"Voulez-vous buffet avec moi, ce soir?"
--Benjamin Xavier Kim
(with apologies to LaBelle)
When you live with seven other people, it's hard enough to decide who's going to buy the milk, let alone what restaurant to go to for your housemate's birthday. Someone proposed Japanese food. Another wanted Indian. No one could agree -- until one of us suggested Dahlak.
The social more guiding Dahlak is that everyone should learn to share -- because the dishes are brought out all together on one big platter with yogurt sauce in the middle. One other thing is there is nary a plate, fork, knife, or even chopstick to be found in the entire restaurant. The food rests on a huge piece of injere, the soft tortilla-like bread that is found in many Dahlak dishes, and the server passes around more injere so you can scoop up your meal à la Moo Shi or fajita.
The two strict vegetarians in our group chose Yeungudia Watt ($5.95), mushrooms simmered in a spicy sauce called berbere, and Vegetarian Tibs ($7), a potato, mushroom, carrot, and green beans dish that comes hot or mild. We selected the hot version, and while it was certainly stronger than your average American meal, it certainly wasn't anything unmanageable. Other vegetable dishes include Kinche ($6), an Ethiopian spiced couscous, and Kik Alicha ($5.50), a meal of garlicky yellow split peas in a mild sauce. And there's also the vegetarian combo, which is three vegetarian dishes for nine bucks, or two servings of the dish for $16.50.
My own selection was the Yedoro Tibs ($7.25), delectable cubes of chicken marinated in a light sauce with peppers and onions. Personal prejudices notwithstanding, this was my favorite dish of all. The chicken was tender, the sauce was tasty, and the vegetables lent it a distinctive flavor. Scooped up in a piece of injere along with the yogurt, the Yedoro Tibs disappeared faster than you can say Addis Ababa.
One of the chicken dishes we ordered should only be selected when you feel rather comfortable with your dining companions, because it involves taking a bite out of a chicken leg and then passing it around the table for your friends to do the same. This entrée, Yedoro Alicha ($6.50), is actually quite tasty, if you can get past the rather primitive serving method. Lamb dishes like Sigana Atkilt ($7) -- which was pronounced "spongerific" by one member of the party -- and Yebeg Kay Watt ($6.75), lamb simmered in the ubiquitous berbere sauce, were also well-received.
The beverage selection should not be overlooked either. We got two pitchers of mango juice ($5 each), a rather thick concoction that complements the meal perfectly. Dahlak also carries an Ethiopian honey drink called Birz ($8.50 a bottle) and a variety of "smoothies" familiar to anyone who's ever visited T.G.I. Friday's.
Dahlak also often has live music to serenade their diners as they digest their delicacies. Indeed, you would be hard pressed to find another restaurant in University City that offers such excellent food at such low prices. As one housemate of mine remarked, unable to stuff another forkful into his mouth, as stumbled out of the place, "Dahlak gets the Bozak!"
--Doree Shafrir
4708 Baltimore Avenue, 726-6464
Open daily for dinner at 4 p.m. and
for lunch with reservations
All-you-can-eat buffet Tuesday 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
"Voulez-vous buffet avec moi, ce soir?"
--Benjamin Xavier Kim
(with apologies to LaBelle)
You know, I love buffets. Conceptually, they're flawless in their logic. One price garners all the food one can possibly cram into their gullet -- in the buffet, infinity no longer seems like an abstract notion, but a tasty concrete realization. One can essentially take care of the entire day's nutritional needs and all three meals with one easy trip.
New Delhi, located at 40th and Chestnut streets, is one of four Indian restaurants in the University City area which seem, at first glance, to be carbon copies of each other. Glancing at their ads, one finds the same features advertised: the same number of items in the buffet, the same lunch and dinner prices, and the same 20% student discount. There's even a popular myth that New Delhi shares the same kitchen with neighboring restaurants Maharaja and Tandoor India. However, there is one thing that distinguishes New Delhi from the other Indian restaurants in the vicinity: its name.
When one first walks into New Delhi's lobby, it is customary to be scared shitless by the life-size cardboard cut-out of an Indian woman wearing a sari behind the counter full of sweets. Then you will be shown to your seat by the courteous and somewhat emotionally reserved wait-staff, who will show only the slightest look of pain when you tell them you just want the buffet. The food is excellent and well-prepared, with some interesting variations on the menu offered on certain days (goat curry, for example).
