Khyber Pass
As Ben from Chowtimes was headed off to Beijing for an extended work stint, a bunch of us got together for a send-off. The original plan was for a spicy feast at Aree Thai. Turns out they were closed that night so I put out a call for some different options. The ever-intrepid Fmed came up with a very unique suggestion…Khyber Pass.
Khyber Pass is right near Kingsway & Victoria in East Van in what was formerly the Red Fort. They offer Afghan and Pakistani fare in a cozy, kitschy, old-school dining room.
Not the most modern or elegant of settings but a nice sense of comfort sets in immediately. We had originally planned for a dozen or so diners. Fmed had wangled us a set rate of $14 a head. Come mealtime, we were down to seven folks. Not sure if the kitchen got word of the down-size because we got hit with a massive amount of food.
We had a rough idea of tonight’s menu…some kebabs, some curry, some rice. The appies, however, were to be a mystery. The first plate was a simple form of spring roll.
About as simple as you can make it. There’s cabbage, carrot, pepper and a bit of seasoning. A mildly spicy tamarind dip alongside.
The Mantoo are Afghanistan’s (and neighbouring regions’) dumpling. They are full of spiced beef or lamb and covered in a minty yogurt sauce. They’re then topped with a ratatouille of beans, corn, peas and peppers. Not sure why the addition of the stewed veg…seems to obscure the mildly flavored dumpling and delicate sauce.
The Naan was hot, fresh and tasty…just a bit flat. That’s flat as in not quite leavened enough. A bit too chewy, not very flaky. It is, however, a great vehicle for this:
Bouranee Baunjan (Afghan Eggplant with Yogurt Sauce). A nice, rudimentary sauté of eggplant, tomato, onion and garlic. The minty yogurt sauce makes another well-placed appearance.
Lunch Buffet at Mezbaan
After a string of rather pricey Friday lunches, we decided to dial it down this week. One of our favorite places for quality, quantity and low price is Mezbaan at Kingsway and Melbourne in Vancouver. Please don’t equate a bargain price with average quality and shoddy service. There’s none of that here, I assure you.
We got there just before the rush. No big line-ups (this place is still a secret), but the small room does fill up, at least on our handful of visits.
The space is warm, comfortable and inviting…room for about thirty.
As we were a tad early the buffet wasn’t quite ready. Within minutes, however, it was loaded up, ready to go.
This really is tremendous value. For $8.99, today’s selection includes Butter Chicken, Yogurt Chicken, Chili Cheese, Chickpea Curry, Aloo Mutter, Lamb Biryani, Chili Potatoes, Rice Pulao, Tandoori Chicken and Veggie Pakoras. In addition to all that there’s Naan, several salads and Seviya Kheer for dessert.
Saffron Indian Cuisine
There’s so much to love about Indian food. From tandoori to tikka masala, paneers to pakoras and kormas to kebabs, Indian cuisine is wide-ranging, extremely flavorful and virtually everywhere these days. A great way to experience it is in buffet form. A darn good and very popular spot is Saffron Indian Cuisine in Burnaby.
Saffron offers up a lunch time buffet for $12.99. With twelve hot items, naan, fresh salads and a couple really good desserts, it’s a decent value.
Sorry for the mediocre photos…they don’t do these items justice at all. The mainstays here are butter chicken, tandoori chicken, saffron rice and usually a biryani and curry of some kind…usually beef or lamb. Every now and then they offer a korma and/or masala as well as at least two veggie items.
Now, onto the Indian food porn!
The Friday Lunch 
Recent Comments