India, Italy And Korean-Topped Sushi: CrunchDaddy Recommends All Kinds Of Flavor

Trattoria Amore in Ellicott City

CrunchDaddy is about more than just popcorn.

The four new flavors came out last week at CrunchDaddy Popcorn, and Mrs. HowChow has converted fully to the peanut butter and jelly variety.  I was a bigger fan during the first sampling, but she defended the end of the sample bag last night.  She loved the flavor -- peanut better on the kernels and chopped grape jelly beans that made the sandwich flavor and give a chewy texture on top of the popcorn crunch.  Check out all the new flavors.

But man cannot live on candied popcorn alone, so CrunchDaddy has sampled file food around Howard County.  At my request, he has helped revive the "Trolling" posts that ran through last year.  People send me three paragraphs and a photograph -- recommending the dishes, restaurants or experiences that love in Howard County.  CrunchDaddy's first suggestions go around the world -- India, Italy and Japan:

House of India

If I worked close to House of India, I would probably be there for lunch at least once a week (or struggle to restrain myself).  Staples at the Columbia buffet include chicken tikka masala, palak (spinach) paneer, tandoori chicken, various vegetable curries (I prefer ones with cauliflower or chickpeas) and appetizers such as vegetable pakora, vada or samosas.  The naan bread is hot, fresh and tender, the food incredibly delicious and the wait staff attentive, especially with keeping drinks filled, which is appreciated when eating spicy food.  I suggest that you go hungry or even go on a weekend and make this buffet your main meal of the day.  You'll find it tremendously satisfying and a great value.

Takeout From House of India

House of India goes the extra mile even when they'll packing your food to carry home the last mile home.

I need to think about updating last year's post about the best takeout in Howard County.  An Loi's takeout pho is our "feel better" variation on the classic takeout soup.  But I haven't been back to many of those places recently.

Our current hit has been House of India in Columbia.  The curries are delicious, and they travel perfectly well.  We had chana masala and a kashmiri chicken that goes more sweet with pineapple and raisins than hot peppers.  House of India packages them up with extra case.  The curries were piping when I got home, and they came with enough rice that we'll eat dinner tonight from the same packages.

Our favorite bhel puri didn't seem as crisp as in the restaurant.  I might recommend samosas if you want an appetizer.  But the mango lassi travels fine, and the host gave me pappadum -- the crisp spicy cracker-like appetizer that start a meal at House of India.  We got the two starter sauces as well, one spicy and one sweet.  They're fresh flavors, the type of clear, zesty food that makes me gorge and that makes House of India one of my 2009 best restaurants of Howard County.

If I rewrite the list of best takeout, what should I consider?  We did Bon Fresco a few weeks ago.  We were thinking about Cuban sandwiches from Cuba de Ayer.  Where do you takeout?

Indian Restaurants in Howard County

Columbia offers more variety for Indian food lovers than for pretty much any other kind of cuisine.

Mango Grove and House of India are my top two, but the truth is that there are a half-dozen good options for people who like Indian food.

For the traditionalists, you can start with the northern Indian or Pakistani cuisine. These are the naan, the curries and the tandoori chicken offered by the majority of Indian restaurants. House of India in Columbia is my current favorite because it delivers both the basics and unusual dishes like whole fish and a bhel puri appetizer. But both Akbar and Bombay Peacock have their backers, including Mrs. HowChow who loves the kheer (rice pudding) at Akbar. (Update: In 2009, Royal Taj opened on McGaw Road in Columbia (briefly as "India Delight" until it chaged its name), and it serves a terrific lunch buffet -- along with a white tablecloth menu for dinner.)

For southern Indian food, you must try the vegetarian food at Mango Grove in Columbia. The broad menu has the standard vegetarian curries like baigan bartha and palak paneer. But Mango Grove offers the masala dosa of southern India, along with a dozen other of the crepe-like dosas and the rice and lentil pancakes called oothappam. This kitchen also does spectacular specials. Never pass up the jack fruit if it is on the menu. An unripened fruit cooked down to a tender texture and the spicy flavor that can only come from talented chefs.

Next door to Mango Grove is the fusion alternative -- Mirchi Wok. Chinese food has travelled to India and come out new on the other side. Mirchi Wok serves up the standard meat dishes unavailable at the vegetarian restaurant. It also serves up fusion dishes like a rice bowl cooked with chicken and spice. It was almost a jambalaya, almost a biryani. Really something different and a way to excite anyone who has been bored by too many meals of tandoori chicken.

All of these restaurants serve takeout. Except for Bombay Peacock in its commercial development, they're all the classic Howard County shopping center restaurants -- casual, friendly, but not dressy. The most-dramatic is House of India, which dresses up its space on Snowden River to the point that I was shocked to walk inside. Your guests will think they were in a city spot if you just blindfold them and drive them there in the trunk of your car.

For the post about the best restaurants in Howard County, click here.

For all posts about Indian food, click here. For Indian groceries, check out the full list of ethnic groceries or focus on Desi Market in Columbia or Apna Bazar in Laurel.

