NO LONGER AYCE - Passage to India

Update: 2021-Aug-20 - There is currently no buffet/AYCE at this location post-lockdown even though it is now permitted, and it is unknown if and when it will ever return. I am therefore removing it from the active list, and will follow up periodically and restore it should it return to AYCE status.

Passage To India is located in Niagara Falls at 5546 Robinson at Stanley, close to Niagara Falls' downtown. It's a small place with a correspondingly smaller buffet selection, but still had all the required dishes. There were plenty of customers and more arrived after us to the point where they were standing at the front waiting to be seated. Pop is $2.50 per can so we avoided it and stuck with water.

Chicken curry was very good; all of the chicken dishes featured generously large portions of chicken. Mishy loved the butter chicken and I agreed. Naan bread was fantastic when hot, with savour and garlic hints. Palag paneer was good and spicy. Mixed vegetables were good and not too hot. Chana masala was excellently spiced and delicious, with al dente chickpeas. We were a bit wistful at the lack of chicken tandoori, though.

Vegetable biryani was very good and nicely seasoned. Dal tarka was delicious and had a nice balance of spices. Mattar paneer was good. Aloo baigan (aka baingan) was very good, and I am usually no fan of eggplant. Pakora kadhi was very good, with a nice mustard seed sauce flavour. Vegetable pakora were excellent, fresh with flavour and not dried out as at many other places. Green salad fresh and quite good with raita. Podina (aka pudina) mint "chutney" (which was definitely a mislabeled pudina/mint raita as it was yogurt-based) was excellent. Aloo chana chaat was very good, with plenty of seasoning flavor.

For dessert, kheer rice pudding was an excellent dessert dish with cinnamon and green cardamom. Gulab jamun honey balls were excellent as well, in great sauce. Mishy and I had a very enjoyable lunch and the price of $16.99 would have been excessive in Toronto, but except for the overpriced $2.50/can pop it was alright for the area, being near the heart of Niagara tourist-trap country.

Rating: 8 - 8.5 / 10