Reviewer's Summary: Average Food; Bad Service
Hailing from South India and being very hungry, we stepped into Saravanaas vegetarian Indian restaurant on Lexington Avenue in Murray Hill for lunch on a really hot New York afternoon with much anticipation.
It was around 1:30PM and the place was fairly crowded.
A quick glance at the Menu and we knew what we wanted - Idli ($3.95), Medhu Vada ($4.95), Onion Rava Masala Dosa ($8.95) and a South Indian Thali ($10.00).
Although we were famished, we had difficulty finishing the Idli and Medhu Vada. Neither of them were any good. Medhu Vadas are meant to be crispy but what landed on our table was anything but crisp. The Idli came cold to the table.
Onion Rava Masala Dosa (Rava Dosa sprinkled with onions) was done well and we dug into it with mucho gusto.
Besides the Onion Rava Masala Dosa, Saravanaas serves a variety of Dosas including Masala Dosa, Paper Dosa, Kara Dosa, Vegetable Dosa and Dried Fruit Rava Dosa.
Both Idli-Medhu Vada combo and the Onion Rava Masala Dosa included the usual accompaniments - Sambhar and Chutneys. The Chutneys and Sambar were nothing spectacular leaving us a little disappointed because South Indian restaurants usually serve fine Sambar.
The South Indian Thali included Chapathi, Dal, Sambhar, Rasam, Poriyal, Kootu, Curd, Buttermilk, White Rice, Kuzhambu and Pickle. While the Kootu and Poriyal were very good, Kuzhambu was nothing to rave about. We have had far tastier Kuzhambu at other other Indian restaurants in the U.S.
At South Indian restaurants, we invariably gravitate towards Badam Halwa (ground almonds cooked in honey and butter) for Dessert. At Saravanaas too, we plumped for the Badam Halwa. A bad choice in retrospect.
The Badam Halwa ($4.95) was the easily the worst item we had at Saravanaas. Besides being extraordinarily ghee-heavy, it looked and tasted suspiciously like its humbler cousin Kesaribath / Rava Kesari.
Service is obviously not a priority at Saravanaas. Our table got crowded with finished plates but no one bothered to come up and remove them.
Our waiter didn't even bother to check whether we wanted Dessert and just got us our check.
It irritated us mightily that after taking our order, he didn't show up again but was now rushing us. We had to politely send him packing after informing him that we'd already ordered Badam Halwa and Coffee through another waiter who was passing by. - © NYIndia.us
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Saravanaa Bhavan Edison (NJ) Review - Murder Most Foul
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