Ajanta

I’ve been spending more time in the Morningside Heights area these days. In the three years I lived over there I pretty much spent most of my time on the restaurants on Amsterdam, but truth is there are lots of good affordable restaurants around the area.  I went to Ajanta for dinner last weekend and must say that I definitely regret not ordering from there more when I lived so close.  Of course the meal started with Vegetable Samosas.

Yumm! (pardon the pictures - I think it's time for a new camera!) I should have taken a picture after I cut it open so I could reveal the spiced peas and potatoes. The crust was not greasy – which is quite the accomplishment considering how my hands usually look when I’m done eating a samosa.  The sauces of course were a positive addition to our meal.

When our entrees were served, I remembered immediately why I heart Ajanta.  Their individual serving bowls always made me feel like I was getting more than my money’s worth. A hearty portion of Lamb Saag arrived.

Obviously I didn’t help out on that one but based on the repeated return to the bowl, it must have been delicious.  My Chicken Vindaloo was spectacular.

Yes it’s true I almost always order the vindaloo at Indian restaurants, that’s because it’s amazing! I loved it! We also had some Basmati rice.

It was perfectly cooked. It’s quite disturbing how often I go out and the rice at a restaurant is hard in the middle or too mushy. Thankfully that wasn’t the case here. Fluffy perfect rice. Dessert wasn’t in the cards at Ajanta so we skipped out after stuffing our faces.

Columbia students better get on it – Ajanta is a delicious affordable Indian restaurant. Once you leave the comfort of Morningside Heights, it’s hard to find an Indian restaurant this good and still affordable. Yes it’s not the best Indian food you can find in New York, but if you’re in the area this is worth a try. Especially the Chicken Vindaloo!

Hungry yet?