Good (and Cheap!) New Indian Vegetarian Buffet

[Jimmyd]

It's been a while since I posted, but I came across a great find I just had to share.

The restaurant is called Balaji Pure and the buffet has rather strange hours--noon to 3 pm and then 7 pm to 11 pm. I know, how did they choose those hours? Got me.

They serve a dal and two curries, vegetarian but one curry has like cheese curd cubes in it. They also serve nan bread (sorry if I get the name wrong, but I think it's nan bread), rice and water is included.

The price is under 120 baht all in, so it's an excellent deal! (99 baht plus plus). The food seem authentic to me, a westerner. Nice Indian taste and seems like their target market is Indians in the area. It's hot, but there was a fan and a nice breeze when I went.

The restaurant is on Thappraya Road in the Sun City hotel in South Pattaya (just north of the Nova Platinum hotel).

I'd love it if someone like Jingthing would give it try and chime in with a second opinion. To me it's just a super deal and a welcome addition to the Pattaya food scene.

[wump]

Indian vegetarian in Sun City Hotel? Isn't there the Saras Vegetarian Indian place? The overpriced place that has a canteen feel to it (delicious food tough)?

Edit: I think I know what place you're talking about. The one in the basement of Sun City? Where you sit in an empty conference room for about 200 people? The food was okay for the price but I wouldn't go back there on my own, felt really awkward.

Edited May 13, 2014 by MaikB84

[Jimmyd]

Indian vegetarian in Sun City Hotel? Isn't there the Saras Vegetarian Indian place? The overpriced place that has a canteen feel to it (delicious food tough)?

Perhaps. But I didn't notice any Sara's restaurant there. I was just reading through another thread and believe I came across a mention that Sara's has already closed? Anyway, the buffet is in the space *in front* of the hotel--it's outdoors. I'm pretty sure Sara's was inside.

[Jingthing]

Saras closed in that location and moved with a revised menu to the top of Royal Garden Plaza.

Good catch, OP.

Yes I tried this new buffet a few days ago and was going to post about is soon on the Hit and Run ... but you beat me to it.

It is as you describe.

There is dal and two veg curries, plus nan, plus raw vegetable items.

It is spiced Indian style as in quite spicy.

The one letdown is not raita or yogurt.

Water from a metal server is free. Bottled water is 30 baht.

Yes the price with plus plus is 116 baht total for food.

The staff is friendly and helpful.

The flavors are good.

If you're feeling like an Indian veg. meal it's clearly the best deal in town.

There is also a small a la carte menu where they bring items from the restaurant. For example one choice of masala dosa at the same price as the buffet.

BTW, there are other restaurants in this hotel.

Downstairs is the actual Indian restaurant supplying the buffet. There they have another buffet with chicken curry and yogurt as well ... cost is double. Watch out about drinks ... bottled water is 60 baht plus plus there!

There is also an inner lobby restaurant ... walk inside ... different Indian veg menu from outside (weird).

Also like some kind of Arabic/kebab restaurant walking UP the stairs (haven't looked at this one).

Have it at, eaters!

Edited May 13, 2014 by Jingthing

[Jimmyd]

It's a great bargain for now. Nice to have as an alternative to Thai food.

[wump]

Thanks for the info guys. Shall try that place tonight then

[KittenKong]

Tried this a few days ago. Certainly the best one for the money in town.

Along with some sort of raita I missed papadums and ice in the water. Apart from that it was fine.

[Jingthing]

Tried this a few days ago. Certainly the best one for the money in town.

Along with some sort of raita I missed papadums and ice in the water. Apart from that it was fine.

Yeah you really miss the yogurt!

[Jimmyd]

Seems to me the way they are keeping the price down is by not including expensive things--like meat and a minimal amount of dairy.

Seems like a smart move to me.

[Jingthing]

Seems to me the way they are keeping the price down is by not including expensive things--like meat and a minimal amount of dairy.

Seems like a smart move to me.

Still I think it needs yogurt.

They could offer a portion of it as an add on for people who want yogurt but don't need the meat item on offer in the basement restaurant.

I was wondering if this was a purist vegetarian thing ... having nothing in the food from animals.

