Bombay Cafe and Aaoji

[dgreen]

This Indian place operates at two locations under two different names. Bombay Cafe is the Fairfax location on Lee Highway (29) between Jermantown and Shirley Gate. It's across 29 from the K Mart shopping center. Aaoji is the Herndon location on Pine Street in the "old town" area of Herndon.

Months ago, I had stopped at Aaoji and got carry out. They were running a curry special that day. I ended up getting 3 curry dishes, rice, and naan for just under $10. I don't remember exactly what I got , but I do remember it was a ton of food. It provided me lunch and dinner that day. The curry was dripping out the sides of container that must have weighed about 5 pounds. I know I had the lamb rogan josh, but I don't remember the other two curry dishes. I chose goat biryani as my rice. The curry sauces, containing some kick but not too spicy, were just right for someone like me. All in all, it was a good meal.

I had been by Bombay Cafe once and saw the buffet tables packed on a weeknight. Apparently they do a $5 buffet if you pay with cash ($6 if you don't pay with cash) Monday through Thursday. I think it's $7/8 Friday through Sunday. Last night I stopped in to place a to-go order so I could get home in time to watch Strasburg's debut. I went with their wraps. They're cheap and I'm kind of cheap, so it seemed like a good match. They have chicken, paneer, vegan, and omelete wraps (using naan for the wrap) for $2.99 each. Or, you can get two for $5. I ordered 2 assuming they would be small. They weren't. They weren't huge, but they definitely weren't small. They were stuffed with chicken, lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, and included a sauce (I think it was a curry sauce). For the price, I thought they were really good. I hope to get back soon to try the buffet.

There was a $10 minimum for credit card purchases at Bombay Cafe. I didn't have any cash on me, so he just charged me an extra $0.50 or so to use my credit card. So, if you're just doing something small, bring cash.

[dgreen]

Shockingly, Bombay Cafe's $5 buffet is, well, a $5 buffet. Had I paid more, I probably would have been disappointed. But, for $5, I'm really not going to complain.

[ulrath]

Bombay cafe used to be one of my favorite indian buffet's but alas with the falling prices, the quality of some of the food has fallen off as well. I haven't been in about 9 months but the last time I was there I was underwhelmed.