Dajeh

With this winter's seemingly daily snowfalls, we find ourselves wanting hearty comfort foods pretty much constantly, but we don't want to have to buy bigger pants come spring. Thankfully, there's Dajeh, a combination soul food and Caribbean restaurant in Clinton Hill. On the artery-clogging, craving-fulfilling side, we get the chicken and waffles and relish its savory/sweet, crunchy/soft simplicity. The waffles could stand to be a bit fluffier --- actually, waffles could always be fluffier, as far as we're concerned --- but the chicken, slathered in buttermilk and rolled in a spice-and-herb-packed breading, comes crisp and juicy.

On the side of good conscience, we ordered the veggie roti. The thin, pliable roti skin comes wrapped around its filling like a tasty present; tear it open and out pours a mix of chickpeas, peppers, carrots, raisins, peas, zucchini, corn, broccoli, and potatoes, all swimming in ginger-, curry-, and cumin-laced gravy. The Indian-ness of West Indian food is one of our favorite things about it, and this dish would happily fit in on the subcontinent.

And as for the plantains, they're the fence we balanced on: fruit that's fried, half-admirable and half-indulgent. But all good.

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