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Billerica, MA 01821
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- Jan 10, 2016
Great Indian buffet with good variety and low prices. This place charges only $12.99 for weekend buffets. There is a lot to choose from for both meat lovers and vegetarians. There are many classics such as goat biryanis, chicken tikka masala, mango ice cream, naan...and a whole bunch of other stuff. Worth the drive out there!
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Kim S.Lowell, MA3043055309Dec 16, 2014Updated reviewAll downhill...
This place used to be my favorite Indian Buffet.. I stopped by for lunch recently and it was not the same experience.
I'm not sure if it's under new ownership, but the restaurant seemed dark, dingy and appeared to have less decorations.
Typically, there's a mad lunch rush but today the weekday buffet wasn't nearly ¼ full
I arrived at 12:30 PM and the staff was still sorting out the labels for the buffet menu and trying to go through the pile of labels to coordinate with the offerings.
I notice a dirty plate sitting by the clean plates table. What a huge table for just plates! 30 minutes later when I was leaving, the dirty plates was still in the corner. (See pic)
There was a note posted on the wall "in efforts to reduce food wastage, dosa are available upon request only at the table". That was weird. I was so spoiled to being brought a dosa after I returned with my plate from the buffet. Now I had to request one? The dosa was sub par. There was heavy thick cuts of onions. I'm used to more potato and a hint of onion, this was ALL onion and very little potato. Just like any cooked onion would be, it was soggy and too much for the dosa.
The chicken tikki masala was running low so the chef just brought out sliced tandoori chicken breast and threw it in the sauce in the buffet. I always imagined tandoori chicken as slow cooked and simmered but in this case, it was just cooked chicken breast thrown in the tiki masala sauce. Even if other restaurants do it that way, at least bring the sauce to the back and put the chicken in the kitchen then return it to the buffet.
I'm not sure if I will return, I think I will stick with the Bombay Club nearby.
Helpful 4Thanks 0Love this 0Oh no 0May 12, 2014Previous reviewSince I've eaten here on the weekend a couple of times, I know that the restaurant can get jammed pack. Once, we waited 45 minutes, but we also arrived around 1 PM. I called to make reservations and was even reminded to arrive on time. We got to the restaurant just minutes before it opened and my friends joked about why we were the only ones there and one person wasn't even sure if he was in the right place because the lot was vacant.
The restaurant was clean and up to date. There are some decorations along the walls but not too overwhelming. The restaurant is divided into two rooms, one being the bar and buffet stations and the other being the dining room.
We were sat in the middle of the dining room and waited for the rest of our party to arrive.
Most of us ordered a mango lassi drink made with mango juice and yogurt. It was on the warmer side and I wished it would have been more cold and satisfying. Luckily I stopped the server from adding grenadine, I wouldn't have liked it any sweeter than it already was.
The buffet started with the usual thin papdum flat breads and puri puffs.
There was a ceramic bowl filled with something I've never seen before, my friend thought it may be the same as the Gulab Jamun less the sweet syrup and not fried.
The raita and tamarind chutney was thinner than usual today and I wasn't too happy with it.
I was really disappointed that chegodilu and idili appetizers were being offered today. Where'e the vegetable pakoras aka deep fried spinach and onion rings???
Once I saw the buffet offerings, I felt a little guilty. This restaurant is popular with the local Indian families because of its authenticity and flavors. Once we got to the buffet dishes, I was like...Oh boy.. there are no samosas, tandoori chicken, chicken tiki masala, what are they going to eat???!? I came to the conclusion that the weekday buffets cater towards the corporate business parks nearby and the weekend buffets is different.
What they did have was plenty regional dishes that caught my eye: fish curry, vegetable jalfrezi, stir fried bittermelon just to name a few. For rice dishes, there were plain white basmatic rice, vegetable biryani and my favorite, goat biryani. Of course, they had naan.
Although the dishes were marked, it was inconvenient to look up, especially when I'm so excited to see food below. My friend mistaken cheese curd and fish for chicken and felt bad that it went untouched on the plate.
There was a roasted/grilled chicken dish that was reminiscent of tandoori chicken sans the red food color.
For the Indo Chinese dish offering, there was Chili chicken, it was OK but I was really hoping for Gobi Manchurian.
"Made to order" Dosas, (thin crepes with potato filling) was included with the buffet, we ordered one for everyone. For being the only table there, the dosas took forever! I usually start off my meal with dosas but I was enjoying if after my 1st plate.
After 12 pm, other diners started coming in and the restaurant picked up. As the warming trays emptied, the staff was quick to replenish the buffet.The vegetable jalfrezi was very good and I put that shit on everything.
Service was lacking and there was some communication issues with some of the female servers. We ordered some entrees to go and had to clarify back and forth 3 times.
I was too stuffed for dessert but there was a mango ice cream, gulab jamun and a coconut milk dessert.
