Restaurant Review: Mantra (Lunch Buffet)

As having been fortunate to live in Cambridge, MA, home to prestigious colleges, not so prestigious college shenanigans, hipsters, yuppies and other assorted liberals, one of the best parts was the diversity of food we were lucky to have. Just outside the door of our old condo was Portuguese, Chinese, Thai, Southern, TWO types of Brazilian, and most important of all, Indian food. In fact, there were so many Indian restaurants in Cambridge (Harvard Square has at least 3 I think) that my husband and I joked it was the unofficial cuisine of our town.

Because of the sheer amount of Indian restaurants in Cambridge, it stands to reason that I've also eaten at a sheer number if Indian lunch buffets. Too often though, buffets tend to be a dime a dozen and has food that's cooked improperly yielding dry meat, oily curries, and over/undercooked basmati rice. When my good friend suggested meeting at Mantra for lunch, all I knew of the restaurant was that it's in Downtown Crossing and known for its ice cool atmosphere, well heeled clientele,and striking modern decor. At night, it serves, according to their menu printed on shiny gold paper, what they refer to as Modern French Indian at very Modern French Indian prices.

During the daytime is a different story. The same sleek patrons are there except dressed in business casual, the lighting is brighter (though not at operating room brightness), and best of all, they have a wonderful lunch buffet that is a relative bargain at $11.95. The buffet itself hits all the major standard Indian buffet fare, such as Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Tikka Masala, Saag Paneer, Samosas or Pakoras for an appetizer, and some kind if Indian pudding for dessert, yet also throws in a few other unusual dishes for variety. One time it was a savory sauteed cabbage, another time was a yellow lentil curry. My last visit yielded a deliciously spicy carrot, sweet potato and pea curry dish an best of all, Beef Kofta Korma, which had mini spiced beef meatballs swimming in a creamy curry concoction.

What sets Mantra's Indian buffet apart from countless other similar restaurants is the quality of the food and how well it's prepared. For example, Chicken Tandoori at a buffet tends to be sawdust dry from sitting in the chafing dish too long, but at Mantra the meat is incredibly juicy and has just enough charred and crispy bits to make it taste af it came straight from the oven. The Saag Paneer's spinach based sauce is somehow creamy yet light tasting and chock full of the handmade cheese cubes that seem scarce in other buffet versions. Even their Pakroa, too often soggy from long periods marinating in their grease, was amazingly crispy with the chickpea taste clearly coming through.

Now that I'm a Melrose resident, I miss the days of weekend Indian buffets more than I realized. Luckily, as a downtown Boston worker bee, I know I'll be sure to hit up Mantra when I need some good and affordable Indian.