Bombay Biryany Throws Down The Gauntlet To Biryani House

There’s a little bit of a silent battle brewing (or so I’m imagining for the sake of this post) between two carts on the increasingly-crowded plaza on Broadway between Liberty and Cedar. First you have the Biryani House cart that came on the scene with its namesake dish, kati rolls and the standard meat over rice options (OK, and hot dogs). Then there’s the Bombay Biryany cart a falafels throw away that at first glance looks like your standard halal cart until you notice the chicken biryani sign in the front, with bonus special green sauce.

I’m not exactly sure which of these two carts was here first, but it was only recently that I noticed Bombay Biryany sold some of the same things as Biryani House. The prices are similar with the biryani coming in at $6 for both carts, although the kati rolls are $1 cheaper at Bombay Biryany at two for $5. I paid $6 for two when I ordered them from the Biryani House.

I’d been meaning to do a little comparison eating at Bombay for a while, but what sealed the deal was a particularly crappy day in the weather department when I figured I’d patronize one of the carts that was out in the rain. They have biryani and kati rolls every day along with the other standard street meat options. I don’t know if it was because he saw me taking pictures or because it was raining and he was happy for the business, but he threw in a soda for free so: advantage Bombay Biryany!

The biryani itself was pretty heavily spiced and it made for an eating experience of picking things like whole cloves, cardamom pods and bay leaves out of my mouth.

The flavor of the rice was great and there were plenty of pieces of chopped up chicken (with the occasional bone) in there. The hot sauce was pretty great and between that and the spice in the rice my mouth was on fire. He also has a creamy green sauce that added some needed coolness, although for some reason it was squirted on the salad instead of the rice.

Although I enjoyed my meals at the Biryani House cart (hello chicken tikka!), I’d have to say I liked the more aggressive spicing of Bombay’s biryani. I guess it depends on what level of spice you like and whether you mind picking things out of your mouth while eating. Has anyone tried the kati rolls from here?

THE + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

  • The biryani is so well-spiced that you have to pick said spices out of the rice.
  • You can get two kati rolls for $1 less than the competition at Biryani House cart.

THE — (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

  • I really don’t enjoy picking various leaves and pods out of my mouth/food.
  • I’ve already got a good thing going with the Biryani House cart.

Bombay Biryany cart, corner of Broadway and Liberty St.

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