"Uzbek" narrows down Taam-Tov's cuisine too far. A number of items describe themselves as Middle Eastern or Israeli; golubtsy (stuffed cabbage) and stroganoff are Russian.
That said, Rob and I stuck by and large with Uzbek offerings, beginning with manty ($5.99), steamed dumplings in a barely translucent wrapper, filled with beef and spices, and plov (an Uzbek rendering of "pilaf"; above; $5.99), laced with juicy if if somewhat stringy meat, as well as carrots and chick peas. We added two kebabs: my ground-lamb favorite, lula ($2.99), and sea bass ($5.49), which was a little skimpy.
We also added an order of lepeshka ($1.99), a "Bukharian homemade bread" that I expected to be flattish, something like paratha. It turned out to be a full-size, circular, white-bread loaf, sliced into hunks; good, but probably better with soup or with juicier entrees. Nothing we tried was exceptional, but everything had a nice, homey taste that was matched by the demeanor of the servers (if not by the tight, functional dining area).
On a later visit, in addition to the plov, I ordered a bowl of shurpa (below; $3.99), a beef soup fortified with potato, celery, chick peas, and carrots and decked with cilantro.
Taam-Tov
41 West 47th St. (Fifth-Sixth Aves.), upstairs
212-768-8001
