Raj Palace Indian Cuisine

FOOD

Naan, tandoori chicken, biryani and saag paneer give Raj Palace’s buffet several recognizable choices to build around. Dal, other curries, vegetable noodles and fried starters add breadth, with cake portions and spoonable sweets at the dessert end. The selection rotates, so let the day’s spread guide which favorites find their way onto the plate.

The naan comes in cut pieces with browned, blistered surfaces. It’s the natural companion for a helping of curry or dal, with portions small enough to leave room for the other dishes. Begin with a piece and the sauce that appeals most. There’s a difference between enjoying bread with lunch and discovering that bread has quietly become lunch… both perfectly understandable outcomes.

Tandoori chicken provides the roasted choice among the hot dishes, with its recognizable red-orange exterior and browned edges. It offers a different preparation from the sauced curries and coated starters. A piece can take the main place on a plate, with rice or a little dal beside it, rather than disappearing beneath several competing sauces.

Biryani brings colored long-grain rice to the selection. Give it some attention as a dish in its own right, especially if rice is what draws you to an Indian buffet. It needn’t serve only as the foundation for everything else. A modest portion alongside the tandoori chicken makes a different combination from bread with a curry.

Saag paneer brings pale paneer pieces into a thick green preparation. It gives the vegetable side of the meal a recognizable main dish, rather than leaving it to a small accompaniment. The yellow lentil dal offers another option, with its own substantial place beside the breads and rice. The greens and the lentils are worth trying separately so each keeps its character.

Several other curries broaden the hot selection, including orange and brown preparations. These provide more sauces and combinations to explore alongside the named staples. A little of one at a time is more useful than a plate where all the gravies meet in the middle. Find the curry you enjoy, then give it the bread or rice it deserves.

Vegetable noodles offer another substantial choice, with shredded cabbage, carrot and green pepper among the strands. They sit apart from the rice-and-curry combinations and can make a small plate of their own. Coated fried starters add another preparation alongside them, giving lunch room for a few appetizer-sized tastes before returning to a favorite main dish.

The sweets include small cake portions and a smooth, spoonable dessert served from its own pan. They give the meal a separate finish after the breads, greens and curries. Take a look before deciding how much room to leave: a small sweet course is a pleasant way to end lunch, and considerably easier to accommodate when it wasn’t an afterthought.