Remember when Kati Roll was the only place in midtown that served kati rolls.  When they moved from 46th street to 39th street, the Biryani Cart jumped in and served their own version of the Indian burrito.  (And we all know how that turned out.)  They were followed by Indus Express’ naan wraps (on 48th btw. 5+6th), the standard kati rolls from Grill 44 on the East side, and even Spice Fusion (which is known for their all you can eat buffet) jumped on the bandwagon.

Now Touch of India (on 37th btw. 7+8th) becomes the latest to join the fray. I didn’t love their all you can eat buffet when I tried it last August, but for $9 it’s good enough.  And there’s no reason a mediocre buffet would stop me from trying their “kathi rolls”.

The Touch of India kati roll menu is a little stranger than most.  First, you don’t get the option of ordering two different kinds.  An order costs $6.99 and according to the manager is “3 pieces”. (I wasn’t sure what that meant, but it became clear once I ordered.)  The fillings are completely unique as well, with choices like palek paneer (cheese and spinach), potato and green peas, chicken and mushrooms, and chana dal (lentils).  Not exactly the “solid” fillings that make up the bulk of the kati roll options in Midtown.  And there is good reason for this…

Their “kati rolls” are rolled and fried like egg rolls!  I tried the palek paneer, which despite my initial shock was amazingly delicious.  How could it not be?  What’s bad about spinach and cheese wrapped in roti and deep fried. The “3 pieces” ended up being the number of “rolls” you get, which after being fried are chopped into 3 pieces each.  (So you end up with 9 pieces altogether.)  It came with the pretty standard Indian tamarind sauce, green sauce, and yogurt sauce all for dipping, and all good.  I guess the only complaint you could really register is that it felt more like an appetizer to be shared, than a complete lunch for one person.  But I got over that pretty quickly.

There is one option that is more like a traditional kati roll (or at least similar to the ones served at Indus Express).  If you order the “Kebab Roll”, that actually comes as one roll.   Their chapli kebab (minced meat kebabs) gets wrapped in naan with salad and sauces.  It was pretty tasty, with a strong curry flavor not just from the sauces- but from the heavily seasoned kebab.  It was also super spicy, and had a sweet flavor as well (they probably added some of the tamarind chutney/sauce into the mix.)  It’s much more like a lunch, and despite it’s nice girth was only $4.99.  I liked it a lot, but obviously the little fried rolls tasted a bit better. (It’s just the advantage of being fried.)

I think they fry the kati rolls fresh, so I waited awhile for my take out order.  Call and order in advance if you can.  While I was waiting I took a second look at the all you can eat buffet, which looked pretty much the same- save for one new, and incredibly interesting addition.

Indian fried chicken!  I wanted to call it “tandoori fried chicken”, but that would like calling it baked fried chicken- which would make no sense.  But clearly the pieces of chicken are marinated in the same spice mixture as the tandoori chicken- but instead of being baked in the tandoori oven, they are deep fried.  It looked amazing!  It’s offered as a special, or part of the buffet on Wednesdays only- so I may have to hit up Touch of India one more time.

Related:
Touch of India May be the Last Under $10 Indian Buffet in Midtown (with Address Info)

Last month, when the W.T.C. closed for “renovations,” I figured that was it.  Even if they re-opened as a buffet, it’s not going to remain under $10.  So imagine my surprise when a few weeks ago, West Tandoori Club re-opened as “Touch of India” with an $8.95 lunch buffet.   Last friday, I headed over to check it out… 

From a decor standpoint, Touch of India is a huge improvement over West Tandoori Club.  They’ve made everything nicer and it seems more like a mid range Indian restaurant, than a cheap, steam table joint.  And, in much the same way Rangole touted the fact that their chef used to cook for Indian royalty, this place boasts a former chef from “Air India.”  (Is that an airline?  Is that a good thing?) 

Touch of India serves up what I’d call a “small scale” buffet, consisting of under 15 items that range from basic (chicken tikka masala) to the not so standard (egg curry.)  As outlined in my Guide to Beating A Buffet, I started with a plate that had little tastes of everything.

Buffets are already magical places. They combine quantity and variety in a way that is unmatched in any other dining setting.  The trick to finding the perfect buffet is balancing that quantity and variety with quality- a difficult thing to pull off.  Try getting it for under $10, and it becomes virtually impossible.  That’s what made Spice Fusion so much better than Rangole and Curry Dream.  Under $10, but the quality was there.

Touch of India is more what you’d expect at a $9 Indian buffet.  Every single one of the dishes was completely watery, rendering my plate a complete mess.  The chicken tikka masala, a pretty standard buffet dish, was made with bone in chunks of chicken- a preperation that no doubt helps the flavor, but alot of diners may find unappealing (I actually don’t mind it.)  A better choice was the Kadai chicken, a dish with an interesting sauce made from onions, tomatoes, ginger and chili.  On the second trip up to the buffet, I tried my best to pick the meat out out of the trays while draining as much of the sauce off the spoon as possible, before putting it onto my plate- something you would never dream of doing at a place that didn’t serve their curries watered down.  

Two chicken dishes was the extent of the meat, a disappointment considering you’ll often find lamb at good Indian buffets.  For $9 it’s not entirely surprising.  They had goat one of the other times I dropped in, so you may get lucky on the day you visit.  The egg curry was pretty interesting, and will probably be a big hit with those who like hard boiled eggs.  The rest of the vegetable dishes had were too watery for my taste- despite having a decent flavor. 

The one thing I didn’t expect was the spiciness.  A lot of the dishes had some pretty nice heat to them. The naan was pretty good, and they seemed to replace it on the buffet pretty often, so no complaints there.  Nothing was good enough to really load up on for my second plate, and after a few balls of gulab jamun (which were fair), I was done.  A pretty lackluster effort, and I wasn’t feeling so hot the rest of the day. 

All in all, I would only recommend this buffet to hard core enthusiasts who can truly destroy a buffet, regardless of the quality. 

The + (What somebody who likes this place would say)

• It’s an all you can buffet
• It’s only $8.95
• The naan came out fresh, and fairly often
• Some of the dishes were pretty spicy
• Did I mention you can eat all you want for $9?
• The flavors were not that bad and they had a few interesting dishes, like egg curry

The – (What somebody who doesn’t like this place would say)

• The chicken tikka masala has bones in it
• All the dishes were totally watered down

Touch of India, 232 W. 37th St. (btw. 7+8th), 212-560-9414