Indian Food-A-Thon

A little while ago, Reed and I hatched an idea for a marathon. A marathon of eating. Not some nasty hot dog contest, but a weekly meeting of the mouths. The goal: determine which of the Indian restaurants in the Pittsburgh area is quantifiably the best! This is no easy task, my friends. It requires careful planning and consideration. We are comparing a set of 16 dishes foundational to Indian cuisine, and we are going to all 20 restaurants that exist, both Northern and Southern. We rate everything we bite, and write every comment that occurs to us. What will the results be? Come back every week to find out! (keep reading to find links to reviewed restaurants as we progress,plus the details of the marathon)

Progress of the Indian Food-A-Thon
Week 1: Bombay Grill
Week 2: Star of India
Week 3: Taj Mahal
Week 4: Prince of India
Week 5: Tamarind: Savoring India
Week 6: India Garden: Monroeville
Week 7: Namaste India
Week 8: Orchids
Week 9: People’s Indian Restaurant
Week 10: Tamarind: Flavor of India
Week 11: Udipi

Details of the Indian Food-A-Thon
Firstly, we opened up the marathon to a group of people in an attempt to eliminate bias. Reed and I have already eaten at a lot of these places and in some senses have already made up our minds (or at least, we can’t eliminate that possibility). So, we have a core group of 5 individuals who attend the dinner every week. Aside from myself and Reed, members include Laura H., a vegetarian and experienced Indian eater who has never eaten Indian in Pittsburgh, Scott P., a person who has been in Pittsburgh a long time but who is relatively new to the Indian scene, and Thiago H., an experienced veteran of both Pittsburgh and Indian with his own opinions of the Pittsburgh Indian scene developed in the absence of myself and Reed. In addition to this balanced group, we have a revolving cast of characters numbering up to 12 who pitch in on a semi-permanent basis. All statistics will be displayed both for the Core 5 and the All group.

Secondly, we needed a comprehensive, well-rounded list of dishes that are exemplary of Indian cuisine, and which also are the kinds of dishes people who read TastyBurgher would be interested in ordering. These items will be ordered at every restaurant where they are available, and will be rated by each individual on a scale from 1 to 5, with half-points allowed. The items include:
Pappadams
Tamarind Sauce
Mint Sauce
Samosa
Dal
Raita
Plain Nan
Plain Rice
Tandoori Chicken
Mango Chutney
Chicken Tikka Masala
Saag Paneer
Channa Masala
Matar Paneer
Biryani (Vegetable, unless not available)
Manchurian Gobi (if available)

At Southern Indian restaurants, we are also ordering the following additional items:
Masala Dosai
Dhai Vada
Upma
Utthapam

And finally, there are rules to this here Indian Club:
1st RULE: You do not talk about INDIAN CLUB.
2nd RULE: You DO NOT talk about INDIAN CLUB.
3rd RULE: If someone says “stop” or goes limp, remove their plate and carry them out to their car.
4th RULE: Only 16 things on your plate at a time.
5th RULE: One restaurant at a time.
6th RULE: No shirts, no shoes, no service.
7th RULE: Eating will go on as long as it has to.
8th RULE: If this is your first night at INDIAN CLUB, you HAVE to drink the Jal Jeera.