| rev:text
| - I am not Indian. I am not Indian American. I do not eat this cuisine very much. But I am a huge fan. Oddly enough, apparently, there are some bad reviews for this place by "authentic" reviewers. I respect these views and have no beef. Having said that, take my review with a grain of salt. I got the lunch buffet.
I wasn't expecting too much given that the majority of mid-price-level restaurants in town (especially the ethnic ones) are usually mediocre. Compared to a few other places I have been to in town, however, Ambar was surprisingly great. I'm not an Indian food connoisseur, but I do like to think that I have a decent enough palate to distinguish between crap and good. This place is very good--harsh reviews be damned. I got the buffet. The variety was surprisingly large with different curries, all of which were (again) surprisingly flavorful (yet not too salty). This is a selling point since other "good" Indian restaurants I have been to (including decent Indian restaurants in "ethnic" California) either are too salty or too bland. Ambar hit the sweet spot of flavorful but not crazy salty. Likewise, despite what other reviewers have said (again, I am no expert but...) I found the food quality to be quite good. Meats felt sufficiently succulent and the veggies were sufficiently fresh (looking and tasting). So there's that.
And to top it off, the desserts ("Indian donut" balls) and a pudding (possibly canned; yes, no one is perfect) were also a nice end to a filling meal. It set me back only about $10 and the ambiance inside was busy and warm. Service was a bit on the cold side (including the front desk) but I suppose that's to be expected to some extent with the "ethnic" restaurants on campus ("Western" food, conversely, can be overly in your face with all the "hi's" and "how are you's..." so...)
Conclusion: for the price, this place is high value. I recommend.
|