Mehmaan Restaurant295 Daniel Webster Highway, Nashua, NH
Being that there are 3 Indian buffets in Nashua (that I know of), and having been to 2, I might as well come here to cross Nashua, as a whole, off of our list.
The Offerings:
Chutneys/Sauces:
large bowl: salad. small bowls (left to right): raitha, mint chutney, onion chutney, tamarind chutney
-tamarind: 'Twas a very chunky and tangy sauce. I always enjoy this and I always say this here.
-mint: The main difference I notice in this sauce from place to place is its thickness and its paleness. some places seem to have a mint chutney that looks like salsa verde and is cilantro-heavy in flavor. The other is paler in color and mintier in flavor. I like it but I don't love it. It is neat how they
-onion: It was tomatoey and oniony and very acidic.
-raitha: Tasted the same as it always does.
Salad: It was pre-mixed in a bowl, and very onion/green pepper heavy. Actually, I think that's all there was. Meh.
Bread:
-naan: They used to serve it to the table, now they cut it up into smaller pieces and leave it up on the buffet line. Their naan is very oily. I, personally, loved it; both the flavor and the fact that I don't have to wait for it anymore.
Soup:
-coconut soup! What a delight! I could have never dreamed this soup up. It was basically a white broth, most likely coconut milk-based. It had the flavor of coconut, but it wasn't sweet like a desert. Oh how I love when ingredients are used in a way I would never expect.
Appetizer:
right: veg. pakora. left: tandoori chicken
-pakora: The pakoras were medium sized, and solid, which I like better then when they're small and flaky.
Entrees:
left: butter chicken. right: chicken biryani
left: veg. korma. right: punjabi chole
left: dum aloo. right: naan
-butter chicken: I found it interesting that the chicken was cut up into incredibly small pieces. Perhaps it could be that all of the big pieces had been eaten. Either way, the small pieces of chicken made for easy scooping with naan. The dish was also considerably spicy.
-chicken biryani: I don't usually try this dish. It usually features spiced meat and rice. it's a drier dish so I usually tend to stay away from it. I tried it today, however. It was spicy and cinnimony in flavor, but quite dry. I couldn't get over the dryness.
-vegetable korma: The sauce was sweet and creamy. The veggies looked like they could have come from a pack of frozen mixed vegetables, being that the veggies were primarily a mix of broccoli and carrot and the carrots were krinkle cut. They didn't necessarily taste that way though, so think of that last comment as nothing more than a conspiracy theory.
-punjabi chole: This dish is more commonly seen with the name chana masala. It's a classic favorite of mine. Chickpeas in a spicy curry sauce. It's hard to discribe the flavor other than that it slightly spicy and tastes of cumin and coriander.
-dum aloo: This dish looked like cooked potato chunks with an orange tint, perhaps from seasoning. Other than the flavor of the potatoes themselves, I couldn't taste much, perhaps a subtle spice akin to the usual spicier curry sauces.
-tandoori chicken: It tasted like it usually does and possessed the same moisture qualities I usually see. I will note the extensive amount of sliced pepper and onion that served as a bed at the bottom of the buffet pan.
Dessert:
-kheer: It was delicious. It was thick, almost like American rice pudding. It wasn't too sweet, but still had an excellent creamy flavor. I did notice that there was something in this pudding that looked and felt as if the pudding may have formed skin, or there's some other ingredient in there that I do not know about. Either way, it had no affect on the flavor, which is what counts in my book.
Price: $10.85 weekday (w/ N.H. meals tax) On the steep side.
Final Score: 4.0/5
All in all, the offerings were pretty tasty and pretty classic. I'm gonna need more offerings for the price they're offering. The steep price for seemingly standard North Indian fare is what's hindering their score. If they were priced like Priya, the score would be much higher. It appears by the high price, that they hold their food on some sort of pedestal. Yes, it is really good, but not "I'll pay almost 11 dollars, plus tip" amazing. In fact, I'm gonna turn up the heat and say that for what this place has to offer, I could go to India Palace, pay less, and get food that is just as good, if not better.
