This article was originally from Pegasusnews.com. Teresa Gubbins is a Senior Writer for PegasusNews.

Mumtaz Indian Restaurant and Bar was opened in Richardson on January 16 by Kulwinder Dhaliwal, a longtime local who ran Taj Mahal for 15 years. In December, he sold out his interest to his partner and headed north to what has become a pretty busy center on Campbell, just west of US 75. He needed more space so that he could accommodate graduations, weddings, and other catering events.

"We are Northern Indian, and a lot of places say that they make that food, but there aren't many that are really authentic," he says. "Many are south Indian who try to cook north Indian. I’m from the north. If I tried to make southern Indian food, it would not be that good. It's different if you're originally from there, and you've grown up with it."
Cheese tikka, also called paneer tikka, also called frahd chayze.

Cheese tikka, also called paneer tikka, also called frahd chayze.

Northern Indian dishes include kebabs, curry, and probably the most famous Indian dish, chicken tikka masala.

"What you see in Indian restaurants is mostly from the North," Dhaliwal says. "South Indian is totally different. It's spicier. They use tamarind. We don’t use that much, not in every dish."

One unique dish he does you won't see anywhere else is cheese tikka.

"You can grill cheese," he says. "It's good for vegetarians. Back home, you can get it everywhere."

This article appears here courtesy of Pegasus News.