Bites Nearby: Little India Restaurant

The revival of Moody Street in the 1980s as a destination for diners looking for good, inexpensive ethnic food began with Indian restaurants like , at 475 Moody St. Some might say that the all-you-can-eat lunch buffet is what made those establishments so popular.

Although Indian restaurants now have plenty of competition from other world cuisines, the buffet at Little India keeps drawing them in. It's now served seven days a week. Who can argue with six different aromatic hot dishes, basmati rice, naan bread, a cucumber-yogurt side dish, salad, and rice pudding, all for $10?

Suggested dish: The buffet: six different hot dishes, usually four vegetarian and two chicken (the meat dishes are always chicken in the buffet), as well as raita (the traditional Indian cooling side-dish of yogurt, cucumber and mint), rice pudding with almonds, a small salad area, and relishes.

The afternoon we went to the buffet included a chickpea dish with spinach, garlic and ginger, a butternut squash dish, a potato dish, roasted eggplant with spices, chicken with tamarind sauce, cashews and spices and chicken tandoori. All the dishes were satisfying, not overcooked and not too much spice (although we avoided the potato dish, which was clearly labeled "hot"). The butternut squash was particularly good. As impressive, the raita was cool, creamy and lightly aromatic, and the rice pudding (kheer) was delicately sweetened and almondy.

The vibe: Quiet and subdued, with soft Indian music in the background.

Cool factor no. 1: The ingredients for each dish are listed above the warming pots.

Cool factor no. 2: No waiting is required. Just grab a plate and head for the buffet.