A Visit to the Little Spice Bazaar
Last May, I posted a blog about a fantastic little eatery in Mt. Kisco, New York, called Little Kabab Station, that serves authentic Indian cuisine. I am very pleased to report that Owner, Bonnie Saran, has taken on a new project just two doors down, called Little Spice Bazaar, where you can find fragrant spices, teas, and an array of Indian grocery items. But, the main focus of the shop is the lassi and juice counter, manned by Bonnie’s partner in the store, Karan Gera. Bonnie and Karan met each other while attending graduate school in India and while tossing ideas around for a shared business venture, they decided to introduce authentic Indian lassi. Lassi is an all-natural refreshing blend of probiotic Indian-style yogurt, which they make themselves, with digestive herbs, spices, and natural extracts. In India, lassi is popular for improving digestive wellness and raising mental and physical energy levels. On a recent visit to the Little Spice Bazaar, I was able to sample several flavors of this amazing lassi and I have to say that I was very impressed with each and every one. The tastes are so pleasing and unexpected. Thank you Bonnie and Karan for sharing this delicious and healthful drink!
1 Here I am with Bonnie Saran, a photo I posted on my blog last May about eating at her wonderful and authentic Little Kabab Station in Mt. Kisco, New York. http://www.littlekababstation.com/
2 A couple of doors down is the newly opened and much anticipated Little Spice Bazaar.
3 Bonnie and her partner in the Little Spice Bazaar, Karan Gera - Karan recently traveled to Kapurthala, a city in India's Punjab region, where he researched the traditional blending of ingredients to make the most authentic lassis.
4 Kapurthala is called the Paris of Punjab and Singh is a very common name there. Bonnie and Karan decided to have a little fun by mixing cultures and name the lassi bar, Monsieur Singh, endorsed daily, of course, by a billion Indians!
5 This is the lassi bar. Bonnie acquired the counter, and other pieces of furniture, from the local Borders, when it closed its doors. This was in the bookstore cafe.
6 Monsieur Singh Lassi is an all natural refreshing blend of probiotic Indian-style yogurt with digestive herbs, spices, and natural extracts. It is hand-crafted to promote digestive well-being and raise mental and physical energy levels.
7 In India, it's a tradition to serve cool and refreshing lassi in stainless cups, like these. Bonni and Karan will soon be selling bottled lassi also.
8 Karan uses a special lassi machine from India, which churns the beverage at a better speed than a regular blender.
9 There are several flavor combinations of lassi on the menu, as well as invigorating juice concoctions.
10 If you don't believe that Monsieur Lassi is endorsed daily by a billion Indians, you can call a random Indian and ask them why they love the lassi!
11 And here's the phone to call on. It really works!
12 Little Spice Bazaar also sells an assortment of chaat, or Indian roadside snack food. This is a chaat called Gol Gappa, a round, hollow puri fried crisp and served filled with a mixture of vegetables and tamarind chutney.
13 These are the fresh ingredients for the chaat.
14 Bonnie prepared a papri chaat, made with crisp papris wafers, diced potatoes, chick peas, chilis, yogurt, and tamarind chutney.
15 Topped with sev (chickpea flour noodles), pomegranate, and cilantro - Papri Chaat was a delightful and very tasty snack!
16 They are also serving sandwiches to go, like this Chicken Tikka Sandwich on multi-grain bread.
17 The food menu is limited, but very satisfying.
18 Across from the lassi bar are the spices.
19 There will eventually be more than 200 varieties of spices, which are being imported from India, Jamaica, and Africa.
20 Black cardamon is used frequently in Indian cuisine and is appreciated for its smoky flavor and aroma.
21 Green cardamom has a lighter flavor and aroma and is often used in traditional Indian sweets and in Masala chai, or spiced tea.
22 Did you know that mace is the lacy outer coating of the nutmeg? It is the only tropical fruit being the source of two spices.
23 Onion seeds are actually Nigella seeds and have a popular use on Indian breads.
24 Bright yellow turmeric is a key ingredient in Indian, Persian, and Thai cuisine. It has long been valued in ayurvedic medicine as an anti-inflammatory, to treat digestive and liver problems, skin diseases, wounds, and other illnesses.
25 Paprika is a spice made from the grinding of dried red bell peppers or chili peppers and depending on the pepper, paprika can range from mild to hot. It adds great color and flavor to foods.
26 Garam masala is a blend of ground spices commonly used throughout India and surrounding countries. It's composition varies greatly from region to region and is generally used in savory creations.
27 Coriander powder is derived from grinding the seeds of the cilantro plant and has a lemony citrusy flavor. Coriander is a common ingredient in curry powder and garam masala.