The Offerings:
Chutneys/Sauces:
large bowl: salad. small bowls (left to right): raitha, mint chutney, onion chutney, tamarind chutney
-tamarind: 'Twas a very chunky and tangy sauce. I always enjoy this and I always say this here.
-mint: The main difference I notice in this sauce from place to place is its thickness and its paleness. some places seem to have a mint chutney that looks like salsa verde and is cilantro-heavy in flavor. The other is paler in color and mintier in flavor. I like it but I don't love it. It is neat how they
-onion: It was tomatoey and oniony and very acidic.
-raitha: Tasted the same as it always does.
Salad: It was pre-mixed in a bowl, and very onion/green pepper heavy. Actually, I think that's all there was. Meh.
Bread:
-naan: They used to serve it to the table, now they cut it up into smaller pieces and leave it up on the buffet line. Their naan is very oily. I, personally, loved it; both the flavor and the fact that I don't have to wait for it anymore.
Soup:
-coconut soup! What a delight! I could have never dreamed this soup up. It was basically a white broth, most likely coconut milk-based. It had the flavor of coconut, but it wasn't sweet like a desert. Oh how I love when ingredients are used in a way I would never expect.
Appetizer:
right: veg. pakora. left: tandoori chicken
-pakora: The pakoras were medium sized, and solid, which I like better then when they're small and flaky.
Entrees:
left: butter chicken. right: chicken biryani
left: veg. korma. right: punjabi chole
left: dum aloo. right: naan
-butter chicken: I found it interesting that the chicken was cut up into incredibly small pieces. Perhaps it could be that all of the big pieces had been eaten. Either way, the small pieces of chicken made for easy scooping with naan. The dish was also considerably spicy.
-chicken biryani: I don't usually try this dish. It usually features spiced meat and rice. it's a drier dish so I usually tend to stay away from it. I tried it today, however. It was spicy and cinnimony in flavor, but quite dry. I couldn't get over the dryness.
-vegetable korma: The sauce was sweet and creamy. The veggies looked like they could have come from a pack of frozen mixed vegetables, being that the veggies were primarily a mix of broccoli and carrot and the carrots were krinkle cut. They didn't necessarily taste that way though, so think of that last comment as nothing more than a conspiracy theory.
-punjabi chole: This dish is more commonly seen with the name chana masala. It's a classic favorite of mine. Chickpeas in a spicy curry sauce. It's hard to discribe the flavor other than that it slightly spicy and tastes of cumin and coriander.
-dum aloo: This dish looked like cooked potato chunks with an orange tint, perhaps from seasoning. Other than the flavor of the potatoes themselves, I couldn't taste much, perhaps a subtle spice akin to the usual spicier curry sauces.
-tandoori chicken: It tasted like it usually does and possessed the same moisture qualities I usually see. I will note the extensive amount of sliced pepper and onion that served as a bed at the bottom of the buffet pan.
Dessert:
-kheer: It was delicious. It was thick, almost like American rice pudding. It wasn't too sweet, but still had an excellent creamy flavor. I did notice that there was something in this pudding that looked and felt as if the pudding may have formed skin, or there's some other ingredient in there that I do not know about. Either way, it had no affect on the flavor, which is what counts in my book.
Price: $10.85 weekday (w/ N.H. meals tax) On the steep side.
Final Score: 4.0/5
All in all, the offerings were pretty tasty and pretty classic. I'm gonna need more offerings for the price they're offering. The steep price for seemingly standard North Indian fare is what's hindering their score. If they were priced like Priya, the score would be much higher. It appears by the high price, that they hold their food on some sort of pedestal. Yes, it is really good, but not "I'll pay almost 11 dollars, plus tip" amazing. In fact, I'm gonna turn up the heat and say that for what this place has to offer, I could go to India Palace, pay less, and get food that is just as good, if not better.
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