I'd like to say that my lack of posts is due to my failing health, but my throat has its full singing capabilities back (in your face, Sanjaya!) and really the reason why is because I left my camera at home and have been stuck on the road travelling to San Diego a lot. I've been to a few new and a few familiar places, but all without my trusty Canon, so, in reality, I haven't been anywhere. But the memory stick did contain photos from a recent trip to Taste of India in Woodland Hills. And so I could claim that I've been spending all week trying to come up with a catchy way to incorporate Taste of India and Taste-Buzz all in the same blog post title. But in the end, I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves.

My experience with Indian food has been sorely lacking. Most of it has been camped in line waiting for steam tray buffets, and even then, only Woodlands in Chatsworth has been a shining destination (reports say that in recent times, that Woodlands has actually gone downhill while Taste of India has gone up). I rely on my Indian friends who live in Woodland Hills to give me the scoop, and when I was told that the rogan josh at Taste of India was pretty good, I jumped at the chance.

It's a lamb stew that's flavored with slivered almonds, and is actually one of the first Indian dishes I've tried to make at home. The lamb had its signature flavor but was neither gamey nor tough, the stew having cooked it perfectly. The stew was also flavorful enough to eat on its own, and I ladled it generously over my vegetable biryani (rice), and cooled its spice level down a notch with raita (cucumber, mint and yogurt).

All of the dishes were served in attractive little beaten-copper bowls, and I was left wondering where to get such items for my own kitchen.

There's a lot of contention about how good the Indian food is in Los Angeles, and the general sense is that it's one of the few cuisines that LA doesn't do very well. The menu at Taste of India is fairly expansive, and if the rogan josh was any indication, Los Angeles isn't going down without a fight.