Located in the same spot that housed Dosa Hut for the past decade or more, it's now under new…read moreownership, and indeed the staff is different. Thankfully, the restaurant has been spruced up a bit with a new floor, ceiling, and some new tables. It's lighter and airier and certainly looks less dingy. The rolling cabinets housing the buffet chafing trays are fewer and smaller, so there are fewer items offered than what was customary for Dosa Hut's extensive buffet.
I was a big fan of Dosa Hut and am happy to report that most, if not all, of the old menu items are still there, and a few new ones have been added. I see bhel puri, pani puri, samosa chaat, and several different biryani preparations among them, but I haven't sampled them yet. The emphasis is still on South Indian fare, so expect dosas, idli, and sambar. I don't know dosas from shinola and have hardly ever had them elsewhere, so I'm no expert, but I love the plain dosas I get there. They're huge, and paired with the accompanying coconut chutney and small bowl of sambar, it's a massive appetizer that often doesn't leave room for much else.
My favorite dish is shrimp biryani. I tend to order it at every Indian restaurant I go to for comparison's sake. It's moist, spicy, delectable, and full of good-sized shrimp. I've never had better in the dozen or so Indian restaurants I've visited in the Southeast.
Like its predecessor, I think Taj particularly excels in their vegetarian offerings, especially those with shredded paneer. So methi malai matar and paneer bhurji are our go-tos. We're also really fond of the kaju khoya. All three dishes are delightfully creamy, and we eat them over rice. I can't say I'm a fan of their saag dishes. They puree the spinach, and I'm not a fan of the texture, but from my reading, it's commonly prepared that way, so to each their own.
I've been to their buffet once, but it was near the end of their lunch session, so I wasn't surprised that the offerings were getting a little old. Not going to hold that against them.
Service is very attentive. For what it's worth, soft drinks are served in cans with a glass and ice, and there are at least a few bottled beers available.
All in all, a great little place with a revamped menu and interior well worth checking out.