Philadelphia is packed with plenty of good Indian restaurants, but a good Indian lunch buffet can be hard to find. With that in mind, we selected Karma, Tandoor India, Sitar India and Uduppi Dosa House to find the best Indian lunch buffet around. Is it an exhaustive list? No, but if we didn’t limit ourselves we’d still be eating…
Without further ado, here’s how we ranked each Indian lunch buffet:
After stumbling across a few mentions of the Grey Lodge Pub recently, Patti and I trekked to Philly’s Great Northeast to check it out. Maybe “trekked” isn’t the right choice of words. After seeing strong recommendations like Esquire’s One of the Best Bars in America, The Beer Advocate’s Top 50 Beer Bars in America (2005) and Philly Weekly’s Top 50 Bars in Philadelphia , maybe “Pilgrimage” is more appropriate?
Old City’s Beneluxx Tasting Room is a fun and interesting place to visit if you’re interested in trying different types of Belgian beer, wine, cheese and chocolate. Situated just around the corner from its big brother Eulogy, Benelux offers a unique format featuring 2 ounce tastes of its draft beers and wine, as well as tastes of its artisan cheeses and chocolates. Beneluxx also offers a limited menu of appetizers and pub grub, but I think that the tasting format is what makes this place different.
Emerging in January, Vietnam Cafe displays all of the characteristics of it’s successful Chinatown brother: excellent food in a comfortable, contemporary environment. Located in up and coming West Philly, Vietnam Cafe offers a smaller, more intimate environment complete with modern touches that are unusual for the neighborhood.
After months of pre-opening updates and post opening assessments, we finally got the opportunity to visit West Philly’s Dock Street Brewery. And we weren’t disappointed.
Our first of two visits occurred on a recent Saturday night, when Dock Street was packed. Mob scene not withstanding, the hostess greeted us promptly and put us in the queue for the estimated 1 hour wait. Afterward, we stalked the bar and attacked two freshly vacated barstools. Luckily enough, they were in a prime location: next to the taps and within view of the food staged for delivery to the dining area. We found a home for the evening.
Thanks go to our fellow Philadelphia Bloggers for introducing us to the South Philadelphia Tap Room. During a recent afternoon, Patti and I burrowed into South Philly to attend the Philadelphia Webloggers Meetup at this laid back neighborhood local. Although this was just our first visit, we found food, atmosphere and beer all delicious.
Something was amiss during our return trip to New Trieu Chau. Pulling up to the restaurant located at 1807 Washington Avenue in South Philly, something was different. At first, I thought it was me: Did we drive by and miss it? A second lap around the block proved that we hadn’t. The hole-in-the-wall spot offering great Southeast Asian food had been usurped by another! After some quick deliberation, we decided to give the replacement a shot.
Tandoor India is the third stop on the Indian Lunch Buffet Round Up and it did not disappoint. A popular place for lunch in University City, Tandoor India offers a great mix of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian items in a well-lit, comfortable environment.
Disposing of the pleasantries, we got down to business immediately after entering Tandoor India and being shown to a table. The buffet was attractively presented and well laid out; the cold salad items and a variety of chutneys displayed first with the hot entrees and desserts afterward. All items appeared to be freshly prepared and appetizing.
Center City’s Lucky Strike Lanes has something for everyone with equal parts bowling, bar and restaurant. Maybe the best way to describe Lucky Strike is bowling lounge and restaurant? I dunno, but however you describe it, Lucky Strike Lanes is a cool place to dust off your game, have a few cocktails and maybe even dinner.
Granted, Lucky Strike is a chain and we didn’t get the opportunity to sample the food. To be honest, I couldn’t tell whether Philadelphia Weekly’s Fall 2006 review was positive or negative, but based on what we saw, but I’d give it a chance. Regardless, we enjoyed the bar, bowled a few games and had a great time.
Cafe Pier One is the “other” coffee shop on Baltimore Avenue that the local hipsters have yet to discover. Owner Pamela Williams has created more than just a cozy, Afro-Beatnik joint for superb coffee, hot chocolate and tea it’s an excellent spot for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I happen to live right around the corner from Cafe Pier One. As of a week or so ago, I’d only had one item on their menu, the Bistro Salmon Salad. It is so awesome, I could eat it every day. A nice marinated salmon steak (or fillet, excuse me if I cannot recall this detail) atop of a bed of greens with apples, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, nuts AND the most amazing dressing, I don’t know what is in it but it’s tangy and terrific.
