Suvai Sustenance

Rachel Ross  

With all the gloomy rain throughout this week, I decided to try one of my favorite comfort foods: Indian. I always pass by an Indian restaurant on State Street, right next to CVS, and decided to finally walk it. Armed with a camera and an appetite, the smell hit me first, as the warm cumin and curry pervaded the entire place, which was decorated with various Indian ornaments. I went in for the lunch buffet, and by no means did quantity outshine quality. The best part about Indian food is every flavor is complementary, so for those of us who have perfected the art of vertically stacking our food from buffets, Taste of India Suvai is for you. I filled my plate with everything: fried okra, butter chicken, Indian rice, spiced lentils, and veggie soup. This place had all the staples: naan, spiced rice, paneer, tandoori chicken, you name it.

The plate was barely large enough to hold the dizzying selection of foods

I was hesitant at first, but I spooned a mash of spinach and cooked chickpeas on my plate, wondering how this conglomerate of green and garbanzos was going to taste. It was food from heaven. Second to chocolate yet just as creamy and sweet. I wanted more. The only bad part about it was sharing it, as I dared my mother to take the first taste. After making a variety of “Mmmmm” sounds, she convinced me to try it, and it is now my favorite dish. It’s moments like that that make me wish I was from Dubai and could eat food like that all day. The complexity of flavors and intensity of colors continues to amaze me.

Spinach and cooked chickpea mash, and vegetable soup

The next item I tried was the soup, which I had to nurse for a while as it was so spicy. I probably ended up drinking more water than soup. I could actually see the individual peppercorns that were inflaming my mouth, but nothing was going to stop me from reaching the bottom of that bowl. Upon finishing, my sinuses were cleared and my stomach filled. I sat back and looked at my plate, wishing I hadn’t scarfed everything down in a flat five minutes. At around eight dollars per person, plus student discounts, this restaurant is perfect for either a quick lunch (it offers buffet take-out as well) or a formal dinner. For a hungry college kid hooked on ethnic food, it is the perfect meal deal.