Ganges, Princeton Junction

I seriously think that anyone who loves Indian food as much as I do should live in this area. It is oh so abundant, and so far all of it has been pretty good! This rule certainly applies to Ganges in Princeton Junction. It is close to home and has just what we were craving... authentic Indian food. It's a liiiittle tricky to find, as it's tucked into a strip mall on an awkward corner. Once you find it and walk inside I'm pretty sure you'll be impressed with what they've done with the place. It's charming and well decorated, with a warm and inviting feel.

We started off with the vegetable samosas and they were lovely. The perfect crunch on the outside is what really makes a samosa stand out to me. The filling of peas and potato was perfectly seasoned... a little heat and a LOT of flavor. The accompanying chutneys (one sweet (and I believe plum based) and one hot) were perfect... they added just the right depth to the samosas (and everything else I ended up smearing them on!) For our bread we chose an aloo (potato) Paratha. This is pretty much always going to be delicious.... creamy potato shmeared between flat bread? What could be bad!

For dinner we ordered one chicken dish and one lamb dish. For our poultry we went with chicken Tikka Masala (which is one of our favorites). The color on this was unlike anything I have ever seen. It was BRIGHT red. It looked almost fake.... I was convinced that the coloring had to be artificial. Whil ethe sauce was really tasty, and the chicken well seasoned (although a litle dry) I couldn't get over the color of the sauce. It weirded me out. That color red is not one that I have ever seen in nature, so I cannot even tell you how it came to be in the dish. There was a drizzle of yogurt over the top of the dish, so it lightened up a little by the time this picture was taken, so if this doesn't seem 'all that red' it's because it isn't. Long story short, though, it was tasty. Darned tasty.

We ordered the lamb Boti Kabob Kandhari and, unfortunately, we could have done without it. While seasoned exceptionally (and with a perfect citrus kick from some added lemon) the meat was super dry. So dry, in fact, that it was hard to eat. The spice was perfect, the onions burnt to a caramelized crisp (just the way I looooove them!), the portion size ideal, and yet we left food behind. Such a shame. This could have been my all time favey, but instead it was chewy and sad. Wah.

I will definitely go back to Ganges, despite the tough lamb. Everything TASTED fine, and the service was awesome, so they certainly deserve another shot. If I am once again served icky, over cooked meat, though, I am going to be so mad.

Ganges Authentic Indian Cuisine

http://www.gangesonline.com/

33 Princeton- Hightstown Road

Princeton Junction, NJ 08550

609 750 1550