Standard fare includes the delectable naan bread, basmati rice, vegetable samosas, and assorted vegetable and meat dishes. There is also a standard salad bar. For once, herbivores will lie down with the carnivores and find plenty to eat and enjoy. Included in the buffet is your choice of coffee or tea and a choice of dessert -- the unfortunately named barfi (Indian cheesecake), kulfi (pistachio nut ice cream, a personal favorite), mango ice cream, gulab jaman (milk balls in syrup), and rice pudding.
New Delhi's buffet costs $5.95 for lunch and $8.95 for dinner. Always make it a point to show your waiter your student ID, though. Just because you look like you have more money than you deserve is no guarantee that they will assume you are a student.
And one more thing: after eating all of that food, you may feel like you want to die, to be quite honest. How to digest it all? Well, take a handful of the fennel seed provided in the glass bowl in the lobby on your way out. I realize it may sound disgusting, and you may abhor the taste of licorice, but I guarantee that after chewing and swallowing these seeds, you will no longer feel gastrointestinal trauma, but a simple feeling of contentment and well-being -- the desired end result of buffet consumption.
--Ben Xavier Kim
4004 Chestnut Street, 386-1941
Lunch from 11:45 AM to 3 PM
Dinner from 4:30 PM to 10:30 PM
The Thai Singha House, located on 3939 Chestnut Street, is an Indiana Jones adventure in restaurants. Eating in tha House is a taste enlightenment every time, especially if you like it spicy, fresh, and just plain peanutlicious. Vegetarian dishes are also available. Unfortunately, TSH is slightly expensive and doesn't offer any student discounts.
There are cheaper Thai restaurants near campus, such as South of Siam and Pattaya Grill; however, South of Siam now primarily serves Malaysian food, and the Grill is the French-Thai relative of Thai Singha House. A friend and I decided to check out Thai Singha's pink palace last weekend. For dinner on a Saturday night, we felt a bit underdressed in jeans, but the service didn't seem to mind. They treated us well, kept the water coming, and answered all my annoying questions.
Appetizers have a special place in my heart, and I am sure they will yours. TSH offers a variety of hot and cold starters. The waiter recommended the chicken satay, the fried calamari, and Mee Pu. Since we didn't know what Mee Pu meant, we ordered it. Mee Pu has an interesting yet somehow familiar flavor -- you know, that sweet pickled peanuty crabmeat noodle taste you get when you wake up right before a Monday morning accounting exam.
We then focused on the soup and the entrées. The lemon grass and coconut soups are both excellent and inexpensive. The entrées are self-contained dishes; each comes with its own rice, vegetables, and orange slice. Incidentally, there are two kinds of Thai food eaters: the young and the reckless. Those who can say the word "Thai" without drooling should stick to the basics.
I recommend eating with a friend with extensive Thai food knowledge; otherwise, here's a quick lesson from Thai Food 101. Order the Chicken or Beef Satay ($5.50), Kra Prao ($7.95-$12.95, depending on the meat you choose), Panang or Pleasant Curry ($7.95-$12.95, same deal) and Pad Thai ($8.50). Satay consists of marinated and char-grilled meat with peanut sauce and cucumber salad. Curry sauce is a standard in Thai dishes; either Panang Curry or Pleasant Curry will do. The most popular meal at Thai restaurants everywhere is Pad Thai, a rice noodle dish stir-fried with egg, ground peanuts, bean sprouts, and either tofu or shrimp and chicken. Trust me -- there is no way you can go wrong with this dish.
For those taking the graduate-level course in Thai food, it's time to hit the specialties. I used my intuitive expertise, closed my eyes, and randomly pointed at an entrée. I landed on Spicy Triple Flavor Salmon ($12.95), a sautéed salmon filet with a subtle taste of tamarind chili garlic sauce and random garnishings. It nearly melted in my mouth. My dinner companion, who does not usually eat venison, chose the Spicy Basil Venison ($14.95) and enjoyed it. The meat was tender and only mildly spicy. The table next to us ordered Fire Game Hen, which kept us entertained -- the waiter brought out a roasted hen, poured chili sauce on it, and lit it on fire. The scene was beautiful and nearly brought tears to my eyes.
Finally, a few hints. Hint #1: Go here for lunch with a friend. Hint #2: Eat dinner here with your parents. Hint #3: If you're all alone in the world, get take-out by calling 382-8001.
--Jennifer Estaris
Thai Singha House, 3939 Chestnut Street, 382-8001
Lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Dinner from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays until 11 p.m.
Please E-mail StreetWeb@dp.upenn.edu
with any questions or comments.