Kanishka - Best Indian Buffet in Redmond, Washington, and the Eastside

For a lunch buffet to be named the best in Redmond, Washington, and the Eastside as a whole, the restaurant must offer not only value for the money but unusually delicious food. Most Indian restaurants offer a lunch buffet and, typically, for around the same price. Generally, about half the menu is repeated and half is changed every few days. But for the most part, the Indian food is never as delicious on the buffet, lunch menu as it would be if the same dishes were ordered at night, nor is the selection wide, especially when it comes to more expensive dishes like meat, chicken and lamb. This is understandable considering the low cover price for a buffet lunch. However, there is one Indian restaurant whose buffet is supremely delicious and varied, offering the best Lunch in Redmond, Washington, and the East side.

Kanishka of Redmond, Washington, serves buffet daily from 11:00am-2:30pm during weekdays, and 11:30am-3:00pm on the weekends. They charge the typical cover price of other Indian buffets in Redmond and Bellevue, and yet they offer a great abundance of mouth-watering food, truly the most delicious in any buffet lunch offered at Indian restaurants on the Eastside.

Typically Kanishka will have four to five meat, chicken, goat or lamb dishes, among them Chicken Tandoori and Chicken Tikka Masala, which are staples of Indian cuisine and much loved. The remaining meat dishes will change daily based on the fresh ingredients which the kitchen obtains each morning. The serving bowls on the buffet table are always brimming with meat, and the sauces are always rich and tasty, no sauce tasting quite like another.

For vegetarian dishes, Kanishka offers six different dishes, at least one of which will be a Paneer dish (Indian cheese, which is reminiscent of Tofu). In addition, there is always at least one potato dish and typically a spinach dish as well, and other vegetable medley dishes. Vegetable Pakora or Dahi Vada (lentil donuts) are served in addition.

There are two types of rice, and usually two types of freshly baked Naan, which is by far the tastiest, fluffiest Naan bread prepared in any Indian restaurant on the Eastside. A small selection of salads and sources is also offered.

Finally, a rich dessert tray is provided, with four types of desserts. The mango pudding is simply a dream, the Rice Kheer is especially delicious, and the Gulab Jamun is the softest, warmest and tastiest that can be hoped for.

The restaurant itself is simple in design, offering an open floor plan with booths by the windows and lines of tables filling the remaining space. This is not a romantic setting, and the noise level can be at times high. However, for a business lunch, a family lunch, or a simple weekend lunch for two, Kanishka of Redmond offers the best value for the money, with food so delicious and varied you'll forget that you are eating at a buffet.

For anyone who stays away from buffets for the mediocre selection and mundane flavor of the dishes, try Kanishka of Redmond for a truly delicious meal at the cost of a buffet lunch, which makes this restaurant's buffet the best lunch offered on the Eastside.

Kanishka is at 16101 Redmond Way and can be reached at 425-869-9182. The restaurant will be moving to a larger location soon, and so it is advisable to call or check the Web site for the most current address.