Eating Indian food, like sushi, was once considered an inevitably expensive venture. Even cheapie, hole-in-the-wall joints charge between nine and eleven dollars for palak paneer or chicken tikka masala, and even more for thali plates and complex tandoori dishes.
When I was young and restless I spent two summers in India being chased by rabid monkeys, snatching up ridiculously cheap clothing, and devouring plates of delicious korma, dhal, and biryani. Last week, after reading over email my nostalgic laments for puris and pappadums, my friend Amy decided that we should have dinner at Gourmet India's Brookline location.
The menu at any Gourmet India is hardly as diverse and innovative as Newbury Street's Kashmir or Cambridge's Bombay Club but all the old standbys are there and can be paired with other entrees or appetizers for pleasing combination platters ($6-8). I opted for the Combo #2, choosing saag paneer, chicken korma, naan, and a samosa ($7), while Amy selected chana masala, chicken korma, naan, and a sweet lassi ($10). All food is served cafeteria style and diners carry loaded trays to slightly improved Burger King style plastic seating. But that is exactly the point at Gourmet India, which prides itself on serving "gourmet food fast" and providing quality straight-forward Indian cuisine for low prices.
It certainly wasn't the best Indian food I'd ever had, as the samosa was a bit bland and cold and the saag paneer lacking the kick that comes from meticulous slow cooking and seasoning. The korma sauce was creamy but not too heavy, and the meat wonderfully tender and mildly spicy. The real star of the show was the freshly baked naan, slapped hot and steaming on my tray straight from clay oven on which it was cooked.
Indian food connoisseurs craving parathas, delicate dosas, and other fine dishes might turn their noses at Gourmet India but there's certainly no better place to kick your chicken tikka craving for under $8.
The Info
Gourmet India
Prudential Center
800 Boylston St., Boston
1335 Beacon St., Brookline
www.gourmet-india.com
