Finger-lickin’ good

When I lived in San Francisco, I liked to frequent Zante in the Mission District for Indian pizza. The food there makes for one of those “Why didn’t we think of this sooner?” combinations. In Sacramento, some pizzerias serve Indian-flavored pizzas, but 1st Choice Pizza & Curry seems to be the only authentic Indian restaurant making it.

Located in a strip mall just east of Old Elk Grove, it’s a surprising mash-up of traditions. The interior is stark and clean, with more of an American fast-food look than Indian décor. Nevertheless, the Indian food is what to order.

1st Choice offers American and Indian pizzas on standard pizza dough in five different sizes. The pizza crust is not quite deep-dish, but relatively thick. We tried the butter chicken, chicken curry and malai paneer versions. All had generous amounts of toppings, with moist chunks of chicken or paneer and vegetables—primarily bell peppers and onions. You can order them mild or hot, although we didn’t find a huge difference in the two spice levels.

There’s also plenty of cheese (even on the paneer, which is cheese itself). While the pizzas were intriguing and good, they could be better differentiated from one another. Perhaps we should have tried the Mango Tango, which comes with mangoes, pineapple, onions and a mango curry sauce.

(I really want someone to make Indian pizza on garlic naan. The naan at 1st Choice is chewy and flavorful. With more Indian sauce and less cheese, it could be a standout.)

What really recommends 1st Choice, though, are its other Indian-food options. It has a well-executed selection of chaat and entrees. Chaat (meaning “to lick”) are snacks and small plates often served as street food in India. They’re usually a flavor explosion of ingredients as well.

The samosa chaat, for example, contains two fried pastries filled with spiced potatoes and peas, then smothered in a tomatoey sauce of chickpeas, red onions and cilantro. It’s finger-lickin’ good for sure.

The same sauce appears over aloo tikki chaat, which includes two fried potato patties with a filling of spiced peas. Paneer pakora and fish pakora are batter-fried cheese cubes and white fish, respectively, served with sweet-tart tamarind and spicy cilantro chutneys.

I couldn’t get the butter chicken dish out of my mind. Listed as “makhani” at other restaurants, it’s a satiny sauce of cream, butter and spices bathing chunks of chicken. It’s also a fantastic version of this recipe, which you must eat with plenty of rice and warm naan to soak up every last bit of sauce.

The paneer tikka masala comes with the same sauce, although that isn’t the traditional presentation. Of course, any excuse to eat that sauce would make me happy.

The tandoori chicken was also unusual, in that it is served with a juicy sweet-and-sour tangle of bell peppers and onions. While the chicken is well-spiced and smoky, a few of the pieces were a bit dry. Those that weren’t tasted like an inspired marriage of American barbecue and Indian flavors.

The chana masala is another winner, with chickpeas swimming in a spicy, thick tomato-based sauce. This version is more complex than many I’ve tried. Order it as part of the vegetarian thali, which also includes the paneer tikka masala, raita, rice, salad and kheer. It’s a great deal at $9.99, and a nonvegetarian version is $1 more.

The kheer, or rice pudding, is served cold. It’s a looser version than most American rice puddings, and adds a refreshing flavor of cardamom to the milk. The rasmalai dessert consists of two cheese-based patties in a similarly fragrant cream. Several other desserts are offered as well.

On both of my visits, the employees were helpful with ordering and very earnest. It’s a fun find that’s worth a trip for adventurous eaters.