Don't Tell Aunty

I challenge you to scour all of Sydney and find such a good value meal in such a prime location. It cannot be done. The buffet at Don't Tell Aunty is incredible: for $25, you can eat a selection of curries to your heart's content - having said that, Don't Tell Aunty has such a variety of other goodies  that the existence of the Sunday buffet doesn't erase the reason to visit this bustling Surry Hills Indian restaurant on other days of the week.

While the Sunday buffet is quite traditional, other items on the menu appear a lot more innovative - not to mention a killer cocktail menu. I am already planning a non-buffet return!

Hot Sauce, Mix Pickle, Salad

The curries weren't very spicy (to cater for those of us with a low spice tolerance, no doubt), but you can always remedy that with the addition of hot sauce (which I was not brave enough to try). I really enjoyed the mix pickles - these are a little spicy, very tart, and went well with pretty much every curry. The salad is a stand out - I had thought these would be just sad leaves with no flavour, but boy was I wrong! Refreshing, savoury and nicely oiled, I really enjoyed the salad.

Rice

Very fragrant tumbling rice to soak up all the curry goodness.

The Chicken Malabari is a creamy curry with tender thigh pieces - very mild and smooth, kind of like butter chicken - and I'm not embarrassed to say this kind of dish is my favourite kind of curry.

The beef korma is also rather mild, and the beef, though tender, is just a tad stringy - I think, though, that's part of a beef korma's charm: that you really feel like you're eating meat - and more to do with the choice of beef part than cooking method.

I tried the goat masala with some degree of trepidation: not a fan of lamb, one can only imagine how I feel about goat, which (in my mind, probably unjustly) is just a tougher, even gamier-version of lamb. In the spirit of trying everything, I did have a taste of this dish - and I was impressed that the spices have completely masked any gamey-animally taste. I appreciate the quality of the dish even if I don't particularly like the substance.

I loved the smashed mixed vegetables! The potatoes, carrots, capsicums and friends are all cooked until absolutely tender and bursting with flavour. Not the healthiest way to enjoy vegetables, but sure is delicious.

A yogurt-based, vegetarian dish starring onion fritters which were hearty and satisfyingly oily.

I didn't fill up on this, because I'm not a fan of chickpeas (I don't even like hummus that much - controversial, I know!) - and because it is so filling. It's nice to see, though, that the vegetarians also have quite a few options and will not go hungry, which cannot be said of all buffets.

The aunty dhal is everything you'd hope it would be: comforting, filling and mild; though again, I tried not to fill up on this hug-in-food-form.

Garlic and chives naan, $5

Who would have thought that the naan stole the show - chewy, satisfying and fragrant, we could not resist its pull even though we went for the buffet - and by the looks of it, many other tables had the same idea. Definitely worth the extra few dollars.

my plate

The dishes were very satisfying and filling - I tried a little bit of each dish, and after just one round, I was feeling pretty full! I particularly enjoyed the atmosphere - even though it was a buffet, it seems like everyone else had the exact same idea as me: just try a bit of everything and maybe order a couple of things off the menu. There were no usual buffet madness, thankfully - it really did feel like a "Sunday family meal".

I was impressed by the variety and quality of food available, and of course, the excellent value.

Score: 4.5/5
Cost: $25pp for the buffet; an a la carte meal would cost around $65pp
Address: 414 Bourke St, Surry Hills
Website: http://www.donttellaunty.com.au/