Indian Restaurants in Northampton

India Kitchen—deemed Hartford County's Best Indian Restaurant in 2011 by readers of Connecticut Magazine—piles family-style offerings from North and South India onto its menu, concocting entrees with imported ingredients and an authentic tandoor oven. Patrons can play games of solitaire with 11 types of traditional breads, such as the raisin- and nut-filled khandari kulcha ($3.95). Jumbo shrimp slip into robes of lemon juice, yogurt, and spices before sizzling in the clay oven, only to emerge as tandoori shrimp ($15.95) or, in rare cases, a single giant shrimp with crime-fighting ambitions and mastery over fire. The chicken chutney wala surrounds poultry morsels with tangy pools of curried mango and mint sauce ($12.95), whereas cashew-and-almond sauce varnishes vegetable-and-cheese dumplings in the vegetarian malai kofta ($11.95).

In addition to its classic menu offerings, India Kitchen hosts a daily all-you-can-eat lunch buffet seven days a week as well as a Wednesday and Sunday night dinner buffet. Featuring a catering menu for larger groups, the restaurant's chefs portion out party-sized servings from a limited menu that includes naan ($32+) and vegetable biryani ($40+). For heartier mealtimes, they also simmer orders of lamb or fish curry ($90) that can either feed 30–40 people or one insatiable garbage disposal.

MasalaWok® is a Casual Asian and Indian Diner featuring best of Asian and Indian dishes. Asian menu features a blend of typical Asian and Indian inspired Chinese dishes. Indian menu features traditional curries prepared with fresh herbs and seasonings, and meats cooked in tandoor oven.

The chefs at Saffron Place take spices seriously. Drawing on shelves of cumin, curry, fresh ginger, and garlic, they craft each dish individually to account for each person's preferred level of spiciness, be it mild to smoking hot. The individual preparation of each order ensures that their traditional north Indian and Bengali dishes arrive at tables still steaming from the stove or easily startled dragons. Servers carry goat curry, chicken tikka masala, and vegetarian platters to tables or customers waiting for takeout orders.

Glowing sconces line the crimson and cream walls inside Namaste India, where traditional Indian dishes adorn linen-topped tables and fill the air with spiced aromas. Marinated lamb, chicken, and seafood slumber inside a clay tandoor oven until they're mildly smoky and tender throughout, while other proteins and vegetables steep in rich curry sauces, aptly scooped up with fresh-baked naan bread or ladled over delicate basmati rice. Patrons can wash down meals with sweet, salted, or mango-flavored lassi drinks, or snatch a classic dessert such as gulab jamun—deep-fried milk dumplings that are soaked in syrup and delivered to tables via an air gun.

The chefs at Savoring Indian Cuisine have a couple different tricks for imparting every dish with a burst of flavor. The first involves their spices, which they grind in-house before sprinkling them onto coal-roasted eggplants and various flavored naans. The second's in their tandoor oven, which gives meat a smoky flavor and a light, juicy texture. This makes the resulting cuts of lamb, chicken, and salmon perfect for the house kebabs. The chefs don't only craft meat entrees, however. They also have a full menu of vegetarian entrees, which showcase vegetables like the invite list to a scarecrow's retirement party.

Filling barking bellies with authentic Indian and Bangladeshi dishes, chefs at Jewel of India on Lark present guests with a vast, award-winning menu of tasty fare. The many meat dishes are made exclusively with halal ingredients, while a bevy of savory vegetarian dishes, such as the cheesy paneer tikka masala, satisfies meat-free appetites. Lunchtime visitors find a buffet every day. Historically used for toasting s’mores and destroying old bank statements, the tandoor (a clay oven) is utilized for firing such specialties as the boti kebab that boasts marinated and seasoned leg of lamb and comes in a choice of spice levels. The restaurant's variety, authenticity, and deliciousness has earned it two consecutive awards from Metroland.