Taj Express

At $ 9.95 for the buffet, I was expecting more. Especially considering there is a plethora of Indian buffets scattered across the valley (for basically the same price) that are very, very good. The food wasn’t bad per se (well, one item was, but I’ll get to that in a moment), but there wasn’t anything about this place that makes me want to return — and that’s the bottom line. Sure, that may sound harsh, but the fact is, the place was empty, cold and drafty (they left the back door open and it was gust whenever someone came in through the front), the buffet was quite small, and the limited items they offered were decent, but no better.
I’d say the highlights were the chicken curry, the naan (baked fresh), the onion chutney, and the incredibly clean water (seriously, I noticed it, not a floaty in sight). I enjoyed each of those items. However, the lows outweighed the highs: the tandoori chicken was only available upon request (and was then perhaps a little hurried, at that), the rice was dry, the cauliflower was almost cold (see the aforementioned draft issue) and the spicy, pickled peppers tasted as though they had been soaked in moonshine for the last, hmmm, I’d say, 15 years. My stomach is still churning because of that sucker.
The way I rate restaurants is quite simple. If I have a desire to return, a rating of 3 stars, at the very least, is warranted. If I don’t, well, you’re looking at something less. And unfortunately, I don’t have a desire to ever go back.