SPECIAL FEATURES: Cooking Indian drinks, full bar, attractive Indian art.

HOURS: Open 7 days a week. Lunch: 11:45-3:45 daily. Dinner: 5 p.m.-10 p.m., Sun.- Thurs. (11 p.m. Fri. & Sat.).

PARKING: Side street or metered curbside.

CREDIT CARDS: All major cards accepted.  

Namaskar — greetings! from India City Restaurant which features authentic Indian cuisine. Owner Kamar from Bombay knows the many types of dishes from the various areas of India as does Chef Karnail Singh who will adjust the entrée spices to your taste: mild, medium or hot.

We started with a creamy Chicken Ginger Soup nicely spiced with sliced rounds of ginger root and pieces of white meat chicken ($2.95) accompanied by pappadom — a crispy, spicy, wafer-like bread. Then came Sheek Kabab ($9.95), minced meat rolled with fresh herbs and spices, grilled on a skewer and served with (our favorites) mango chutney ($1.50) and a special rice. The colorful Grilled Mixed Vegetables were served on a sizzling, oval, iron pan and included cauliflower, red and green peppers, tomatoes and onions ($7.95).

During the meal we tried a house specialty drink — a colorful combination of mango, pineapple and coconut juices. It was an excellent accompliment to all the dishes as was the Raita, a smoothing cucumber and yogurt sauce. We also enjoyed Goat Do Piaza ($8.95), tender chunks of meat with onions sautéed in a ginger/garlic sauce.

While enjoying your meal, note the handsome Indian statues and pictures on the wall. You will also see the large, handsome copper chafing dishes made in India just for this restaurant. They are used for the very popular daily buffet.

We finished dinner with Marsala tea and Gulab Jammer — homemade cottage cheese cake balls in honey syrup ($2.50).

A visit to India City is like a trip to the country, but the travel time is much shorter.