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The Mysore Royal Thali at Udupi Palace, Tacoma Park, MD. Do not let the Zagat Reviewed sign on the door fool you.
Dinner was my second meal of the day and boy was I excited to see the “Zagat Rated” sign on the door as I walked into Udupi Palace at Tacoma Park, MD. That was the only high point of the entire evening.
The Decor was on par with what you would expect from an Indian restaurant, the service was nothing to write home about.
After a detailed glance of the menu, I decided to settle for one of their dinner specials, The Mysore Royal Thali. It had everything I wanted and a little bit more, so the choice was obvious.
I picked tomato soup and right then I knew I had made a mistake. Instead of getting a bowl of home made goodness, I was faced with a cup of something that tasted very close to the cans you find at most super markets. The appetizers showed up right as I was finishing my soup.
Vegetable cutlet, too hard and cold for my taste, Medhu Vada that lacked spice and a Samosa that was ok.
The main course was a bigger disappointment. The Aviyal was too hot to taste, The vegetable rice was too hard (possibly microwaved) and there was the way too sour raitha. I was not disappointed until I figured that these were not “fresh” but had been reheated. It was obvious, because the rest of the food was warm at best.
Overall, I would rate the restaurant a 3 on 10. Never will I be going back there and it certainly does not deserve to be Zagat rated as the sign up front said.
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Unfortunately, every single Indian restaurant I’ve been to in the US and A has been nothing short of disappointing. Too much or too little spice, overly greasy, microwaved rice, way-too-sour curd, stale food. I’m sure there are good ones just haven’t been there. This one seems no different.
Karthik - In the five years I spent in the area, I learned early on that Udipi is a place to avoid. You are lucky that they did not take the plate from you while you were still eating - they did this to us when we went there for a buffet. That was my first week in the area and I decided never to go back there again. If however, you do feel like eating something similar - head to Woodlands - it is not far from there. The service is good, the food is good (except they do not make coconut chutney from fresh coconut) and people very friendly.
Santosh, I have felt the same way about most places. Yet there are a few restaurants where I have been surprised over and over again. I will review them shortly.
I am going to give this a try next time I am in the area, but in the meanwhile, if you have pictures and can give us a short write up, we would gladly post it on UD.
Also, with Zagat I’ve discovered that their reviews often don’t do justice to “ethnic” restaurants. I would not heed them unless you’re looking for Italian or Mexican.
At least we don’t get food poisoning in our worthless restaurants
Karthik,
Saravana Bhavan here in the SF BAy Area rarely disappoints whenever the mad urge for ” Rasam saadam/Thayir saadam ” hits me ! I will buy you lunch there if you are ever in this area
My pet peeve with the Southie thalis that I have had here in the US are the unnecessary , gratuitous and usually badly cooked Northe interloper in the thali - usually “channa” or unmentionable mixed vegetable
Sacrilege!! I’ve been to this one restaurant (I think in NJ) where they use mushroom pieces in aviyal. That to me is blasphemy of unmentionable proportions. To us southies, mushroom is something that is besides a bathroom. Pizza w/ mushroom is good, aviyal in mushroom is a no-no.
Btw, Saravana Bhavan invite for Karthik only?
Santosh,

Ha ha ..to prove that my intentions are totally pure ..I extend the invite to you as well.
True - the Southie aversion to mushrooms.My mom refuses to eat them!
Runa,
Thanks for the invite. I’ll make sure I’m hungry a couple of days in advance
I have been to the one in Silicon Valley, a few years ago. I remember the food being good.
I agree on mushroom being inserted into random dishes, but as a southie, I am totally cool with mushroom. My mom on the other hand will not even touch it.
FWIW - in the DC area, Rasika (DC) & Rangoli (South Riding, Loudoun County, NoVA) are excellent.
Saravana Bhavan here is a ridiculous, muddled mess in terms of management and service. The food is average, but you get the same for less at either Amma’s (Vienna, Georgetown).
There are a few more semi-decent desi restaurants - one or two in germantown/Rockville (names escape me now) are excellent for North indian food and a wide-ranging, well-cooked lunch buffet spread!
For the record, this North indian is also disgusted by the blended thalis that are forced down our gullets at most Southie places - leave the chhole & mushroom out, dangit!
whoa, looks like ya’ll are not anywhere close to south east.
Tell you what, the best places for Indian food anywhere is a temple canteen :), most of the restaurants you have talked about are close by in Atlanta, Madras Saravana Bhavan - Dosa is half cooked, Udipi - it’s like buying a lottery ticket with 50% chance of winning, some days it’s good, some days it’s bad. Minerva in Atlanta is one of the finest I have seen, the buffet is just overwhelming. But the desi babua there after an initial hesitation asks you to pay in “cash” for a small discount. The catch? No receipt!! Couldn’t believe it.
Zyka in Atlanta is a must for chicken biryani lovers, Zyka in Dallas is awesome too.
Another memorable Indian restaurant is Ruchi in Kansas city and I haven’t mentioned at least 3 Indian restaurants that are less than 5 miles form home :), they are again like buying lottery tickets.
And what’s the talk abt aversion to mushrooms??? 4 of my closest friends have changed their minds after they ate the mushroom curry I cook with heavy whipping cream, some girls absolutely love it
Anyone wants a recipe kya?
gosh, you guys all seem to have at least more than one quality option. Richmond has a truckload of shitty generic north indian restaurants and one southie (with credible thosai, non-credible rasam and a variety of goa specialties) place with service that is YENtirely dependent on your ability to fit the owner’s daughter into your mother’s bharatanatyam beginner’s class. (Malabar, close to Short Pump center). If you neglect to take ‘teacher-ji’ you’re sunk.
yeah sidhu, i generally avoid mushrooms because they don’t require sunlight to grow…but my grandmother’s mushroom curry (for lack of a better word–probably a set of flavors used for meat that is being thrown onto a vegetarian-appropriate base) consistently makes me break my own rule.
Have been to Rasika, amazing food, next time I will have pictures and a review.
The name is overused. The one is Atlanta used to be good, Zagat Rated :), slowly sunk and the last time I was there, they changed management, name and were closed for remodeling.
I can never compare Amma to anything. It is more like visiting a friends/ relatives place to me. I know what to expect and when Chetta says “You wanted Dosa, here is dosa” (Even when it was something I did not order) I cannot but feel at home.
Heritage India at Dupont has a good Lunch Buffet.
Spoken like my dad.
I went to Udupi in Atlanta a few months ago, before I figured I might review restaurants. The food was bad, the Rasam was spoilt, dad had to send it back, the service was bad. And I already spoke about Saravana Bhavan in the previous comment.
Been there too, the spread was good, the food was ok from what I remember, my meat eating friends had a very good time. I think it was lamb or something that they kept going back for.
The girls I know would starve before they eat mushroom. My mom included.
If you have a few of them (with nice pictures) we would not mind letting you put them up. And yes I am serious.
If you use “influence” you always get the best treatment. Next time I should take ‘teacher-ji’ with me.
That is something a lot of my recently turned veggie friends have told me. Mushroom apparently is a great substitute for meat.
All my life I’ve know it to be Udupi and then I moved here and it suddenly became Udipi, pisses me off
- Thumbs up for Rasika
- Gotta try Heritage India
[...] while ago when we were discussing a restaurant review, Sidhu, one of our regulars was surprised at people’s aversion towards mushrooms. In fact he went on to say that his recipe had a great amount of success, specially with the fairer [...]