Taste of India Syracuse Buffet

I went to the buffet for lunch on Friday.  It's a small buffet, about six dishes plus rice, naan, condiments and salad.  There was also a desert Gulab Jamin - like donut holes soaked in honey syrup.  I didn't have the desert because I was trying not to overeat.

On the plate is Kadi Pakorda Gujarati (vegetable dumplings in a creamy mild sauce), Tandoori Chicken (cooked in a clay oven), Raita (yogurt sauce) Saag Paneer (Cheese the texture of tofu in spinach) Chicken Vindaloo (very hot) Vegetable Pakoras (vegetable fritters).
Buffet costs $8.95 per person.

I liked being able to get Raita and Tamarind sauce with the meal.  Raita is yogurt and it is good to eat alongside spicy foods.  Tamarind sauce is a slightly sweet sauce I like to put on the Pakoras.

Most of the food here was pretty mild, with the exception of the Vindaloo which was hot, and the Saag Paneer which I would say was a medium spice.

The buffet is a good value and gives you a chance to try small amounts of dishes to see what you like.

I prefer the buffet at Sahota Palace in Liverpool because there are more than twice as many selections, so I'd probably be more inclined to eat there.  They have a buffet for both lunch and dinner.

I would come back here to try it again, especially if I was in the Westcott Street area around lunchtime.

What I really need to do is spend less time obsessing about Indian food and more time at the gym.

Review of Taste of India Syracuse dinner

Taste of India Restaurant Review

This was taken before it opened!
I forgot to take a new one last night.

Last night we went to Taste of India, the new Indian restaurant on Dell at Westcott that opened a few weeks ago.  The building is a converted mechanic's garage and it sits back from the street with parking in front.

We were hoping to have buffet because we didn't have that much time.  Buffet is only for lunch though.  We decided to stay and have dinner.

We were quickly seated in a comfortable booth.  I ordered a Mango Lasi, a drink made from yogurt, milk and sweetened mango pulp for $2.95.  I always get this in Indian restaurants.  They are a good companion to spicy food -- if something is too spicy they also take away a little of the burn.

We ordered the taste of India Special Appetizers for two at $6.95, Plain Paratha bread for $2.95, Lamb Biryani at $11.95 and Chicken Shahi Korma at $9.95.

Our order was taken fairly quickly.  The food did not arrive quickly, though certainly within an acceptable amount of time.  A pleasant young woman apologized for the delay and informed us that our food would be there in a few minutes.  I appreciate when places do this as I don't mind waiting but want to know that they are working on it and that the food isn't sitting there getting cold.

Note TV on left side!

Taste of India has a large screen TV on the wall playing Indian Music Videos.  This seems to be the new thing for Indian restaurants, several that I have been to in the last year have added this.  I like Indian music and it adds to the atmosphere.  I don't like watching TV or videos while I eat usually but since I can't understand what they are saying and there are no commercials I like having it on.

The appetizers were my least favorite part of the meal.  They were very fried.  However, my dining companion enjoyed them and was happy to eat most of my share.

The main courses were served in little brass pots, with a dish of rice.  My dining companion at first said he didn't like the biryani, then changed his mind and said he liked it a lot.  I thought it was a good basic biryani.

He ordered it medium spicy and we thought it was mild, so if you want spicy food here you might tell them that you really do want it spicy.  They tend to adjust for upstate NY palates at many restaurants here, and though many people will have no problem with super-hot Buffalo wings they seem to be scared to eat spicy Indian or Thai food.

My dining companion said the korma looked like chicken pot pie filling and it did somewhat.  I liked the korma, it was mild and creamy with cashews and was perfect over the rice.

Biryani and Chicken Korma

The Plain Paratha bread was thinner than naan bread, more along the lines of a tortilla.  It was slightly crispy and very buttery.  I'm not much of a bread person and the thinner it is the more I usually like it.  I would order this again.

We were unable to order most of what I would have wanted because my companion hates tomatoes, cheese and yogurt, and a lot of things I would have liked have these ingredients.  I will have to come back for lunch and try some more things.

Note: We went back on Friday and had the Buffet Lunch.  Click to read review of Taste of India Syracuse Buffet

This restaurant is a welcome addition to the Westcott area and I'm glad they opened.

Click for Taste of India Syracuse Menu


View Larger Map

Taste of India buffet restaurant coming soon

This is on Dell right off Wescott- it says GRAND OPENING on the sign but it doesn't say when.  It doesn't look ready yet, but the chairs and tables are there so probably wont be too long.



Taste of India Syracuse is now open - click here for Taste of India Syracuse Restaurant Review

I ate at the Dosa Grill and it was great

This restaurant is getting a lot of positive attention, and it is well deserved. This is an Indian Restaurant at Erie and Genesee in Dewitt in the small plaza across the street from the new fire station.

I've eaten there twice. The first time we went for dinner and ordered off the menu, and the second time I went with a group and we ate at the Sunday Brunch Buffet.

If you are not familiar with Indian food, start with the buffet so you can see all the dishes and try some smaller samples of the various foods.

The buffet setup is a little awkward, having the condiments first, then the main dishes!

Raita is a yoghurt sauce, and it helps tone down the richness and spiciness of the sauces. I also like tamarind sauce, a somewhat sweet sauce that goes well on pakoras (vegetable fritters).

After the condiments/salad area there is the main dishes area. It has naan bread and basmati rice, and then a selection of curries and other sauce type dishes which change from week to week. Dishes when I went included butter chicken, chana masala (vegetarian chick peas in sauce), mutter paneer (cubed cheese and peas in a red sauce), a spinach dish, and the previously mentioned pakoras.

There is also an area with tandoori chicken, which is marinated chicken cooked in a special clay oven, and biryani, a rice dish with vegetables. Deserts were rice pudding, which seems to be manditory in Indian buffets, and this one was decent but nothing special. They also had an orange colored "fruit pudding" which I tried. One of my dining companions asked me what flavor it was and I was unable to answer - it was incredibly bland with very little flavor.

At the end of the buffet is an actual dosa grill. Dosas are very much like a crepe, and come with a filling of thick curry. They are dipped in a coconut chutney or a red sauce that is hotter and I'm not sure what it is. I consulted the menu to find out what it was, but oddly enough they do not mention the sauces or even dosas on the menu at all!

View Larger Map