Moghul Palace -- This Eastside Indian Restaurant Serves A Rousingly Seasoned Dinner

BILL GATES MAY be "missing" in fictional accounts in this magazine, but his factual whereabouts are well-established at a sophisticated little Indian restaurant a couple of blocks north of Bellevue Square. He's usually in the corner booth. Sometimes behind a privacy screen. Eating mussels.

The mussels are uncommonly fine.

The Moghul Palace, 10303 N.E. 10th St. in Bellevue, is the latest in a series of highly competent East Indian dinner houses that have recently sprung up around the Seattle area - many of them on the Eastside. And Gates was one of the Palace's earliest discoverers.

The real story of the Moghul Palace has less to do with the confidential eating habits of passing billionaires, however, than what it has to offer mere mortals, most of whom don't know that it's there.

"There" is a mini-mall tucked behind a Bernie's Bagel shop. Owner Shaw Khan presides over a tasteful, split-level dining room that deserves to be better attended. The service is amiable and well-timed; the food is downright remarkable.

I first wandered into the Moghul Palace six months ago for an investigatory lunch - a buffet for around $6. It was adequate - in fact, good - but somehow unimpressive. The various rices and curries were laid out under stainless-steel covers without a sense of presentation. Without a comprehension, it seemed, of marketing. It was a lunch that needed a master of ceremonies.

I went back a month later and came to the same conclusions. Based on the buffet: tasty but nothing special. I saw no compelling need to go back.

After all, really fine Indian restaurants were proliferating, three of them on the Eastside: Raga, Shamiana and Golkonda. And in Seattle, Chutney's, near Seattle Center, was superb. Why check out the Moghul Palace again?

"Because," said a friend, "the dinners and the a la carte items from the menu are incredible."

She was right. A few nights later, after a bowl of the Bill Gates mussels ($6.25) and a fluffy slab of Garlic-Basil Naan ($2.75), I was a convert. The rest of a splendid, rousingly seasoned dinner swept into view and the convert became confirmed.

Chef Muhammad Salah Uddin, a Bangladeshi who cooked for nine years in Los Angeles before coming to join Khan in Bellevue last year, is a certified genius.

The menu is rather typical for an Indian restaurant, with some regional Northwest variations - like Tandoori Salmon ($11.95). Appetizers include four pakoras (Indian fritters) from $3.25 for the subcontinental version of onion rings to $3.50 for mixed vegetables to $5.75 for strips of chicken or calamari. There are two samosas, stuffed pastries with either chicken or ground lamb fillings ($2.95 each).

Another hot choice - literally - is the Bangla Wings ($5.95), described in the menu, perhaps correctly, as "infamous." They're done Bengali style, which, it turns out, is a fair distance and a far cry from Buffalo. The wings are rolled in a mix of three flours - cornmeal, whole wheat and unbleached white - which have been laced with cumin, coriander, freshly ground and roasted cinnamon, cardamom and bay. Then they're battered and fried, before a final saute in a tomato-chili sauce. It comes with a lively yogurt-mint chutney.

The Curried Mussels ($6.25 for a bowl large enough for two) are a must. They're steamed in a complex broth of ginger, garlic and tomatoes. To mop up the spicy broth, an order of naan is the ideal choice. The tear-shaped Indian bread, which is baked by sticking it to the upper-inside walls of a cylindrical tandoor clay oven, is made in eight variations. Plain whole-wheat is priced at $1.50; more elaborate versions like garlic-basil or onion-cilantro cost $2.75. Augmented with chicken or lamb (these are almost pizzas in size and substance), they sell for $3.25.

The Moghul Palace fires its tandoor with a Southwest American fuel: mesquite charcoal, which goes surprisingly well with the traditional Indian herbs and seasonings. Incidentally, Khan uses only organically grown spices and herbs.

Tandoori specialties follow a time-honored pattern. The various meats, poultry or seafood are marinated in yogurt, herbs and spices and then flash-baked at high temperatures. All are served with a particularly fragrant Punjabi basmati rice. Items include split chicken halves ($8.95), Chicken Tika (boneless chicken pieces skewered; $9.50), chicken kebabs in a cashew marinade ($9.75), Lamb Tika ($9.95), Baby Back Ribs in a mango-soy sauce ($10.95), skewered prawns ($12.50), salmon ($11.95) and a chef's choice of mixed items for $13.50.

Fifteen vegetarian entrees are offered. I recommend the Eggplant Bhartha ($8.75), with the eggplant roasted and then sauteed with onions and tomatoes (it can be quite hot), or the Saag Paneer (also $8.50) a creamy, long-cooked spinach tossed with homemade cheese cubes. The latter is a silky dish with vibrant, strong flavors. (Lately it's become fashionable to undercook spinach; but slow braising, though it darkens the appealing bright green color, intensifies the impact of the vegetable.) The soft cubes of paneer (similar in texture to a firm tofu) provide a pleasing, mild counterpoint.

Lamb Karahi ($10.25; we ordered it quite hot and it came that way) is boneless cubes of lean lamb, sauteed with fresh tomatoes, ginger and garlic. It's a deep-red dish, as full-flavored and assertive as it looks.

There's a full range of authentic desserts, but after a bracing, tongue-challenging meal, there is nothing better than the Moghul Palace's homemade Mango Ice Cream ($3.25), "made the old-fashioned way with pistachios and almonds."

The Moghul Palace has a quiet, understated, almost shy, appeal. It needs, quite simply, more energy - and more people.

(Copyright 1996, John Hinterberger. All rights reserved.)

John Hinterberger, who writes the weekly restaurant review in Tempo and a Sunday food column in Pacific Magazine, visits restaurants anonymously and unannounced. He pays in full for all food, wines and services. Interviews of the restaurants' management and staff are done only after meals and services have been appraised. He does not accept invitations to evaluate restaurants. Benjamin Benschneider is a Seattle Times photographer.

# # 1/2 $$ Moghul Palace, 10303 N.E. 10th St., Bellevue. (Indian.) Lunch buffet ($5.95) Monday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dinner ($8.50 to $14) 5 to 10 p.m. nightly. Lounge, full bar. Major credit cards. Banquet, catering and takeout available. No smoking. Reservations: 451-1909.