But like you said (at least the time I was there) they had a paneer (cheese) dish.

However, maybe it was a non-animal sourced paneer -- is there such a thing?

When I was there they had the three dishes:

Yellow Dal

Paneer and peas curry (tiny bits of paneer but that's fine with me)

Aloo Gobi: Potato and cauliflower curry, really tasty, large chunks of cauliflower, strong taste of GINGER

I'm sure they have Dal daily but was wondering is it the SAME two other curries other days, or do they mix it up?

I would think they mix it up a little bit as their main target are hotel guests who wouldn't want the exact same flavor daily, but I don't know.

Edited May 13, 2014 by Jingthing

[Jimmyd]

I've been three times, and so far they *haven't* mixed it up (albeit it was over only a 4-day period).

[Jingthing]

I've been three times, and so far they *haven't* mixed it up (albeit it was over only a 4-day period).

I think that answers it.

That's OK.

I wouldn't eat there daily anyway.

It's not a bad thing to know exactly what you are going to get!

I particularly liked the Aloo Gobi and would go back for that alone.

[KittenKong]

The day I went I thought that the green paneer thing was spinach rather than peas.

The lentil dish wasn't watery and I didnt have to play "catch the lentil" as one often does in these buffet places here.

The third thing was onion and potato and something else and it tasted fine though I would hesitate to call it Aloo Gobi.

Anyway, all three dishes were perfectly edible as were the naan and it all made a nice change from a Thai "rice and two toppings" lunch. I would certainly go there once a week, possibly twice if they ring the changes a bit.

I pointed out to the lady in charge the illegality of there not being a ++ on the 99B sign outside but I'm not sure that she understood. If they haven't fixed it next time I will drag the manager out from wherever he hides and explain to him.

[Jingthing]

OK, that sounds different.
When I was there it was definitely Aloo Gobi with very large chunks of cauliflower. Actually much more than potato. Which I liked.

The paneer dish definitely had peas, not spinach.

Anyway, you can look at the food before committing to the big spend, and if it doesn't suit, walk away!

[PattayaPhom]

Cheese curd cubes Indian style

[KittenKong]

OK, that sounds different.

When I was there it was definitely Aloo Gobi with very large chunks of cauliflower. Actually much more than potato. Which I liked.

No cauliflower in mine.

[saakura]

Seems to me the way they are keeping the price down is by not including expensive things--like meat and a minimal amount of dairy.

Seems like a smart move to me.

Still I think it needs yogurt.

They could offer a portion of it as an add on for people who want yogurt but don't need the meat item on offer in the basement restaurant.

I was wondering if this was a purist vegetarian thing ... having nothing in the food from animals.

But like you said (at least the time I was there) they had a paneer (cheese) dish.

However, maybe it was a non-animal sourced paneer -- is there such a thing?

When I was there they had the three dishes:

Yellow Dal

Paneer and peas curry (tiny bits of paneer but that's fine with me)

Aloo Gobi: Potato and cauliflower curry, really tasty, large chunks of cauliflower, strong taste of GINGER

I'm sure they have Dal daily but was wondering is it the SAME two other curries other days, or do they mix it up?

I would think they mix it up a little bit as their main target are hotel guests who wouldn't want the exact same flavor daily, but I don't know.

Even the most purist indian vegetarians do not consider dairy products as non vegetarian. They are perhaps targeting western vegans. But then they would not have paneer (curd cubes as op mentioned but which is cottage cheese) in that case. Vegan alternative to paneer is soya chunks

[Jimmyd]

I have heard many times, on many boards, a version of the following comment:

"Why are Indian curries 100 baht or more in Pattaya when I can get a lovely Thai curry for 30 baht? It seems like someone should be able to produce good Indian curries for much lower prices."

This restaurant is the first one I have come across to deliver good Indian food at Thai-food level pricing.

I think it deserves our patronage. If it becomes popular, I'm guessing others will copy the concept and the food scene in Pattaya will have many welcome additions similar to this place.

Edited May 15, 2014 by Jimmyd

[Jingthing]

Seems to me the way they are keeping the price down is by not including expensive things--like meat and a minimal amount of dairy.

Seems like a smart move to me.

