Taste of India

In a word: Curries favor.

The specs: #0654 
Address, hours & details via Isthmus; reviews at Yelp, Living Gluten Free in Madison, Trip Advisor, Eat Drink Madison, Isthmus; official web site [WARNING: Just WARNING];

Latest Taste of India news and reviews

Elizabeth, Evy, Greg, JM, Jordan, Nichole, Paul, Todd and Trish ate the Peshawary naan, cheese naan, samosas, saag paneer, vegetable korma, chicken tikka masala, lamb vindaloo, and a couple glasses of tea.
The bill was $68, or about $7.50/person, plus tip.
JM and Nichole gave Taste of India an A- (see our grading rubric).

Stop #2 on the Taste Quest was Taste of India on Monroe Street. Inside, the decor was warm and inviting, dark with orange walls and bronze accents.

A few minutes of spirited discussion over the menu got us to settle on four entrees to share. It was wonderful. At the time (Lincoln's birthday, February 12) we had no idea what stresses the next few days, weeks and months would hold for Madison and beyond. In retrospect we wonder if things would go more smoothly everywhere if people would just sit down and eat together more often. But that's probably naive talk.

We started with poppadom and bread. There was plenty for everyone, and it was good. The cheese naan was rich and warm. The Peshawary naan stuffed with raisins and spice was very sweet, but not too filling. A side of large, spicy samosas was served cooler than ideal.

Our four entrees were a rainbow: red lamb vindaloo, orange chicken tikka masala, yellow vegetable korma, and green saag paneer.

The cheese in the saag paneer was very good and firm, with a mild, fresh flavor.

Vegetable korma is Elizabeth's go-to dish at Indian restaurants because it varies from place to place and tends to give one a nice feel for a restaurant. Here it was mostly squash, peas, and carrots, with toasted almonds for body, and had a nice kick at the "medium" spice level.

The chicken tikka masala was among the best JM has ever had. It was very, very buttery. We learned from Paul and Evy about the difference between chicken tikka and chicken tikka masala (namely the amount of sauce) and Taste of India makes the most of the opportunity to splash things up.

The crimson-sauced lamb vindaloo was our least favorite. It was mostly potato and not much meat and what meat there was just a smidge on the tough side (as lamb is wont to be).

We didn't get the buffet, which would be the other way to ensure that everyone gets what they want.  But of what we tried and can compare, Taste of India is definitely in medal contention for subcontinental restaurants in Dane County.

Comments

[Amanda]

I want to go there. Immediately. And I want to order exactly what you had... it sounds and looks so delicious!

[Eric]

Speaking of Chicken Tikka and Chicken Tikka Masala, I once went to an indian restaurant and ordered murgh tikka - just the grilled, spiced chicken - and they brought it to me...

...with a side of the sauce used to make murgh tikka masala.

I was sort of baffled. That's like ordering a hamburger and getting the rest of a beef stew on the side.