Ryan Wisniewski
Fiery chicken 65 is a new subcontinent standard.
The area near East Towne Mall is dominated by the kind of chain restaurants that millennials can’t kill fast enough. Until recently, if you’d asked me for a recommendation in the neighborhood, I’d tell you to keep driving. But Chutney’s Indian Cuisine is a rare bright spot in the sprawling commercial district.
The restaurant opened at the end of September in the space that formerly housed Fast Biryani (and La Bamba before that). Wedged between an Econo Lodge and a vacant storefront on a frontage road, it’s an unassuming place. But don’t be fooled by the appearance. This is some of the best Indian food in Madison.
Chutney’s specializes in South Indian cuisine, which means lots of rice, dosas and stews flavored with abundant spices. Northern staples like curries, naan and kebabs are also well-represented, as are Indochinese dishes like noodles, fried rice and various batter-fried morsels tossed in chili or Manchurian sauce.
On my first visit I was impressed with the attentiveness of the staff, who stopped by my table at least three times over the course of the dinner to make sure the food wasn’t too spicy. The restaurant’s co-owner later confided that in the first month they had a few negative online reviews — but everything I tried was packed with flavor and perfectly balanced. (When I told him I liked it, he encouraged me to write a review. I said I’d think about it.)
An order of three samosas, generously stuffed with savory potato and peas, made for a solid starter. Chicken 65 was another winner, arriving fiery-red and perfectly crisp. The dish can be prepared with or without yogurt sauce, but I think it’s better without. A basket of garlic naan soon followed, and it was the butteriest I ever encountered. Saag paneer, a mild dish made with cheese, spinach and mustard greens in a tomato cream sauce, was so delicious I went back and ordered it again after I had finished the restaurant review.
But the main attraction is the lunch buffet, and Chutney’s offers an excellent selection and value at $10 on weekdays and $14 on weekends. The weekend buffet is supposedly more elaborate, but I found the two to be almost identical. The biryani (vegetarian or chicken) was a standout item, made with impossibly fluffy basmati rice and studded with intriguing spiced potato sticks. Chutney’s also does miraculous things with chicken, whether deep fried or roasted in a tandoori oven. They make their own version of sriracha, which is used to flavor a chicken kebab. Other standouts included a tangy chili cauliflower, bisi belle bath (a sort of rice porridge) and okra with peanuts. The obligatory chicken tikka masala tastes as it should, though the version you would order on the menu adds bell pepper. They also serve some of the best goat curry I’ve had in recent memory.
The buffet is also the best way to sample Chutney’s many different chutneys, which seem to rotate based on the day. There’s the traditional mint with coriander and the tangy tamarind sauce, plus extras not typically seen, such as a peanut and a ginger, which were both delicious. They also do a nice raita, a savory yogurt-based sauce, which is helpful in cooling down some of the spicier dishes.
Everything is worth trying, and it all tastes good together. But a few items fell short. Pakora, those chickpea battered fritters, don’t hold up well on a buffet. The dal, a spiced lentil soup, had a vaguely fishy flavor. Lamb kebabs ordered from the dinner menu smelled amazing when they arrived on a sizzling platter, but the meat was overcooked and slightly tough. They were better as leftovers the next day with more mint chutney. And the naan, so memorable on my first visit, wasn’t quite as good on the buffet.
This restaurant’s ambiance might not appeal to everyone. The seating, decor and lighting all skew more fast-casual than fine dining. But for me, it was part of the charm. It’s a family business. Nobody wears uniforms. There are kids running around the buffet, Indian music playing in the background and cricket on the telly. The whole arrangement feels like you’re eating at somebody’s house and being taken care of by a bunch of nice uncles.
Chutney’s Indian Cuisine
4738 E. Washington Ave.; 608-422-5099; chutneysmadison.com;11:30 am-2:30 pm and 5-10 pm Tues.-Thurs., 11:30 a.m.-2:30 pm and 5-10:30 pm Fri., noon-3 pm and 5:30-10:30 pm Sat.,noon-3 pm and 5:30-9:30 pm Sun.; $3-$18
