The Mumbai street food called a “frankie” is often described as an “Indian burrito,” which makes it sounds as if it’s a mash-up that involves filling a Mexican burrito with chicken tikka masala and the like. Which of course, on one level, it most certainly is.
But it wasn’t born here; it was born over there. It may have been tweaked a bit locally, but you won’t find guacamole as an option. This is an Indian dish that proves the universality of certain preparations, in the same way that, say, soup or a sandwich can be found, in one form or another, around the world.
The rise of the frankie in SoCal is a story of luck and pluck — the sort of tale of innovative restaurateurs that inspire one generation after another. The Bombay Frankie Company is the creation of the brother and sister team of Hiram and Priyanka Mac, who say their desire was to give Indian cooking the sort of “approachability” that may be lacking in more formal restaurants with intimidatingly large menus. They first opened in the family owned Chevron station on Santa Monica Boulevard — gas station cuisine that runs counter to the usual selection of salty bags of chips, and sweet bags of candies.
Inspired by their success — “I’ll have 10 gallons of premium and a chicken curry frankie on garlic naan!” — they opened a branch in the Westfield Mall in Culver City, and then as an option at a Koreatown ghost kitchen. And now, they’re in Woodland Hills, on a busy strip of Ventura Boulevard, next to a branch of Urban Plates, and just down the street from a Noah’s NY bagel shop, the very essence of culinary eclecticism.
There’s outdoor dining on the sidewalk. And as the world reopens, there’s seating inside — where you can watch the counter folks carefully fill and fold the frankies. And yes, bunky, they do look like burritos. But they sure don’t taste like them.
First of all, though the wrapper may look like a tortilla, it sure doesn’t taste like one, especially if you opt for the mildly intense garlic naan. (There’s roti bread as well, which is almost the same, but not quite.) Then, the fillings are anything but Mexican. There are no beans, no rice, no salsa, no guacamole. The defining choice is the chicken tikka masala — a wonderfully savory combination of richly marinated chunks of chicken, very lean, covered with an orange curry sauce.
The taste is, simply, addictive. The first bite is a revelation — where you might expect familiar chicken in familiar sauce, you get a three-ring circus of flavors. This is not a dish to be inhaled; it’s one to be enjoyed.
And the complexity continues, with scoops of the house hummus and peppery jeera potatoes — spend a moment with the potatoes, and you may detect cumin, red chili, ginger and coriander. There are cucumbers and tomatoes, red onions and mint chutney, a mint cream sauce, tamarind drizzle and cooing raita. This is a strikingly complex dish, possibly more so than those found on the streets of Mumbai. And though chicken tikka masala is the most basic of the fillings (well, really, chicken tikka without the masala sauce is even more basic; but the sauce makes the frankie sing!), the options are many.
There’s cubed paneer cheese, served both roasted tandoori style, and in a cream and tomato shahi sauce. There’s aloo gobhi — sweet potatoes and cauliflower. Chana masala — garbanzo beans in an orange masala sauce. Chicken curry, and crispy fish, and salmon in masala sauce. Those going obsessively low-carb can get the frankie “deconstructed” — the ingredients in a bowl, without the bread. Which overlaps with the numerous “Frankie Bowls” — jeera rice on bottom, topped as you wish with chicken tikka chicken tikka masala, shahi paneer, saag paneer, yellow daal or black daal, chana masala, masala salmon, chicken biryani and vegetable biryani.
There are crispy fish naan tacos, which I suspect really are a SoCal creation. And there are sundry snacks — samosas filled with beef or vegetables, hummus with naan bread, crunchy fish pakoras, and fantastic cauliflower fritters. There’s chaat as well, a dish that for me is pure pleasure — a bowl of crispy bread and spuds, chickpeas and chiles. A world of spices and yogurt as well. It’s a wonderful dish that exudes the joys of India.
Interestingly, the father of the Mac siblings has retired from his gas station business, and become the executive chef for the Bombay Frankie Company. The business began in his gas stations, and now he’s been subsumed into the joys of frankies. And there is much joy to be found here. Get yourself a frankie, and settle into a sweet mango lassi and the even sweeter desserts of gulab jamun and kheer.
One of the alternative beverages is a spicy cola from India called “Thums Up.” That’s no typo — there’s no “b” in this particular drink’s name. The Bombay Frankie Company may be in Woodland Hills. But with a little imagination, it could be in Mumbai. Especially as the summer heat comes upon, with no monsoon in sight.
Merrill Shindler is a Los Angeles-based freelance dining critic. Email mreats@aol.com.
The Bombay Frankie Company
- Rating: 3 stars
- Address: 21853 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills
- Information: 747-293-3672, www.bombayfrankiecompany.com
- Cuisine: Indian Burritos
- When: Lunch and dinner, every day
- Details: Soft drinks; no reservations
- Atmosphere: Casual café specializing in frankies – Indian burritos – overstuffed with remarkably tasty stuff and more stuff, with delicious sides like the pakora cauliflower fritters. Crispy Indian fish tacos too.
- Prices: About $15 per person
- Suggested dishes: 12 Frankies ($10-$16), Crispy Fish Naan Tacos ($8), 5 Breads ($2.50-$3), 7 Snacks ($3-$7)
- Cards: MC, V
- What the stars mean: 4 (World class! Worth a trip from anywhere!), 3 (Most excellent, even exceptional. Worth a trip from anywhere in Southern California.), 2 (A good place to go for a meal. Worth a trip from anywhere in the neighborhood.) 1 (If you’re hungry, and it’s nearby, but don’t get stuck in traffic going.) 0 (Honestly, not worth writing about.)
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