Tajinder Singh is on a mission to bust stereotypes about Indian food.
As the new owner of the longstanding River Grill, Singh invited patrons, last summer, to sample his eclectic Indian cuisine with a sense of curiosity and an open mind; if they didn’t like it, he didn’t charge them. That early goodwill gesture paid off as he reintroduced the restaurant in a space that previously focused on steak and pasta.
“Now, some of those people are my regular customers,” he says. “A lot of people think all Indian food is going to be hot in temperature and in your tummy, but that’s not the case. It can be customized according to taste.”
Singh, an established local restaurateur, purchased The River Grill from the Mallia family, which had operated it for 24 years. As one of the first restaurants to occupy the historic waterfront, The River Grill had built a loyal following over the years, so Singh knew it would take time to win over its longtime patrons.
“It’s something different at the waterfront,” Singh says.
In the next few months, Singh intends to rebrand the business and rename it Namaste Indian Restaurant as part of his plan to build a franchise in the Mid-Hudson Valley. He has a restaurant of that name in Saugerties (since 2018) and operates another in Middletown, along with Saffron, specializing in fine Indian cuisine, also in Middletown.
Originally from Punjab, Singh learned to appreciate good cooking from his family, and knew early on that he wanted to share his culinary heritage with others.
In 1999, at age 17, he left India for France, landing at Namaste Paris, where he got most of his training and eventually became head chef. Singh went back to India in 2008 to open a restaurant near his hometown; three years later, he came to the U.S. to be the head chef at an Indian restaurant in Chicago.
At all four of his restaurants, Singh and his kitchen crew make everything from scratch, enabling them to customize according to preference. That means patrons can order their dishes at low-, medium-, or high-spice levels. Made with fresh ingredients, dishes are packed with colorful vegetables, lean meats, and healthy spices like green chiles, cinnamon, turmeric, paprika, cumin, ginger, garlic, and onions.
So far, the stars on The River Grill’s new menu include butter chicken, a blend of tender chicken morsels and velvety, spiced tomato cream sauce, and the classic chicken tikka masala, with boneless chicken chunks in a tomato- and onion-based sauce. Seafood lovers are swooning over the shrimp curry cooked in coconut milk gravy, but the tandoori mixed grill is the heavyweight of them all—featuring an assortment of smoky, marinated meats (chicken, lamb, fish, and shrimp) cooked in the tandoor oven.
Singh and his team also make naan from scratch in a clay oven; it can be stuffed with melted cheese, green chiles, dried fruits and nuts, or spiced mashed potatoes.
“We’ve got tacos and pizza and steakhouses here on the waterfront—we’re the only restaurant offering Indian cuisine,” Singh says. “Come without preconceived notions about what Indian food is all about. If you come with an open mind, you’ll be surprised at how much you’ll love it.”
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