Get your Indian-cuisine kicks at Route 66 in Fort Worth

It could be the world’s most inauspicious place for an Indian buffet.

Just off the lobby of the Radisson Hotel in south Fort Worth, amid the relatively roaring sounds and saltwater smells of a hyperactive water feature, is Route 66, a paean to progressive Indian fare.

Owner Navid Rashid’s 4-month-old brainchild has recently expanded to daily service of a modest lunch buffet, modestly priced at $11.99 per person.

Just nine items lined the counter at a recent weekday lunch (12 if you count the soup, salad and pappadam), simple preparations ably cooked by Rashid’s kitchen.

The lemon-coriander soup had a peppy brightness, and it seemed reminiscent of the Greek avgolemono. The difference here was a lack of egg yolk and the inclusion of coriander, which lent hints of sage and an overall earthiness. Chock-full of vegetables, it was good; had a lid been on the pot, the lukewarm soup would have been great.

I dismissed the tangle of iceberg lettuce, emptied the stingy cups of chutneys (the courteous staff will get you more — just ask!) and loaded the raita, chunky cucumber-infused yogurt-based dip, onto my plate.

I then eagerly set off to the main part of the buffet, and became entranced by the tandoori aloo, balls of potato dredged in a crispy breading. They were small potatoes, but big on flavor: I quickly dedicated a section of my plate to the appetizer, subtly spicy and an ideal bite, especially after a plunge into the sweet, dark chutney.

Also outstanding: the tandoori chicken. A moist, smoky wonder, the chicken was draped in the traditional tandoori spices of cayenne and red chili powder. Unfortunately, the buffet’s other chicken dish, the chicken daba wali, missed the mark. Garlicky and stewlike, it had a nice flavor, but the chicken was dry — perhaps a result of its chafing dish/buffet presentation.

Other dishes didn’t suffer from prolonged display. I really liked the paneer khatta payaz, a welcome surplus of cubes of white, unsalted cheese swimming in a sea of peas. The textures were right-on, with the chewy cheese standing up deliciously to the dish’s softer elements.

Peas also stole the show in the mushroom matar, a dense, creamy curry of button mushrooms that begged to be draped atop the perfectly cooked rice.

Maybe it’s preference, but I would have liked the rice in the kheer (rice pudding) to have been less finely chopped. As it was, the sweet dessert lacked the rosewater I’ve come to identify the dish with.

Twists on the favorites, though, show an inventiveness that most typifies the restaurant, which also serves traditional Indian dinners, as well as burgers and grilled cheese. After all, the place was purposefully not given a “normal, Indian-sounding name,” said Rashid.

His son, who was studying American history at the time, came up with the moniker. And Rashid’s wife decorated the rust-colored room, anointing it with kitschy roadside signs, adding yet more disparate touches to the scene.

It’s probably best not to question the ambiance or venue — don’t think, just go. You’ll eat well, and leave happy.

This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 3:35 PM with the headline "Get your Indian-cuisine kicks at Route 66 in Fort Worth."