Restaurant Review: Ashoka the Great

Ryan and I opted to eat indian food at Ashoka the Great last night in lieu of meeting my coworker friends for happy hour. And boy was I glad we did. That place is absolutely delicious! It's a bit pricier than what I'm used to paying, e.g. rice isn't free, but it's well worth the extra $$.

We started with an assorted bread basket consisting of nan, onion nan, and this puffy airy fried bread that I can't remember the name of. The puffy fried bread was surprisingly tasty and not too oily. Unfortuantely, the onion nan was bursting with onions which was a bit startling. Ryan strongly disliked it but I found it ok when eaten with the entrees. For drinks, I had a mango lassi and Ryan had chai tea. The lassi was perfect but the tea, while pleasantly spiced, was nothing exciting.

Our main course consisted of saag paneer (spinach curry with cubes of fresh cheese), chicken vindaloo (spicy vinegar based curry), alu punjabi (spiced potatoes with onions and mustard seeds), and raita (savory yogurt accompaniment). First, I have to say I've very particular about my saag paneer. Many restaurants tend to put too much of one partiular spice (I forget which one right now but I will ask my Indian friends), making it very musky and woodsy tasting. It's hard to explain but I've very offended when I taste this variation. Ashoka's saag paneer is beyond perfect. I cannot go there and not order this dish. The vindaloo was great as well. The chicken could have been more tender but the curry itself was very good, especially when mixed with the raita to cut the spiciness of the dish. The potato dish was tasty but nothing spectacular. It made a great sidekick but could easily be dropped to try something new. On other dining occasions, we've ordered the cauliflower with peas curry and the chickpeas curry. Both were just a notch above the potato dish.

In addition to the deliciousness of the food, the quantity is very large. We took the leftovers home and had the meal again for lunch this afternoon!

Many thanks to Kim G from work who first took me to this gem.