Pakistanis and Indians are crazy about betel nut. Mine is flavored with anise seeds and sweetened lentils. We drive away in silence as I ruminate in the backseat. On a purely culinary level, I can say that the batair boti is the best grilled quail for the money I have ever eaten. Of course, so would most old-fashioned Texas barbecue joints.
Authenticity can be a scary thing.
In her authoritative 1973 cookbook, An Invitation to Indian Cooking , Madhur Jaffrey told us that the food served at Indian restaurants in New York was a bland, watered-down version of the real thing. In 2000 A.D. restaurants like Ali Baba's have turned the tables on those who complain about a lack of authenticity. Often a second generation opens another restaurant in newer quarters and offers a partially assimilated version of the cuisine. The evolution of Kim Son from a humble Vietnamese eatery to a budding chain is a case in point. Brain masala, hamburger kabab and many of the other dishes served at Ali Baba's reflect the preferences of Houston's Pakistani population.