Good Indian in or near MV/PA?

I just made a return visit to Vik's Chaat house in Berkeley.  While not a full service restaurant, it's about the best Indian food that I've tasted in the area.  Can someone suggest another area place that can compete? Perhaps something closer to the South Bay, or in SF?

Vik's is a pretty down scale place.  Another down scale place, in SF, is Shalimar.  And, it's pretty darn good too.  Is there some kind of trend here?

There must be some other good, authentic, South Asian full service restaurants.

-j

Suren wrote:
>
> Kevin B. wrote:
>
> > Hi,
> >
> > Just moved to Mountain View and I've got to find a good Indian
> > restaurant here.  I was severely disappointed with Passage To India
> > (on
> > El Camino) -- their navratan korma must have been made with a bag of
> > "veg-all" like you see in the freezer section of the grocery store.
> > Lima beans and corn in an authentic Indian dish?  I dunno.

> Try Swagatt (sp) on El Camino & San Antonio..... its pretty decent !

The last time I ate at Swagatt I didn't leave a tip, it was THAT bad.

We asked for a "quiet" table.  They refused to seat us in one dining room that only had one other table (of adults) and ended up seating us in the large room that had 3 tables with noisy small children, and
*adjacent* to one of those 3 tables.

Both entrees were both lukewarm as if being served from a steam table rather than cooked to order.  My dish had yoghurt in it and it looke curdled (not the way this dish ordinarily appears).  No one checked back with us to see if the meal was OK until we had eaten over 1/2 of it (reluctantly).  At this point my water glass was empty (the dish was rather spicy) and I asked for a refill.  10 minutes and 5 waiter/bus-persons later and NOT ONE of them refilled my empty glass or even caught my eye to see if I needed anything.

I won't eat there again.

YMMV

jc

NNTP-Posting-Date: 6 Nov 1998 06:45:20 GMT
User-Agent: tin/pre-1.4-980818 ("Laura") (UNIX) (SunOS/4.1.4 (sun4m)) Xref: alexander.INS.CWRU.Edu ba.food:34249

Karen O. wrote:
: Some of us *really* like Amber on ECR. I especially enjoy their Butter : Chicken. And Sue's on Castro St., Mtn. View, is quite deelish, too.

      I've found that buffet-wise at least Passage To India is good
      and has some moderately unusual dishes to boot.

:> Just moved to Mountain View and I've got to find a good Indian :> restaurant here.  I was severely disappointed with Passage To India (on :> El Camino) -- their navratan korma must have been made with a bag of :> "veg-all" like you see in the freezer section of the grocery store. :> Lima beans and corn in an authentic Indian dish?  I dunno.

      Food Authenticity Police, sheesh.
      Lima beans and corn are no more inauthentic than tomatoes.
      Prior to 1530 you wouldn't have found any of those three in
      Indian cuisine.

      I'll bet you didn't know that some things you might consider
      Japanese food actually came from the Portuguese.

      I'll bet you like tomato based sauces on your pasta?

Kevin B. wrote,

>I got some takeout from Amber last
>night but was disappointed again in the navratan.

Try Mount Everest in Los Gatos on Santa Cruz Ave.

Pratibha

NNTP-Posting-Date: Mon, 09 Nov 1998 07:34:42 PDT
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Xref: pale-rider.INS.CWRU.Edu ba.food:34351

Geoff M. wrote:

> Swagat (El Camino, just north of San Antonio): the best in town, IMHO.
> Excellent food, good service, and fine atmosphere as long as you aren't
> relegated to the antispetic front room that's used for overflow in the
> evenings.  They have a beautiful bar in back, but I believe it's only
> used for banquets.  A pity, really. since I don't know of any Indian
> restaurant that has a formal bar (or at least one that's open to all
> comers).  Oh, and check out the _tres_ orgasmic mango soft-serve ice
> cream.  Or go at lunchtime and eat your fill of it.

Swagat indeed is the best of the bunch there.  I used to frequent it backwhen I worked in Palo Alto, as one is hard pressed to find a better lunch buffet in the area.  You are right-on-the-money about the mango ice cream.