Still I think it needs yogurt.

They could offer a portion of it as an add on for people who want yogurt but don't need the meat item on offer in the basement restaurant.

I was wondering if this was a purist vegetarian thing ... having nothing in the food from animals.

But like you said (at least the time I was there) they had a paneer (cheese) dish.

However, maybe it was a non-animal sourced paneer -- is there such a thing?

When I was there they had the three dishes:

Yellow Dal

Paneer and peas curry (tiny bits of paneer but that's fine with me)

Aloo Gobi: Potato and cauliflower curry, really tasty, large chunks of cauliflower, strong taste of GINGER

I'm sure they have Dal daily but was wondering is it the SAME two other curries other days, or do they mix it up?

I would think they mix it up a little bit as their main target are hotel guests who wouldn't want the exact same flavor daily, but I don't know.

Even the most purist indian vegetarians do not consider dairy products as non vegetarian. They are perhaps targeting western vegans. But then they would not have paneer (curd cubes as op mentioned but which is cottage cheese) in that case. Vegan alternative to paneer is soya chunks

The paneer cubes were so tiny that they could have been made of insects for all I could tell. I definitely could not confirm they were actually cheese. Not complaining as I avoid cheese for the most part.

Sent from my Lenovo S820_ROW using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[wump]

I have come across tofu pieces been sold as paneer in Thailand so a lot is possible if you can't really taste it.

[saakura]

Seems to me the way they are keeping the price down is by not including expensive things--like meat and a minimal amount of dairy.

Seems like a smart move to me.

Still I think it needs yogurt.

They could offer a portion of it as an add on for people who want yogurt but don't need the meat item on offer in the basement restaurant.

I was wondering if this was a purist vegetarian thing ... having nothing in the food from animals.

But like you said (at least the time I was there) they had a paneer (cheese) dish.

However, maybe it was a non-animal sourced paneer -- is there such a thing?

When I was there they had the three dishes:

Yellow Dal

Paneer and peas curry (tiny bits of paneer but that's fine with me)

Aloo Gobi: Potato and cauliflower curry, really tasty, large chunks of cauliflower, strong taste of GINGER

I'm sure they have Dal daily but was wondering is it the SAME two other curries other days, or do they mix it up?

I would think they mix it up a little bit as their main target are hotel guests who wouldn't want the exact same flavor daily, but I don't know.

Even the most purist indian vegetarians do not consider dairy products as non vegetarian. They are perhaps targeting western vegans. But then they would not have paneer (curd cubes as op mentioned but which is cottage cheese) in that case. Vegan alternative to paneer is soya chunks

The paneer cubes were so tiny that they could have been made of insects for all I could tell. I definitely could not confirm they were actually cheese. Not complaining as I avoid cheese for the most part.

Sent from my Lenovo S820_ROW using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Paneer is cooked in 2 ways...either as cubes or what the indians call 'paneer burjee' which is like as in scrambled egg form, in which case the pieces will be small.

[guzzi850m2]

I tried this place yesterday for lunch.

At 99 baht + service charge per head no complaints, a few other expats (I think) was there as well and an Indian couple with their kid.

I noticed many Indian guests at the hotel, well only saw Indians guests actually.

My wife didn't like it very much but that don't come as any surprise to me, lol.

[wump]

I pointed out to the lady in charge the illegality of there not being a ++ on the 99B sign outside but I'm not sure that she understood. If they haven't fixed it next time I will drag the manager out from wherever he hides and explain to him.

Well, if it was 99 and no charges I would leave 20 Baht tip, with the charges you already paid for service so you can leave nothing (or leave the 4 Baht if you don't like small change) so you are no worse off. This works out well until the price increases to more than 140.

You are correct that it should be advertised properly though. Been to Ali Baba like 3 years ago and they added the VAT even though it wasn't mentioned anywhere in the menu so I made a big fuss. Had to pay it anyway

[BugJackBaron]

I pointed out to the lady in charge the illegality of there not being a ++ on the 99B sign outside but I'm not sure that she understood. If they haven't fixed it next time I will drag the manager out from wherever he hides and explain to him.

