Tandoori Indian Cuisine

I visited this restaurant on Saturday for the first time.  As far as I'm concerned the buffet is a great value for $12.98.  A few of the dishes are disappointing, but many are good and of course if you get the buffet you don't have to finish the ones you don't like.

My favorite items on the time I went were the Chana Masala and the Butter Chicken.  The Chana Masala had a wonderful, bright flavor on top of a rich savory base, and the chickpeas were cooked perfectly.  The Butter Chicken was just plain delicious--rich and savory, made you feel good to eat it.

Definitely worth trying the desserts.  The kheer (rice pudding) is served American style (cold)--could have used more cardamom but was fine.  The Golub Jamun were really interesting--when I look at them I think fruit, but they are actually fried cake balls in a warm sweet sauce.

I would stay away from the vegetable pakora, they were chewy and not appetizing.  The chicken biryani was a bit disappointing, kind of dry and not much chicken.  The tandoori chicken is OK if you like it, but I don't as it is usually too dry for me and was the same here.

Other dishes:

• Dal Makhani (lentils and butter) - very rich and tasty
• Creamy Palak - a spinach dish, as advertised but not so much flavor.
• Aloo Bangam - Tomato and potatoes, both rich and acidic, spicy, I enjoyed it
• Sooji Halwa (cake dessert made with cream of wheat, cardamom, and raisins) - very lightly sweet, OK but maybe not great as a buffet item

Service was both polite and attentive.  I got a nice basket of fresh naan, and my plates were cleared immediately as I used them.  The decor is very simple, basically all white, with one TV that plays Indian light pop music.  Very conducive to conversation.  The bathroom was pretty clean but out of towels--there's a sign in there that asks the employees to clean up the bathroom after themselves.  That won't work, if everyone is responsible no one is responsible.

Tandoori also has regular table service.  Some have commented that the prices are high for this--dishes average $15, more than the buffet, so I would tend to agree.  But for lunch I liked it and would definitely go back.

My Yelp Review

Kim Long Vietnamese Restaurant

Kim Long is a local institution, but in all the time I've lived here I have not tried it, so it was time to do so. I've heard good things about the pho but my favorite Vietnamese dishes are banh mi sandwiches and vermicelli bowls.  No banh mi at Kim Long, so I had the grilled pork and spring rolls with vermicelli.  The sauce was unusual--if you haven't had nuoc cham it's hard to describe, but it's made with fish sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, and chile peppers.  It's very strong and a little can go a long way.  This sauce was thinner, a bit salty, and actually tasted kind of off.  But it tasted pretty good with the food so I went with it.

The pork had OK flavor but was chewy.  The vermicelli is not the usual rice noodles, but pasta. Spring rolls were OK.  Overall edible but not outstanding.

They have some tasty sounding desserts on the menu, so I tried one.  The crispy pineapple with honey is deep-fried breaded pineapple.  Sort of OK but not something to recommend.

Yelp reviews say most service is friendly but one is rather brusque.  I drew the short straw and got the brusque lady.  For a drink, I ordered a coke in a can, which comes with a glass of ice.  She was efficient and even smiled, but no offers of water when I finished, or any other offers beyond bringing the food.  They do have a fresh lemon soda on the menu that I would probably try next time.

Decor inside is clean but very basic.  Bathrooms are clean and functional.  I wouldn't go out of my way for it, but if you do go you should probably get the pho.

My Yelp Review

Yummy Taco

Taco truck time! Yummy Taco is a relatively new food truck in the neighborhood.  I stopped in the other day to give them a try.  I had a Yummy Taco Burger and a fajita taco on corn tortillas.  I would have gone with a sausage taco, but they didn't have sausage that day.  The fajita meat was OK but not great--a bit chewy and not too much flavor.  The salsas appear to be homemade, but again not a whole lot of flavor--both the red and green sauces are mostly heat.  That leaves the burger, which was actually not bad.  The burger comes with a slice of ham, cheese, lettuce, mayo, ketchup and mustard.  The ham was thin sliced and fried on the grill with the burger, so had a nice sear.  Very satisfying.  But no chips to go with the burger...

I washed it down with a Mexican coke.  Unlike many taco trucks, they don't have any aguas frescas. 

The outdoor seating table is kind of odd--the seat is a solid square around the table, so you have to do some gymnastics to sit facing forward, or just face sideways.

Yummy Taco doesn't have a website, but it does have an active Facebook page at facebook.com/YUMMYTACO2018.  They list hours of 9 to 9 every day, but they are sometimes away for events and will have new hours soon--Monday-Saturday 9:30-2:30 and 5-9.  It's located on the same lot as Mateo's Tire Service on Spring Stuebner, which is good to know because it didn't show up on Google (though it should soon, I submitted it). Overall it is OK if you are hungry while waiting for tire service or happen to drive by, but they would have to try a bit harder to compete with other trucks in the area.

My Yelp Review

El Mojito Cuban Cuisine

I went in for lunch the other day and had an excellent dining experience.  Daniel, the waiter, was very solicitous and had great recommendations from the menu.  It was lunch and I wasn't drinking, so he started me off with their house lemonade, made fresh.  Fantastic stuff.  Another nice touch was that he left the water carafe at the table so I actually drank enough.

I love pork, so I ordered the roasted pork entree.  Fork-tender roast pork with sauteed onions.  It comes with a "Mojito sauce" on the side, a combination of garlic, lime, and other seasonings that give it a sharp flavor.  I enjoyed the pork with and without it, so having it on the side is the right call.  If there was anything to critique it would be that my pork was just a touch dry, but it didn't detract from the enjoyment.

The sides were right on also.  Daniel recommended the mojo rice, a combination of rice, black beans and pork.  It had a good rich umami flavor.  The fried plantains were as good as I have had, just a little crisp on the outside and of course soft on the inside.

I saved room for dessert, and had the Cascos de Guayaba, guava in a rich syrup served with slices of a firm cream cheese.  The guava on its own would be way too sweet and heavy, but eaten with the cheese it was quite delicious.

The restaurant is beautiful inside, very clean and elegant with lots of nice touches like woodwork around the ceiling lights and bongos for bar seats.  It's a real contrast to the unassuming strip mall it sits in.  Its real strength would be in the evening, when they have live music to follow your late dinner.  If you want Cuban food, this is the only place to get it in the area--fortunately it's first-rate.

My Yelp Review