Business Profile: Taj Palace, White Plains
While the idea of opening an Indian restaurant may have taken several years to materialize, Ratna Kataria’s newly opened venture, the Taj Palace in White Plains, was definitely worth the wait.
The spacious restaurant, which opened in July, serves up delicious cultural dishes, many of them tried and trusted by Kataria herself, an avid cook. An Indian native, Kataria came to the United States in 1997, and has always dreamed of starting her own business.
The Taj Palace is the only Indian restaurant in White Plains, replacing the former Bengal Tiger, which was destroyed in a 2010 fire.
While Kataria is familiar with many of Westchester’s Indian restaurants, acknowledging that the majority of them are good, the desire to open a place catering to India’s different regional cuisines was the driving force behind her endeavor. While Kataria is the sole owner of the Taj Palace, she said her husband, Ashwani, is also an integral part of it.
With that in mind Kataria, the mother of two, ages 11 and 14, hired four chefs to concentrate on each province’s specialty. “Each region uses a few different ingredients and the way of cooking is different too,” said Kataria, referring to India’s diverse culture that has influenced its people’s culinary tastes.
As a young girl growing up in Gurgaon, about 18 miles south of the nation’s capital, New Delhi, Kataria was exposed to an array of different dishes. Festivals are celebrated regularly in India, she said, and as a result, there is often much food to go along with the festivities.
As a former stay-at-home mom in Scarsdale, Kataria enjoyed experimenting with different dishes and entertaining friends and family. Many of the meals she cooked at home have been added to the extensive menu at Taj Palace. “I did a lot of exploring with different types of ingredients,” she said, adding that she does not cut corners when it comes to ordering food and condiments for her restaurant. Everything is cooked from the freshest of ingredients. “We pick only the best because health comes first; there are no compromises.”
Using the same ingredients and creating many different dishes from them is a specialty at Taj Palace. For a recent buffet lunch, lentils had been used to create a soup, savory lentil dumplings and crepes, to name a few.
In fact, the self-serve buffet menu, which is available seven days a week, is constantly changing, said Kataria. After the close of business each day, Kataria creates a new line-up of dishes for chefs to create.
The careful addition of spices ensures a more flavorful result, said Kataria, not to mention the fact that the health benefits of adding them far outweigh the spiciness of the food. For instance, red pepper has a blood-thinning effect while tamarack helps strengthen bones, and other spices have anti-oxidant benefits. Most of the buffet dishes at Taj Palace are mostly mild to medium spicy, added Kataria.
Evening meals at the Taj Palace are equally as sumptuous. While there’s plenty to choose from, including an array of appetizers; soups; dosa (crepes); Tandoori specialties; lamb, chicken and fish dishes; not to mention the delicious varieties of naan bread and desserts on offer, customers can easily find a favorite by trying out the restaurant’s different special menu items.
Asked what sets her new restaurant apart from other Indian eateries in Westchester, Kataria said it’s the health-conscious menu, the variety of dishes you won’t find in other Indian restaurants and her customer-centric approach. “All of our customers are very special to us; that’s just the way we treat them.”
Stop by the Taj Palace for an all-inclusive buffet lunch, Monday through Sunday, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. On Monday through Thursday and also on Sunday, evening meals are served form 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m., and on Friday and Saturday, they are served between 5:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.
The restaurant is located at 95 South Broadway, White Plains. For more information, visit www.tajpalacewp.com or call 914-437-5900. Catering is also available as is a delivery service.
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