Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Restaurants First Bite: Swagruha Brings Piles of Flavor to Farmers' Market
Posted by Carrington Fox on Tue, Jan 13, 2009 at 6:01 AM
Scene interns Angela Suico and Tess Fardon contributed this report.
The tiny Indian buffet in the evolving Farmers' Market lives up to its name, Swagruha, which means "our home." The friendly owner, Siva Pabuluri, mans the counter, where she dishes up generous portions of Southern Indian delights, such as butter chicken, goat curry and samosas. Seven bucks ($6.49 pre-tax) buys all the food Siva can pile onto your plate and a drink. On our visit, it almost got silly as she kept adding small bowls of soup, raita, chutney, mater paneer and vegetable korma to our overflowing trays.
As expected, the heat index on the buffet hovered near the least common denominator, with the exception of the lentil soup, which was exceptionally delicious, piping hot and intensely spicy. This soup alone is worth a trip to the market on a cold day.
The single glaring disapppointment was the naan, which was tough and dry.
Located in the Farmers' Market, 900 Rosa L. Parks Blvd. (phone: 736-7001), Swagruha serves lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday and Saturday, when desserts are included on the buffet. The restaurant also offers catering services.
Comments (4)
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Agreed. The naan was papery, alas, but the soup was a cold cure that's going to pick up a lot of fans, especially as takeout for an ailing loved one. Siva was a sweetheart, and if her soup doesn't chase away the winter chill, her hospitality will.
You're also right about the price—the amount of food for a non-buffet was almost embarrassing. Go Farmers' Market!
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Bad naan is a deal breaker. Part of the reason I can't stand Woodlands.
CF: The tiny Indian BUFFET in the evolving Farmers' Market
MP: the amount of food for a NON-BUFFET was almost embarrassing.
So is it a buffet or not?
I think of buffet as serving yourself. This is a cafeteria line where you point out what you want (or have Siva offer it to you). The distinction may be purely mine.
I've never understood your animus against Woodlands. That and Bombay Palace are my favorite Indian buffets in town.
Funny -- we had a lot of discussion about buffet over here. Here's what we came up with from Merriam-Webster:
"a counter for refreshments chiefly British b: a restaurant operated as a public convenience (as in a railway station) c: a meal set out on a buffet or table for ready access and informal service
another definition for buffet as a noun is "something that strikes with telling force," which, arguably, Swagruha's volume did.
