Salam Bombay
217 – 755 Burrard Street
Vancouver, BC
It seems to be an odd ritual I have been going through: despite I say “no to buffet/all-you-can-eat”, I end up going to one. Coincidence? Subconscious? Hmmmmm…. While looking different spots in the West End, a colleague mentioned he went to one in Burrard and Alberni – Salam Bombay. However, while he went and ordered a la carte, he mentioned there was buffet during lunch, too. Well, since I could use him to gauge the food, I thought it would be a good idea to tag along. So…
From the picture above, I must mention something: This is one of those places that you won’t notice it is there unless you are looking for it. Located on the second floor, the only indication it exists are a couple of sandwich boards, one in Burrard and one in Alberni. Fortunately, though, a well-known (and interesting enough) buffet happens to be next door: Shabusen. The question is rather, would that work in their favour? That is, given that a lot of people queue there, they should notice it, right?
We arrived after noon and, as expected, there was a queue in Shabusen. Fortunately, it wasn’t as busy in Salam Bombay and we were seated quickly. We were debating if we should go for the buffet or order a la carte. In the end, we decided to go for the buffet, though partially due to my suggestion. Again, as mentioned above, I needed some comparison. Having settled that, we lined up…
They had an interesting assortment of dishes. Now, I did not take notes of the name of the dishes themselves so I will apologize for that. Still, I think I can provide enough details of what I ordered. In this case, in the first picture, clockwise from top-left, aloo-gobi, a dish similar to palak paneer though with mushrooms instead, a black-eyed peas appetizer and lamb curry. And, in the second picture, from left to right, butter chicken over rice, tandoori chicken, the lamb curry again and a chutney.
Of course, some naan was provided. I went back and picked up some more lamb curry, rice and dhal. Now, as for the food itself, there were some ups, downs and sideways. I really liked the dhal, but then again, I am a sucker for beans and lentils. The lamb was good also – it had an interesting “spiciness” to it but the meat failed a little bit as it didn’t have a strong game-y taste. The so-so dishes include the butter chicken, where the sauce was decent, mainly because it was not sweet nor creamy enough and the chicken was mostly white meat; mushroom/palak paneer dish, lacked a bit mushrooms, which would have given a more “meaty” taste; the black-eyed peas, which lacked texture; and the aloo gobi which, well, did not add much. The naan was a bit of a disappointment; however, it was mainly because I prefer the more “fluffy” naan and, in this case, it was more on the crispy side. I think I can call it personal preference. One dish not included but available was a type of shrimp curry. Now, I am a bit confused on how this could work as seafood does not work that well if it is sitting there for a while. I found out right away when the dish itself used shrimps similar to baby-shrimps. At that point, there wouldn’t have much to “taste” from the shrimp, right? The one dish that really went sideways but I really blame the fact it was buffet was the tandoori chicken: since chances are these were done in advance, they would taste “as fresh” as just out of the tandoor oven.
To close off the meal, I had some rice pudding (some fruits were also available). In a way, this was another fail, though for other reasons: either I prefer my rice pudding thicker or it is supposed to be runny.
Overall, despite my comments on some of the dishes, the food was better than a lot of the other Indian buffets I have been. But, I must also mention this place is a bit more expensive than the other ones. In my case, I don’t care that much about the extra cost. The criteria that matters here, though, is that of my colleague. In his case, he thought it wasn’t that different one from the other. Given the case, I guess that sounds like a pretty good deal. Would I come back? I will hesitantly say yes, mainly because I would try not to go to a buffet again… Oh, wait, does this sound like a vicious circle??? 
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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Yah, Indian buffets are hit and miss like a lot of other buffets. Of course the variables are the execution of the food, the ingredients and how long it’s been sitting there. Although I do realize that ordering a la carte doesn’t actually get you freshly made sauces (well, some are, like Butter Chicken), since they take time to prepare. At the very least it is served hot and in the case of Butter Chicken, the meat isn’t “cooking” in the sauce in the buffet tray. Also, it depends on the turnover too. In terms of the naan, that’s a tricky one for a buffet because it should be eaten right away. Saffron does a good job of alleviating this problem by serving freshly made naan to your table even if you are eating the buffet. As you always point out, a buffet is not really the best way to experience any type of food; but it does serve a purpose in some situations (ie. you don’t have time to wait for your food, you are very hungry, for a large group etc…)
Sherman, since you mention Saffron, I still have a pending visit. Actually, there are reasons why I haven’t been and/or partially avoid going there… It is funny, though, in the case of butter chicken, if they make it with dark meat, it could stand a lot better under the heat yet seldom anybody does it.
Maybe that’s why I like the veg buffet at Saravaana Bhavan — no meat to overcook! Also they bring freshly made hot items around at intervals such as naan and crepes…
Grayelf, unfortunately, it is not close to my workplace so the buffet isn’t an option for me. I guess will have to try it on a day off… Thanks for the suggestion!
“but the meat failed a little bit as it didn’t have a strong game-y taste”
so you like it when your lamb has a strong ‘game-y’ taste?
Mike, welcome! If for some reason the lamb taste is too mellow, I would rather eat pork instead. To me, lamb has to has that strong taste unique to lamb. I guess I should go for mutton instead? Hmmmmmm….
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