For food pics, visit
http://www.mami-eggroll.com/2014/05/weekend-indian-brunch-buffet-at-pongal.html
Avin D.Nashua, NH0228Mar 21, 2015Updated reviewI never had this type of food previously in United States.I stopped by lunch recently and it was awesome. They charges around $12 for week day buffet, but it was fantastic. I really loved it . especially the pongal special goat curry and chicken tikkaMasala was mind blowing. I satisfied a lot.After two days i went with my family for dinner. There are plenty varieties in pongal menu.The prices also all are resonable. We had some appatizers and some curry's. The Chiken kothu parota is a dish from south India,and i was
amazing. The desert Mango Kulfi which is made by pongal Restuarent ,it was just awesome I loved it.Helpful 0Thanks 0Love this 1Oh no 0Mar 20, 2015Previous reviewI never had this type of food previously in United States.I stopped by lunch recently and it was awesome. They charges around $12 for week day buffet, but it was fantastic. I really loved it . especially the pongal special goat curry and chicken tikkaMasala was mind blowing. I satisfied a lot.After two days i went with my family for dinner. There are plenty varieties in pongal menu.The prices also all are resonable. We had some appatizers and some curry's. The Chiken kothu parota is a dish from south India,and it was amazing. The desert Mango Kulfi which is made by pongal Restuarent ,it was just awesome I loved it.
- Feb 19, 2015
Go there for lunch for the buffet! It's yummy. Lots of interesting fun foods for those of us who are not Indian food super savvy. And they have goat! I like that.
I like going there for lunch. I go with an older friend of mine and she loves it there too. Not as spicy as I would like, but it's okay for both the Indian and American pallet I am guessing as there's usually a good mixture of both in the dining room when I attend.
The only things I would say to update? The buffet is not in a great location. It can become congested in the corner, and I think it would be good to tell a little bit more about things for the non-Indian patron. I don't know much about Indian food I just know what I like. It would be nice for somebody to stand there so I could ask questions and not look like a dummy when I just think I might like something.
All in all, I go here. Not as much as I would like. In fact, maybe I will go there for lunch this weekend. It's a good place to go. I will definitely be backHelpful 0Thanks 0Love this 1Oh no 0 
Gayle S.Mobile, AL1534Apr 17, 2016Updated reviewAs usual we ordered takeout. I noticed that the website had been updated and looked more professional. It had more descriptions of the food which was nice.
We ordered a few appetizers, chicken tikka masala, and a pea dish. First thing we noticed was the size of the two main dishes was significantly smaller than before, yet the price was roughly the same. The food was a disappointment to say the least. My husband said obviously the "B" Team was cooking, I said I bet it was under new management. He said the interior had been changed. I called to ask if they were under new management and BINGO I was right. I told the gentleman that the food was not as good as it had been. My husband said "great, now we can't go back there!" LOL who wants to anyway?Helpful 1Thanks 0Love this 0Oh no 0Mar 2, 2015Previous reviewMy husband and I order takeout regularly. I Come from a family where English wasn't the first language so it irritates me even more when a restaurant puts someone on phone duty that has a very thick, difficult to understand accent. Love the food, just find someone understandable to take phone orders. They should also be able to answer questions about the food.
Dec 31, 2011Previous reviewMy husband and I order out from the Pongal Indian restaurant regularly. We have our favorite dishes but make a point if ordering something new each time. We have enjoyed most all the dishes we have tried. Some are better then others but that's personal preference not anything they did.
I like that the menu explains each dish fairly well. Sometimes the level of heat is off or varies from dish to dish. I usually ask for medium but some are hotter then others.
The food has been consistently good. We haven't eaten in the restaurant lately but take out is awesome! I'm looking forward to trying the buffet sometime soon!
Mayur M.Burlington, MA41May 29, 2016Today we were there to have lunch buffet and there was no food on chaffers I waited like at least 10 mins and even asked the people working there and their answer was 2 mins we are getting food
I felt very bad how can you be slow on getting food when you are running lunch buffet
Literally felt very bad that I recommended my family from New Jersey to go for lunch at The PongalHelpful 1Thanks 0Love this 0Oh no 0
Poornima R.Boston, MA1002610Mar 20, 2016Was here for a buffet. Food was really bad and the service really slow.
I have been here before a couple of times for dinner and the food was not bad at all (not as good as some of the other Indian restaurants in the area).Helpful 1Thanks 0Love this 0Oh no 0
Arun I.Andover, MA2479Feb 26, 2016Came here after a long time. The management has changed. This is no longer a south Indian restaurant and does not have a south indian chef. They kept the same menu from before though. This was pretty evident when the waitress tried to explain Sambhar Vada To me.
Food was so so. Kofta was very good but naan was not. Mango Lassi was good but sambhar vada was not.
The owners looked grumpy with no smile or acknowledgement when entering or leaving. The waitress was very pleasant and genuinely friendly and nice. This was the bright spot of the place. It looked like the owners have just taken over the place and this is their first time running a business.
The should stop pretending to be Pongal and just be a regular indian restaurant and remove the south indian items from the menu.Helpful 1Thanks 0Love this 0Oh no 0
Patrick T.North Billerica, MA03Nov 22, 2015Went there last week for lunch. When I signaled for the check, the waiter made me wait a solid 15 minutes after acknowledging me...because he was talking on his cell phone! When he finally came over, he pointed out that the bill would be about 20% higher because there was an Indian festival going on.
Huh!?! That wasn't posted anywhere! You wait until a customer is done then jack up the price?!?
Bad business practices and poor service at this place.Helpful 1Thanks 0Love this 0Oh no 0