28 The Little Spice Bazaar also sells a vast array of imported loose tea.
29 Assam is a black tea named after the region of its production in India. It is appreciated for its brisk, malty flavor and is the component in many 'breakfast' teas.
30 Spa Detox tea is an herbal blend specifically designed to provide essential antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals and to rid the body of toxins.
31 Matcha tea is a finely milled green tea powder, which is loaded with anti-oxidants. The Monsieur Singh Lassi bar serves an excellent lassi made with this healthful powder.
32 Just as it says, the caffeine has been removed from this green tea and tropical flavors have been infused.
33 Spices and herbs can be purchased in varying amounts and packaged in these reusable stacking tin boxes.
34 You can also buy small quantities in these little corked glass bottles.
35 Fresh and aromatic spices make an excellent gift for those who love to cook and tin spice containers, like this one, are available for purchase, to fill as you like.
36 There are fun and descriptive signs throughout the shop.
37 These are fresh curry leaves, which have nothing to do with curry powder, although ground curry leaves may be found in curry powder. Curry leaves impart a pleasant lemony zest to all sorts of vegetable and meat dishes.
38 The shelves of Little Spice Bazaar are well-stocked with a wide assortment of Indian products. There are many varieties of basmati rice to choose from, a staple of the Indian diet.
39 You'll find a wide assortment of staples in the back of the store.
40 Many of these products are ingredients that Bonnie uses to prepare the foods served at Little Kebab Station and that customers always inquired about where they could be purchased.
41 Chikki is a traditional Indian sweet, typically made with nuts, seeds, and puffed grains.
42 There are many jarred condiments to choose from, like this garlic relish, a spicy pickled garlic and concentrated curry paste, flavored with coriander and cumin.
43 Thums Up, now owned by the Coca Cola company, is a best-selling cola in India. Some say it is an acquired taste.
44 Parle-G, with a young girl on the package, is one of the oldest brand names in India and, it is said, to be the largest selling brand of biscuits in the world!
45 Poha is a par-boiled rice whose grains have been flattened. It is a popular breakfast item in India.
46 Nutrela High Protein Soya Chunks are a high-protein meat substitute.
47 Dal is a thick stew made from various dried lentils, peas, and beans.
48 Sev is a crisp type of noodle made from chick pea flour and is used to top almost all chaats.
49 Ghee, a type of clarified butter, is widely used in Indian cuisine.
50 More popular condiments - Pani Puri Concentrate is made from dates, tamarind, and a mix of spices. Green Chili Chutney is made from chili peppers and flavored with coriander.
51 Tamarind Chutney is the Indian version of barbecue sauce.
52 Shortcuts for the kitchen - ginger & garlic paste, ginger paste, and garlic paste
53 These boxes contain the necessary spices for various dishes.
54 These are cans of soft cottage cheese dumplings, one with cardamon-flavored sugar syrup and the other with rose-flavored syrup.
55 There is a nice selection of incense.
56 Little Spice Bazaar also has a selection of ayurvedic soaps and creams like this Vicco Turmeric skin cream, made from turmeric, sandalwood oil, and rose water. It's said to be very soothing.
57 Chandrika soap is made with pure vegetable oils, such as purified coconut oil, sandalwood oil, patchouli oil, and soothing wild ginger.
58 There are also ayurvedic face packs made by Ayur. These are said to be very soothing.
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I would love to try the different an authentic lassi. I love the colors on the storefront! All of the spices look lovely. I can imagine the wonderful aroma there!
Posted by: Candylei | March 5th, 2012 at 12:26 am
Another fun destination! Mmm...spicy!!
Posted by: sherey | March 5th, 2012 at 1:21 am
i recently came back from a trip to india and thought that i wouldn't be able to find all the spices and other food items back home here in finland. surprise, i can and have now started experimenting more in indian cooking. i also reeceived a masala dabba (the spice tin) as a gift, i love and plan to get another for "western" spices.
Posted by: liisamarja | March 5th, 2012 at 3:42 am
While in Vegas last week, Kathy's husband brought us yogurt daily, keeeping us in shape.
Some old neighbors, Patels, showed us much about Indian cuisine. Probiotics may be confusing and love to learn about them as spice is joy of LIVING, Wonderful seeing you out in Mt. Kisco. You know my family's love for kabobs but they all laughed at the plasma face pack recipe I put in cookbook. Miss Borders, nut Best wishes to LITTLE SPICE BAZAAR
Posted by: ann | March 5th, 2012 at 6:18 am
Love this blog.The little kebab station caught my attention last time & so, this one as well.Next time I am in New York will try to make it to this store as it is difficult to find authentic lassi in North America.I wish all the very best for the owners.
