Butter Chicken

Butter chicken -- it's not one of my favourite Indian dishes -- chicken tikka masala is. A few restaurants I've been to, make chicken tikka masala real spicy -- which is the way I like most of the foods I eat. Tonight I went to the Indian Garden for dinner. It's a restaurant at Yonge & Eglinton (NW), that I've had lunch at on a semi-irregular basis, once I was introduced to it by a friend from work. I'm familiar with the owner, who tonight, being the only diners in there, had a chance to chat with at length. He has a thriving take-out business from his regulars, so staying open to cater for the few sit-down diners, is worth his while. He was telling me of his struggle as a restaurant owner in Toronto. For starters, he's got a bad location. There are just a couple of restaurants on the west side of Yonge on Eglinton, while north on Yonge and east on Eglinton, plays host to a multitude of restaurants -- thereby attracting a lot more visitors. His food is great though, especially his butter chicken -- which I have tried at the lunch buffet -- and which got quite the favourable review by the Toronto Star. His butter chicken is ranked number 2 [PDF] in Toronto. It was therefore great to hear that he's planning on opening another restaurant -- this time in Barrie -- to bring his piece of India to one of the fastest growing cities in Ontario -- by the end of January. I hope the people in Barrie are ready for some great Indian food, especially the number 2 ranked butter chicken in Toronto. And, if you happen by either restaurants, be sure to saw hello to owner, Kunal Minoch -- quite a friendly host.