Greg

Geoff M. wrote:
>
> Kevin B. wrote:
>
> > Just moved to Mountain View and I've got to find a good Indian
> > restaurant here.  I was severely disappointed with Passage To
> > India (on El Camino) -- their navratan korma must have been made
> > with a bag of "veg-all" like you see in the freezer section of
> > the grocery store.
>
> (Oh, Christ; here we go again.  "Women and children stampeded;
> cattle raped.")
>
> Suspend judgment until you've gone back and tried some other menu
> selection.  I've been to Back Passage To India many times; in fact,
> I was just there last Thursday.  I don't claim to be an expert on
> Indian cuisine, but I've been eating the stuff long enough that
> I know my way around a menu, and I think that place is pretty
> decent.  The food is good, the service is prompt, and they have
> this delightfully opinionated waiter who looks like Yanni and
> knows a hell of a lot about beer.
>
> Here's Geoff's Thumbnail Sketch Of Mountain View's Indian
> restaurants:
>
> Taj Mahal on Castro:  fair to middlin'.  A decent buffet.  Small
> and boutique-like, but they haven't run out of their eponymous
> (and world-class) beer on me yet.
>
> Bombay Oven (San Antonio at El Camino; Village Court Shopping Center:
> cozy atmosphere, decent food, good service, unusually comfortable
> thanks to its thickly-padded booths dating from the place's previous
> incarnation as a coffee shop.  Oddly, they don't offer the customary
> thali dinners that most Indian places have, but they present a good
> buffet in compensation.  Some here have criticized the place's fare,
> but I think they're blowing smoke and just trying to appear sophist-
> icated.  One of the waiters looks disturbingly like an Indian Michael
> Jackson.
>
> On another visit, check out Basil, the yuppie pizza place next door.
> While it's the antithesis of my ideal pizza parlor, I'm willing to
> forgive a lot in exchange for Red Hook ESB on tap.  Oh, and the pizzas
> (all individual-sized and gourmet-style) are quite comestible as well.)
>
>         ObNatLamp:
>
>         "But I vanted mine viz owl tongues!"
>
>         "Shut up, you tramp!"
>
> Swagat (El Camino, just north of San Antonio): the best in town, IMHO.
> Excellent food, good service, and fine atmosphere as long as you aren't
> relegated to the antispetic front room that's used for overflow in the
> evenings.  They have a beautiful bar in back, but I believe it's only
> used for banquets.  A pity, really. since I don't know of any Indian
> restaurant that has a formal bar (or at least one that's open to all
> comers).  Oh, and check out the _tres_ orgasmic mango soft-serve ice
> cream.  Or go at lunchtime and eat your fill of it.
>
> Amber (El Camino near Ortega): Some people here swear by this place.
> I've only been there once and the service sucked, but the food was
> good.  Not good enough to justify the $2-4 premium over most other
> Indian places, though.  I think they're trading on their name rather
> than on any genuine value they offer.  I'd give 'em a second chance,
> however.
>
> Sarovar (El Camino just north of Lawrence, Santa Clara): Not in
> Mountain View, but I'm including it because it inevitably comes
> up in any discussion of Indian restaurants.  There are two camps
> regarding this place.  One says it's outstanding, the other says
> it's a grease pit.  I usually have to wait 20 minutes for a table
> because of all the other (Indian) people who got there ahead of me,
> and I think that speaks for itself.
>
> As for Thai City: if you like that, check out Thai Garden (El
> Camino just north of San Antonio, not far from Swagat) and report
> back to us.  Thai Garden is, IMHO, the best Thai restaurant in the
> Mountain View area.
>
> Geoff
>
> --
> "Of course, unlike Miller, I could be wrong." --Glen Quarnstrom

I love this thread.  It confirms everything I've experienced.

1) Get rid of Navratan Korma!  It's just an excuse to mark-up cheap frozen vegetables.

2) Amber is overrated.  It's not bad, but it is overpriced.

3)  Swaggat family is the class of the Bay Area (Don't they own Suraj in Redwood City?)

4) Bombay Garden in San Mateo is giving Clay Oven a run.  And they have nearly grease-free dosas.  Advice to both (drop the NK)

5) I liked Sue's in MV. I only did the lunch buffet twice, but the flavors came through.

6)  Vik's in Berkeley is its own class, but don't forget, their main business is wholesale to other restautants and they will not go full service to avoid the conflict.  But a chat house is always welcome (disclaimer....owner's son is an acquaintence of mine)

Gotta go, I've got sambar heating up...

Walter

you left off Himalaya Cuisine in Burlingame on El Camino-the old cook from Katmandu West is there now and still makes his fabulous meals....
-Betty Cunningham

