Yantra: Defining Indian Cuisine in Singapore
PUBLISHED July 11th, 2013 03:37 am | UPDATED April 14th, 2016 03:33 pm
Finding good Indian food in Singapore can be surprisingly difficult. It seems like one place might have a good biryani but then that’s about it. Other places do good Tandoori but fall flat on face when it comes to curries. And yet some places, the food is just too fattening and oily and you feel like a bloated Sultan as you hobble out the exit.
Yantra is perhaps the most all-encompassing Indian restaurant I have dined at in recent history, and having just come back from an epic buffet lunch there (and an outstandingly reasonable $19.90++) I feel the need to share with you why you should check it out.
Located at B1 of the Tanglin mall, the location is somewhat hidden, however once inside you find a quite enormous dining establishment with some 100+ seats. There’s even a sizeable bar and al fresco area as well. It’s quite an impressive space.
As for the food, this is where Yantra really shines…
Starting with the chicken biryani ($35)! Fluffy rice, succulent chicken and a beautifully subtle spicy taste overall. During the lunch buffet, this is served in a giant bowl which is semi-covered with an edible roti-pancake type seal. Make sure put some of it on to your plate as well as it soaks up the other curries perfectly.
Tandoori chicken (Murgh Kalimirch, $33). I love tandoori. I would even go so far to say that it might be my favourite method for cooked meat. It’s like barbecuing but even better. And as expected, the beautifully crimson-red coloured meat was perfectly cooked. Soft and juicy on the inside with just a nice amount of char-grill crisp on the exterior. Yum.
There’s also a healthy selection of other items from the Tandoor; from lamb chops to lobster! Even the vegetarians get their own section on the menu.
Other dishes that are well worth trying are the saag paneer (spinach and cottage cheese curry, $28, shown above), kadhai jhinga (stirfried prawns in a lush onion, tomato sauce, $37, shown below) and the tadkewali daal (stewed lentil curry, $23)
Recommended for a big group for dinner or family and sharing dishes, and definitely for lunch if you can get a table! For effectively $20 it’s an absolute bargain and the food quality is excellent.
Yantra is certainly not a cheap dining establishment. But the food is well, well worth the price. And of course you can always come for the lunch buffet which is a lot more wallet-friendly.
Written by The City Nomad over two visits.
Photos by Yantra