Posted by: Shweta Gupta | March 5th, 2012 at 8:47 am
I am going !!! Maybe a cooling lassi on one of the hotter days this week, so excited to have authentic spices fresh and ready to use and so close to home. Can't wait !!!!!
Posted by: Mairead Doria | March 5th, 2012 at 9:02 am
Sad to say, I'm not very familiar with Indian food, but this blog has peaked my interest. I'm intriqued by the lassie, a probiotic yogurt made with herbs and spices. The Little Spice Bazaar looks like a nice shop to explore and I do love that you can buy spices in varying amounts like in the small corked glass bottles. It's also a nice touch to include the descriptive signs about the various spices. Who knew about nutmeg! Thanks for informing us about this neat shop Martha! I wish you much success Bonnie and Karan!
Posted by: Cindy F | March 5th, 2012 at 9:12 am
Thanks so much for taking the time to go through so many items in this store. I have an Indian grocery store nearby and now I have a little information on some of their products thanks to your blog. I feel somewhat enlightened about Indian food. Thanks.
Posted by: Cheryl T | March 5th, 2012 at 9:22 am
Martha,
A nice little place to visit. Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | March 5th, 2012 at 9:29 am
Hi Martha, WOW! & OMG! This is a fantastic blog post today! I recall the blog you did on May 4, 2011 and that one was fabulous, also! The Little Kabab Station and the new Little Spice Bazaar two doors down are wonderful places for you to share your visits with us so we can learn about all those Indian spices and foods that would make us healthier! I would love to have the lassi yogurt with those great spices, especially for my brother who needs probiotics daily! Do they ever sell these items online? Sure would love to get some! These photos are super and I love seeing all of the spices and your comments about everything they have in both beautiful shops! These 2 shops will have to be on my long list of wonderful places to visit if I ever get to New York! I will view both of these blogs again and again-thanks so much for sharing! Sure hope you have another great day, Martha! Off to see what Ghenghis Khan is showing us about it snowing at your Bedford farm-Love The Daily Wag, also! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | March 5th, 2012 at 10:08 am
i have had the food at LKS and the lassis at the lsb !
and all i can say is: dont walk... RUN to this place. killer-good food, great prices, amazing energy!
( AND ..2 thumbs up for a woman in business owning *TWO* storefronts in westchester, in this economy!)
Bravo Bonnie!
Posted by: lori | March 5th, 2012 at 10:26 am
I thank you for the education..so much to learn. A place on the list to visit for sure. On a side note, I prepared your rice pudding recipe from the website yesterday. It was so delicious. I got a great compliment from my mother. It nearly tasted like the dish that my grandmother was known to prepare on Fridays during my mother's childhood! I did not use the orange zest - my mom's preference. Next preparation are some of Alexis' recipes from her very good blog: some muffins and some lentil-pumpkin soup.
Posted by: E. Teresa Touey | March 5th, 2012 at 10:28 am
Whenever I go out for Indian food I always make a point of ordering a mango lassi. It cuts the spiciness of the food and does indeed help with digestion. It's also totally delicious. This little place looks wonderful! I would love to tour your 'hometown' one day. It looks like it has some amazing little spots.
Posted by: Andrew Ritchie | March 5th, 2012 at 10:47 am
Hi Martha,
Bonnie and Karan have a winning combination there! I wouldn’t mind being a resident of Mt. Kisco right about now. I don’t even know where there is a good spice store in my neighborhood but I am a bit familiar with Indian food. We used to have some nice neighbors from India who were vegans and were always cooking something spicy. I would ask about the ingredients and found out they grew a lot of their herbs right outside their back patio and bought their spices in a specialty store south of here, probably near Ft. Lauderdale. I didn’t ask exactly where because I didn’t do any Indian cooking – I liked tasting it though! We only have a few Indian restaurants in Boca and I’m ready to pay them a visit. I’ll read the reviews first. Thanks for this update on your Mt. Kisco adventure. Trish
Posted by: Trish | March 5th, 2012 at 12:02 pm
Thanks, Martha, for the interesting and appetizing tour of this Indian delicatessen, and also for once again sharing a portion of your interesting and illuminating life with us.
Posted by: Carolyn Boyce | March 5th, 2012 at 1:43 pm
Hi Martha,
I Love spices and love to cook Indian food. Have a wonderful and successful week
Posted by: Rowada Flayhan | March 5th, 2012 at 6:45 pm
Hello,
I came to your blog and have been reading along your posts. I decided I will leave my first comment.
Posted by: Herbal Extract | March 6th, 2012 at 3:02 am
what a wonderful store! thanks for the post.
Posted by: Angel | December 18th, 2012 at 2:15 pm