This is part of the "What I Learned" series of posts. They're organized in rings. See below to continue on the ring about different cuisines. Or click to switch to the posts about shopping in Howard County or posts about areas and ideas.

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Akbar Restaurant
9400 Snowden River Parkway
Columbia, MD 21045
410-381-3600

NEAR: This is on Snowden River Parkway south of the Home Depot. That is between Rte 175 and Rte 32. It's on the west side, so you need to be southbound to enter the shopping center.

Bombay Peacock Grill
10005 Old Columbia Road
Columbia, MD 21046
410-381-7111

NEAR: This is just south of Rte 32 off Eden Brook Drive. It's actually very easy to reach, although it is tucked into a commercial development without much chance to see it from the road.

House of India
9350 Snowden River Parkway
Columbia, MD 21045
410-381-3844

NEAR: This is on Snowden between the Home Depot and Broken Land Parkway. It's one shopping center closer to the Home Depot than Akbar. If you are coming from Broken Land, you reach both of those centers by passing them on your left and then U-turning on Snowden.

Mango Grove & Mirchi Wok
6365B Dobbin Center
Columbia, MD 21045
410-884-3426
www.themangogrove.com

Near: On Dobbins Road just south of Rte 175. It is in a outbuilding of the Wal-Mart shopping center next to the McDonalds and the Chik-Fil-a.

House of India in Columbia

We have a new Top 10 restaurant thanks to the Sun's food blog, which raved about a place that I have driven past a hundred times.

House of India sits on Snowden River Parkway just up from Akbar, our staple for northern Indian food like naan and tandoori chicken. Elizabeth Large's fun blog named House of India on a list of the Top 10 Restaurants in a Strip Mall along with Asean Bistro, Shin Chon Garden and Aida Bistro. Top 10, and I have never been? Really? "First," Large promised, "there are hidden gems here."

And there certainly are. House of India sits in a strip mall that is non-descript even for Columbia -- barely a blink as you drive past on Snowden River. But the doors open into a classy restaurant. Table cloths. Red-lined flatware. Warm stylish paint colors. White banquets. They're all really nice, and none of them can compare with the food.

First, they start you off with papadum, the crisp crackers that you can break into pieces and enjoy with three chutneys. Although you can buy them and make papad at home, Mrs. HowChow remembers them fondly from her favorite Indian restaurant from Los Angeles. After crunching an entire bowl, we started with bhel puri, a plate of rice puffs and crispy noodles tossed with tomato, cilantro and a tamarind sauce. It had the complexity of a great Thai salad -- crunchy, mixtures of sweet and sour, then a spicy flavor that came on at the end. The appetizer was also the size of a dinner plate. We barely ate half. One appetizer could have easily filled us both if we had spooned it all up.

Thank heavens we stopped because our entrees were Top 10 dishes as well. Chicken Kashmiri -- a chicken curry in a creamy sauce that tasted of nuts and sweetness, and Fish Angaar -- a whole rockfish cooked in the tandoor oven, served beautifully with charred skin and a delicious sauce laced with ginger. The fish was a tour de force. The flesh was moist and flavorful, and I used tongs to lift the fillet off the bones and then to pick off the delicious meat up near the head. This all came with a naan and a platter (not a mere bowl) of rice. I don't know what was in these dishes. They were not spicy like hot peppers. Instead, they were cooked with spices. Real skill in that kitchen gave everything the complex flavor that makes Indian food so exciting.

Not that we finished even half of the food. Mrs. HowChow ruefully noted that she was too full to even imagine ordering kheer, her favorite rice pudding dessert. House of India has an entire "carry out" station. A woman rolled over a cart outfitted with takeout bowls, small clamshell trays, and large clamshell platters. She wrapped each dish individually, then assembled it all in a plastic bag. We brought home two, maybe three meals.

(Update: House of India remains one of my favorites. The chicken tikka masala and a baingan bartha (eggplant) were great takeout on a recent rainy, cold night. They were spicy and delicious, although the naan never travels as well as I would hope. Consider keeping some frozen naan in your freezer from Apna Bazar in Laurel or or Desi Bazaar in Columbia. House of India's bread is splendid in the restaurant, but the frozen stuff can heat up in a few minutes at home. If you like mango lassis, order it without ice so that nothing melts in the car on the way home.)

Check out my favorite restaurants in Howard County. If you like Indian food, you should certainly check out my post about Indian restaurants across the county -- including the vegetarian and southern Indian options at Mango Grove and the Chinese-Indian fusion menu at Mirchi Wok. You can buy Indian groceries at Desi Market in Columbia or Apna Bazar in Laurel. Or click for the starting page for my "What I Learned" guide to food in Howard County.

This end of Snowden has a nice collection of food options, including Indian at Akbar, Vietnamese at An Loi Pho, and a small Mexican grocery at Mexican Bazaar.

House of India

9350 Snowden River Parkway

Columbia, MD 21045

410-381-3844

NEAR: This is on Snowden between the Home Depot and Broken Land Parkway. It's one shopping center closer to the Home Depot than Akbar. If you are coming from Broken Land, you reach both of those centers by passing them on your left and then U-turning on Snowden.