Well, if it was 99 and no charges I would leave 20 Baht tip, with the charges you already paid for service so you can leave nothing (or leave the 4 Baht if you don't like small change) so you are no worse off. This works out well until the price increases to more than 140.

You are correct that it should be advertised properly though. Been to Ali Baba like 3 years ago and they added the VAT even though it wasn't mentioned anywhere in the menu so I made a big fuss. Had to pay it anyway

Legally, you didn't.

[Jimmyd]

I went again yesterday. The dishes had changed a bit. The dal was with darker beans, lovely. Earthier tasted to it. The cauliflower Jingthing mentioned had re-reared it's lovely head. It was a super value by any measure.

Thai food is a fantastic deal in Thailand. I eat it almost every day, often more than once.

This buffet is a great low-cost alternative. I can eat here and get really nice Indian food for about the same price as I would pay for Thai--even less in some cases. Great. No getting around it. I contend it's one of the best deals in town right now. Get it while it lasts.

[Jingthing]

Sounds like the classic dak makhani. Traditionally a creamier richer higher calorie dal.

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[wump]

I went there today (this was my first first time) an I was rather disappointed.

First of all, I was nearly unable to find it. I went to Sun City, looked at the front and couldn't see no signs and no restaurant. So I thought it might be hidden and went through the car park, coming back out, but I have seen no restaurant and was ready to go home. Then I had another look. Tucked away behind some tree is a terrace with a sign that you can't read from the road. Okay, might as well check.

I went in and the guy confirmed that it was a buffet for 99 Baht, but with service charge it would be 120 he said.

There was 3 choices: One watery yellow curry with no visible pieces of anything inside (not sure if this was daal) which tasted quite nice, but it had the consistency of a tomato soup and I don't consider a soup as real food.

Then there was some strange pentagonal vegetable pieces which were only fried and really salty (I'm the guy who puts salt on his pizza, so if something is too salty for me then it's REALLY salty).

The last one was potato curry with peas and small cubes of paneer in it. Tasted okay but I noticed the absence of oil/gee in the food which I find unusual for Indian food. At least a bit would have been okay.

There is also salad (tomatoes, cucumber, onions, cabbage) to take but no dressing offered.

During my meal they stocked up the buffet and brought some hot dessert with rice noodles in it. Not sure what this was but tasted okay if you like sweet stuff.

The naan was really nice even though the last piece tasted a bit mouldy.

Speaking of mouldy: On my way back through Sun City to the car park I noticed a display window with the food they offer inside. Since the vegetarian restaurant in the first floor is closed then I guess this display must be from the restaurant at the ground floor which also supplies the buffet.

There was a naan on display with a huge spot (3-4 centimetres) of BLACK mould in it. It was already fluffy and spreading to the next piece. Really disgusting. Now if they put stuff like this on display for the customer to see I really don't want to know what the kitchen will look like.

I will not go back unless they offer the food mentioned in the OP. Did you all go during the day? I was there at 7.30pm.

[Jingthing]

That's pretty funny.

Tastes do differ.

I went at night too.

Yes the yellow "soup" was dal.

When I had it I didn't find it noticeably too thin but I guess thinking about it, it certainly wasn't thick either.

Not sure what the salty stuff was ...

The night I went everything was pretty spicy ... which I like ... didn't notice anything too salty.

As far as oil or ghee, I found their food somewhat lighter than a lot of places so I agree either no ghee or light ghee.

I prefer that!

Yes the place we are talking about is IN FRONT of the hotel on the outside seating terrace.

BTW, the buffet food downstairs which includes chicken curry and raita as well is good food too, to my taste, but be careful about paying 60 baht plus plus for a bottle of water there ...

As far as the display case inside the hotel ... that is actually a different menu than downstairs or upstairs, and personally what do you expect to happen to food sitting in a case for a long time in the tropics? Yes, bad management to display food like that, but they aren't serving that stuff, it's a display case.

Edited May 18, 2014 by Jingthing

[Sandman77]

Sounds great I just save this topic and next time I come to Pattaya I tell taxi driver to bring streith in this place

I hope I will find also good Indian saffron sealed there..

[Jingthing]

Don't get too excited. It's just peasant style food, but done half decently!