A gathering in the Edison area

[byarvin]

Hello:

Would anybody be interested in an egullet meal in the Edison/Woodbridge Indian community?

This area is close to the Parkway, Route 1, and public transit. (Metropark) and has some interesting options, especially when it comes to Indian buffets.

My first thought would be to suggest Sunday lunch at Moghul. This is a large, fairly formal restaurant with great food. The Sunday lunch is a perfect example of how Indians like to see great food.

There are Indian sweets, curries, rice dishes and pickles. Indian Chinese items, very English looking hors d'oeuvres, and a glassed in tandoor for bread and chicken.

The ideal time for such a meal would be twelve noon on a Sunday. This way, everything will be fresh and the restaurant will be at its best.

Any takers?

[Rosie]

If the date is open we would be interested. Will be away a few weekends in the summer. Would this be a buffet that the public would have or a pre-ordered dinner? Also, I personally prefer a late afternoon but am will ing to go with the flow. BTW Moghul in Edison is BYO.

[byarvin]

Rosie, it would be our own table at the regular buffet.

It can be done any time, but it won't taste as good. Getting there first is a major quality issue with the Edison buffet places.

Because summer Sundays are so hard to book, I suspect we might not be able to do it until September.

I myself have no Sunday open before August.

[Helena Robinson]

If an appropriate Sunday can be found, we'd certainly be interested; especially if affordable. (We're both still unemployed. However, we're hoping that might finally change for one of us soon; though certainly not soon enough for me.)

Besides, there'd be a better chance of our getting things we can eat at one of these places. (For those who don't know us, we don't eat pork or shellfish.)

Here's hoping we can finally get to another eGullet gathering soon.

[byarvin]

Helena, while I doubt that a large crowd can be gathered before Labor Day, this meal will be far cheaper than the one at China 46. I'm estimating 16 or 17 dollars a person.

[Rachel Perlow]

Of course it would be cheaper. You're talking about going to a regular Sunday Buffet at a good restaurant. (BTW, there's also a Moghul in Morristown.) While I'm sure they have excellent food, it is not the same as setting up a special banquet, is it? I've been to the one in Morristown, and they have a lot of interesting and unique dishes that separate it from most Indian restaurants. If I were setting up an event there, I would want to include many of those dishes.

May I suggest that you pick a date that's good for you? Whoever can and wants will come. If you leave it up in the air the way you have in this thread the planning can go on and on for a long time before a date is set.

[Rosie]

Would it be possible to have a pre-ordered dinner rather than a buffet?

[Kim WB]

Brian,

In my opinion, a buffet just isn't "special" enough. I can only speak for myself, but I have a handful of favorite and excellent Indian and So. Indian restaurants that I visit regularly, all with above average buffets...and I go at least once a week. But this is just me personally, and I live in a area that is heavy with Indian population and restaurants. I'd prefer a menu that features distinctive specialties of the cuisine or of the restaurant. I've eaten at Moghul, and thought it was good, but not spectacular. I need to qualify that by saying that I have been learning about Indain Cuisine for only a year, and have a LOOONNNGGGG way to gobefore becoming a knowledgeable reviewer.

I think that the suggestions you got here were right on track...Pick a date that works for you, figure out the price including tip and tax, post all the info, and collect the RSVP's.

[=Mark]

I'm game. Would also prefer a pre selected menu by someone who knows what their doing. When it comes to Indian cuisine I don't.

[byarvin]

Everybody:

I doubt I can create "special menu" that would worth the extra money and trouble.

Edison Indian restaurants don't use luxury ingredients in the sense that Chinese or European banquet restaurants do. So there really isn't that possibility.

Special note to Rachel: The Moghul in Morristown is not really the same. The Oak Tree Road location makes all the difference.

[FoodSnob]

Moghul on Oak Tree Road is in a different class from the other Indian restuarants that I've frequented in New Jersey.

We went there last month, at the suggestion of my husband's colleague, and were very impressed with the food. The menu included items not found at other Indian restaurants and the quality was better. Additionally, in spite of the fact that the restaurant was extrmely crowded (it was the night of Rutgers graduation), we found the service to be very good - attentive, but not overpowering. I am anxious to go to Ming, which is next door, to experience Chinese food with an Indian influence.

I would definitely be interested in an egullet gathering at Moghul.

[byarvin]

Food Snob:

Your post reminded me of yet another reason to gather at the Edison Moghul - its proximity to the Oak Tree Road shopping strip. A Sunday afternoon post meal stroll there is one of the best ethnic community experiences in New Jersey and perhaps the best Indian experience in the US.

It still seems like a good idea to me...

[Rosie]

Food Snob--Definetely try Ming. Eaten there a few times and liked it alot.