To Western tastes, Indian dessert is sort of like new-age music: you find it either wonderfully soothing or exasperatingly dull. To my taste, rose ice cream tastes like soap, an opinion shared by most of the people at my table. Mango ice cream met universal approval, though, as did the kheer, a rice pudding flavored with cardamom. Gulab jaman, fried balls of condensed milk in honey, will sate any sweet tooth.

Akbar, which now has three locations (the others are on East 49th Street and in Garden City, L.I.), seems to have diluted its quality with expansion, making one star more appropriate than the two it received in 1986. But for a moderately priced meal in an immoderately priced neighborhood, it is still worth keeping in mind. Chantal Cafe

The nomadic pastel-tinted tribes of tourists in the theater district this summer, wistfully searching for affordable dining before and after shows, prompted a return visit to Chantal Cafe, an inconspicuous little bistro on West 55th Street that is one of the better bargains in the neighborhood. While the straightforward French repertory occasionally hits a flat note and the service can be confused at times, diners who get to know the menu are fairly assured of a pleasing experience in this tourist-trap-littered part of town.

The long narrow space has a brick-walled front room with a row of tables along one side. You pass the little open kitchen to reach a skylighted back room, a makeshift-looking affair with timbered beams, overhead fans, hanging plants, a chalkboard menu and wedding-reception rental chairs.

The key to satisfaction is sticking with house standards, like the rack of lamb with rosemary, a well-cooked steak with crisp french fries, and paillard of chicken with fresh tarragon sauce. When the kitchen is on, the navarin of lamb can be appealing, its red wine sauce mellowed with lamb juices. On a recent visit, though, the dish seemed rushed and the sauce was sharp with uncooked wine. Lean, rosy steak tartare is a particular bargain at lunch for $7.95.

In classical French cuisine, a civet is a kind of stew, usually made with game, that is based on a red wine sauce thickened with the animal's blood. A (bloodless) duck civet here is made with marinated duck, onions and carrots, but it was lackluster. Sauteed potatoes with it were undercooked.

Simple seafood preparations are satisfying, like the grilled salmon with dill sauce, grouper with a sweet-tinged beurre blanc and fish-stock sauce, and grilled swordfish with tomato and ginger (a recent special with balsamic vinegar sauce and mashed eggplant was a harmonious combination, too). I have never had much luck with pastas here other than the fresh summery appetizer of angel hair with a cold tomato-and-basil sauce.

Maybe it is summer replacement season, but it seems that the service staff here is more bemused than usual. On one occasion our waitress asked if we would like coffee and dessert or just the check - while we were still waiting for entrees. Waitresses and waiters here are good-natured, though, and they try hard; at these prices one tends to be less demanding about fine points. The wine list is sorely in need of reworking. The selection is paltry and undistinguished, with some white wines sampled already over the hill.

For starters, big tender leeks vinaigrette are always well turned out, as are the warm goat cheese salad and beefy onion soup gratinee. The house terrine is moist and mildly livery, but cold broccoli soup is a roll of the dice: bright and tasty one day, anemic the next. Steamed mussels with garlic and tomato were rank.

Desserts are not a high point here. You can get a decent creme brulee and a light, thin-crusted apple tart, but pass up the forgettable chocolate cake and the sodden tarte Tatin.

The affable little Chantal Cafe is not a place for indelible culinary experiences. It is a modest maison with modest ambitions - most of them realized - and for that it is worth noting. Akbar * Park Avenue, above 57th Street, 838-1717. Atmosphere: Spacious, comfortable, dimly lighted room. Service: Sluggish and minimally communicative. Recommended dishes: Seekh kebabs, chicken pakora, fish tikka, kalmi kebabs, chicken jalfrezi, lamb vindaloo, all Indian breads, bhurta, alu gobi, mango ice cream. Price range: Appetizers are $3.25 to $7.95, main courses $14.95 to $20.95. Credit cards: All major cards. Hours: Lunch: 11:30 A.M. to 2:45 P.M. Monday to Saturday; dinner: 5:30 to 11 P.M. daily. Reservations: Suggested. Wheelchair accessibility: Dining on one level; restrooms on the same floor. Chantal Cafe * 257 West 55th Street, 246-7076. Atmosphere: Small, cheerful brick-lined space with a skylighted back room. Service: Affable but inexperienced and sometimes confused. Recommended dishes: Leeks vinaigrette, onion soup, angel hair with tomato-and-basil sauce, steak and french fries, rack of lamb, chicken paillard with tarragon sauce, salmon steak with dill sauce, swordfish with tomato and ginger, apple tart. Price range: Lunch: appetizers $3 to $3.95, main courses $6.95 to $13.95; dinner: appetizers $3.50 to $6.50, main courses $10.95 to $19.95. Three-course pre-theater dinner from 5:30 to 7 P.M. is $17.95. Credit cards: All major cards. Hours: Lunch: 11:30 A.M. to 3 P.M. Monday to Friday; dinner: 5:30 to 10:30 P.M. Monday to Thursday, until 11:30 P.M. Friday and Saturday. Reservations: Suggested. Wheelchair accessibility: Several steps down to the dining room; restrooms on the same level. What the stars mean: (None) ... Poor to satisfactory * ... Good ** ... Very good *** ... Excellent **** ... Extraordinary

These ratings reflect the reviewer's reaction primarily to food, with ambiance and service taken into consideration. Prices and menus are subject to change.