My only regret about the Maharaja is that it doesn't open for lunch. Many's the time I've looked for something different at lunchtime in Cleveland and my thoughts strayed wistfully to the little restaurant in Doig Street.
Two blocks off the beaten track and a testimony to how good this place is, at night there's always a crowd and others waiting outside for takeaway. I haven't had a Monday night buffet but I bet it's really good, as every individual dish I've tasted is just right. Chicken Tikka Masala (best!), Beef Vindaloo, Lamb Korma or Roghan Josh... I can't find one I don't enjoy. Add the garlic naan, mango pickle and fluffy rice and you'll know why this place has been here over 12 years and going strong.
The meals cost what you'd expect and sharing is great - around $26 would get you a main and an entree, served often in chafing dishes over little warming flames, in a darkened restaurant that's gorgeously bollywood, with little lights and pictures of India on the walls. In fact, early one winter's night when I was waiting for a takeaway, I enjoyed 10 minutes of a Bollywood movie mine host was watching avidly as he waited for the evening crowd to trickle in. Must go again. read more