Geoff M. wrote:
>
> Kevin B. wrote:
>
> > Just moved to Mountain View and I've got to find a good Indian
> > restaurant here.  I was severely disappointed with Passage To
> > India (on El Camino) -- their navratan korma must have been made
> > with a bag of "veg-all" like you see in the freezer section of
> > the grocery store.
>
> (Oh, Christ; here we go again.  "Women and children stampeded;
> cattle raped.")
>
> Suspend judgment until you've gone back and tried some other menu
> selection.  I've been to Back Passage To India many times; in fact,
> I was just there last Thursday.  I don't claim to be an expert on
> Indian cuisine, but I've been eating the stuff long enough that
> I know my way around a menu, and I think that place is pretty
> decent.  The food is good, the service is prompt, and they have
> this delightfully opinionated waiter who looks like Yanni and
> knows a hell of a lot about beer.
>
> Here's Geoff's Thumbnail Sketch Of Mountain View's Indian
> restaurants:
>
> Taj Mahal on Castro:  fair to middlin'.  A decent buffet.  Small
> and boutique-like, but they haven't run out of their eponymous
> (and world-class) beer on me yet.
>
> Bombay Oven (San Antonio at El Camino; Village Court Shopping Center:
> cozy atmosphere, decent food, good service, unusually comfortable
> thanks to its thickly-padded booths dating from the place's previous
> incarnation as a coffee shop.  Oddly, they don't offer the customary
> thali dinners that most Indian places have, but they present a good
> buffet in compensation.  Some here have criticized the place's fare,
> but I think they're blowing smoke and just trying to appear sophist-
> icated.  One of the waiters looks disturbingly like an Indian Michael
> Jackson.
>
> On another visit, check out Basil, the yuppie pizza place next door.
> While it's the antithesis of my ideal pizza parlor, I'm willing to
> forgive a lot in exchange for Red Hook ESB on tap.  Oh, and the pizzas
> (all individual-sized and gourmet-style) are quite comestible as well.)
>
>         ObNatLamp:
>
>         "But I vanted mine viz owl tongues!"
>
>         "Shut up, you tramp!"
>
> Swagat (El Camino, just north of San Antonio): the best in town, IMHO.
> Excellent food, good service, and fine atmosphere as long as you aren't
> relegated to the antispetic front room that's used for overflow in the
> evenings.  They have a beautiful bar in back, but I believe it's only
> used for banquets.  A pity, really. since I don't know of any Indian
> restaurant that has a formal bar (or at least one that's open to all
> comers).  Oh, and check out the _tres_ orgasmic mango soft-serve ice
> cream.  Or go at lunchtime and eat your fill of it.
>
> Amber (El Camino near Ortega): Some people here swear by this place.
> I've only been there once and the service sucked, but the food was
> good.  Not good enough to justify the $2-4 premium over most other
> Indian places, though.  I think they're trading on their name rather
> than on any genuine value they offer.  I'd give 'em a second chance,
> however.
>
> Sarovar (El Camino just north of Lawrence, Santa Clara): Not in
> Mountain View, but I'm including it because it inevitably comes
> up in any discussion of Indian restaurants.  There are two camps
> regarding this place.  One says it's outstanding, the other says
> it's a grease pit.  I usually have to wait 20 minutes for a table
> because of all the other (Indian) people who got there ahead of me,
> and I think that speaks for itself.
>
> As for Thai City: if you like that, check out Thai Garden (El
> Camino just north of San Antonio, not far from Swagat) and report
> back to us.  Thai Garden is, IMHO, the best Thai restaurant in the
> Mountain View area.
>
> Geoff
>
> --
> "Of course, unlike Miller, I could be wrong." --Glen Quarnstrom

  Jon B. wrote:
> Geoff M. wrote:
>
> >The food is good, the service is prompt, and they have
> >this delightfully opinionated waiter who looks like Yanni and
> >knows a hell of a lot about beer.
>
> [..snip..]
>
> >Bombay Oven (San Antonio at El Camino; Village Court Shopping Center:
>
> [..snip..]
>
> >One of the waiters looks disturbingly like an Indian Michael
> >Jackson.
>
> Wait a minute--what's wrong with looking like a beer expert?
>
> Whoa, you meant that OTHER Michael Jackson?  Eeeeewwwww...
>
> >As for Thai City: if you like that, check out Thai Garden (El
> >Camino just north of San Antonio, not far from Swagat) and report
> >back to us.  Thai Garden is, IMHO, the best Thai restaurant in the
> >Mountain View area.
>
> And the fact that they're attached to a bowling alley makes it
> the clear choice for the discerning Multi-Cultural enthusiast.
>

 Darbar on Lytton in Palo Alto is good.

Someone wrote:
: try going to Himalaya Cuisine on El Camino in Burlingame : the cook is the same one taht used to be at Katmandu West in sunnyvale. : very very good.

: -Betty Cunningham

Now that calls for a trip to Burlingame ! I used to live in Sunnyvale ~5 years ago, and Kathmandu West was comfort food, no less.

My favorite Indian restaurant in the MV/PA area now has to be Darbar, on Lytton near the Caltrain station. I like their version of murgh saagwala (chicken in spinach), and my wife absolutely has to have one of their 5 vindaloo variations.

YMMV and all that - but the quality & variety in Indian restaurants seem to have gone up a notch since I came to the bay area in '89. Back then, the choice was limited to Pasand (and its clones !), and till Empress of India came to Santa Clara, my friends & I had pretty much given up on Indian restaurants in the South Bay. The scene's looking *much* better now.

Bon appetit
Jay

... and I'll have to find that pepper chicken recipe in a hurry
- I'm starving :-):-) ..