india beau village

“mild, medium, or spicy?” that is the question posed when you place your order. purists might say that you cannot pick the heat level of your meal because each dish has it’s own unique spicing.  part of me agrees, but the chili head in me doesn’t care.  being a lover of spicy foods, the question does not take away from the authenticity of the cooking at india beau village. however, it might become a problem should you decide that you want to taste each dish with their so-called “normal” level of heat. it will be a hassle to say that you want your butter chicken mild, your vindaloo fiery hot, your biryani medium, and so on. however, it is your prerogative at this restaurant. i simply get spicy across the board. of course, this is sometimes met with the “spicy or indian spicy?” question, delivered with a coy smile.

when i first started eating here, i would order butter chicken all the time. the chicken is tender and nicely seasoned. every bite of this dish gives you a subtly different taste – a bit of nutty butter, a bit of spicy, a bit of acidic tomato, a bit of fresh cilantro…  i especially like it when a bit of crushed almond sliver finds itself in my mouth. it gives a nice texture to the dish. you can eat this with rice, but i prefer to mop up the thick and creamy sauce that bathes the chicken with some naan. the key is to figure out how to position your fingers just right to scoop up enough chicken and sauce with the bread. do not be alarmed by the radioactive orange colour of the dish, it is from the tomatoes and the spices. the only bad thing about it is that if you eat with your hands, you will have stained and smelly fingers for the rest of the day.

i have to say that the naan here isn’t the best.  it is thin and sometimes sticky because it isn’t cooked evenly.  this can result in one heck of a mess when eating with your hands.

in north america, butter chicken is the most widely known dish from the indian food repertoire. luckily for your taste buds, it is not the only one that is worthy of praise. i, like many of my fellow montreal epicureans, soon discovered the other culinary gems that this restaurant had to offer. among my favourites are the paneer pakoras, bite-sized pieces of homemade cheese coated in a spicy batter and fried. they have an interesting taste and texture that have succeeded in seducing my senses.  these are best straight out of the fryer when the coating is still crispy and the spices retain their heat.  try them dipped in tamarind sauce or mint and cilantro chutney.

another must-try is their lamb biryani. they cook it with the lamb pieces still on the bone to add to the flavouring, so do not be upset if you get more bones than meat; it makes it taste better. i am not sure why, but i always hope to get more rice than meat. i could be that the taste of the spicy rice combined with the slightly tart and tangy taste of the cucumber raita is simply addictive.

if you are venturing into indian food territory as a group, it is best to order a variety of dishes to eat family-style. this way everybody gets to try a little of everything and it comes out to cheaper than if you had gone to an indian buffet for some substandard food.

the only major criticism i have about the food here is that it lacks consistency. i find that this is a problem with a lot of the restaurants that offer homestyle cooking. one day the food will be amazing and the next it will be overly salty or greasy. i also noticed that their spicing is not consistent. some days i can handle their “indian spicy” and on other days their “medium” is too hot to handle. however, these are things that i am willing to overlook in order to have some good indian food, because that is what i get 95% of the time!

patrons usually get their food to go at this place. i do the same because people entering the restaurant every two minutes and crowding around your table waiting for their take-out orders can get annoying.  a bit of advice for take-out orders: call ahead to order aswait times can be upwards of 20 minutes.

india beau village
752, rue jarry ouest
montréal, québec
H3N 1G6
T: 514.272.5847

payment: cash, debit

hours:
11am – 11pm, closed on tuesdays