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Chand Palace - A Vegetarian Indian Restaurant
Written by Pradeep   
Friday, 03 April 2009 09:40
This year my birthday was a memorable one, I had a surprise party in office (special thanks to Abhinav, Satyajit, Vaibhavi, Gaurav ,Neena & others) and  one more surprise party at home .When I reached home, Pranu - my sweet li'l daughter, was sitting on couch holding a bunch of balloons so innocentlyInnocent.After celebrations/cake cutting at home, we headed for dinner at Chand Palace, South Plainfield, NJ.

Place - We have visited Chand Palace many times now and this resturant is universally liked by everybody in my family. This review was pending from so long and this place deserves it!. Please make sure that you have a reservation if you plan to visit since it gets quite crowded even on weekdays. Their contacts can be found here

Menu - The reason we all like Chand Palace so much is because they have dinner buffet. Its a pure vegetarian menu and all dishes has that authentic North Indian stamp on it.For starters usually they have salad, pani puri, vada, samosa, Gobi manchoorian and a soup.In the main course, they have 3 to 4 varieties of dishes and one Paneer item is usually a norm.Though I am not a big fan of Panner, I dont miss eating it here since its really very delicious.On Thursdays, they have Punjabi special and they get Paneer fry stuffed with onions/green pepper on your table.Other days, this is replaced with Pav Bhaaji which is prepared very well.Dosas are also served, though I usually say No to that. Roti/Naans are  served hot to your table and they are very soft and crispy. They also have some rice items and a South Indian sambar which is just ok. On the desert section, you usually see some fruits, at least two variety of Indian sweets. That day we had Gulab jamoon, custard pudding and mango juice. On a whole, I can give 100% assurance that you will be quite satisfied with what all you had (people liking non-vegeterains might be an exception) and if you are on a diet, dont be surprised if you forget it once you get in there.

Ambiance - Its a decent place and well maintained.They have some beautiful Indian paintings which enhances the beauty of the place.Staff are very friendly and you usually get personal attention.In case you plan to celebrate somebody birthday, you can request them and they arrange for a surprise special icecream cake. Sannutha surprised me here also and at the end of the dinner, I had to cut one more cake here as well.Later I heard that they dont charge for the cake and you have to just tip the person who got the cake (with candles)

Price - Price per person for the buffet is $14.95 and for the amount of choices you have, this is really a steal.Its very unlikely that you would feel that the place is not worth the price.If you are more than 4 person, they also add 15% gratuity to your check.

Rating - ***** (out of *****)

My Verdict  - LaughingI am game for Chand Palace any day, especially if I am in mood to eat some good North Indian food.

Last Updated ( Friday, 03 April 2009 10:31 )
 
Valentine's Day - Dinner in Thai Basil
Written by Pradeep   
Tuesday, 17 February 2009 16:41

This is our 6th Valentine's day since I am with Sannutha from 2004.Though I am not a hard core believer of all these celebrations, I think its just one nice way to tell your dear one how much you love them.

Place - We decided at last moment to go to Thai Basil in South Plain field, NJ. Initially we had decided to go to Nanking, the Indian Chinese place in South Plain field, but after seeing the crowd there and the wait time (they were not taking reservations for 14th) we changed our mind and went to nearby Thai Basil. I am great lover of Thai food and had so far tried only two Thai places in around NYC, Thai NY in Manhattan and Thai Kitchen in Bridgewater. So was excited to try a new place.

Menu - Thai Basil was a real surprise for both of us in terms of menu. Probably because of the number of Indian guests, they had a huge selection of Vegetarian items in their menu. I had ordered Veggie Tom Yum soup and Sannutha had her favorite spring rolls as starters.Tom Yum was really very tasty and so was the spring rolls. For the main course we had Pad Thai and Yellow Mango curry.This was probably the best Thai food I had every tried. Yellow Mango curry was really so tasty and I had finished almost the whole big serving, with two bowls of rice. Same with Pad Thai, though quantity wise it was a bit less than many thai places, it tasted great.Even Pranutha enjoyed the Pad Thai sitting on her high chair.

Ambiance - Though it did not have that great feeling like few other Thai places I had been, it still was pretty decent place to go out for dinner. The best part is that the veggie food that we had did not have any sea food aroma in it, which I have noticed in lot of Thai places.

Price - Dinner for two of us had only cost 36 bucks including gratuity. I would consider it as pretty decent.

Rating - *** (out of *****)

My Reaction  - Laughing I would definitely go to this place once again to try out their other veggie items.

Last Updated ( Tuesday, 17 February 2009 16:46 )