| Author | Message | ||
     John Beltsos Citizen Username: Belts_boy Post Number: 186 Registered: 4-2004 |
Ordered take-out from Sona yesterday. Miniscule servings, average quality, very expensive. Rice doesn't come with entrees for instance and I paid $8.58 for two servings of rice. What a pity! What a waste for such a great location... Has anybody else eaten there | ||
| Shanabana Citizen Username: Shanabana Post Number: 876 Registered: 10-2005  |
THere's a sona thread elsewhere on the site. Reviews are mixed... I'm sorry to hear it. Sometimes it seems that restaurant owners a have their heads up their arses. | ||
| Virtual It Girl Citizen Username: Shh Post Number: 4903 Registered: 5-2001 |
I can't understand $4 for plain rice. Don't you NEED a scoop of rice with most Indian dishes? Often we ask for extra at Thai/Japanese/Chinese and most of the time it's $1.50 or $2. The most we've paid is for that black rice at Khun Thai, and that's a different story. I am sorry to hear this because we were anxious to try it, but it doesn't seem like it would work for our family. | ||
| Alleygater Citizen Username: Alleygater  Post Number: 2402 Registered: 10-2004 |
I can't believe that people are complaining about the price. It's so reasonable. I'd gladly pay skads of money for an Indian restaurant. I can't believe how unrealistic you all are to think that a restaurant could have reasonably priced food. Instead of complaining all the time, you guys should be THANKING the owner for opening up an ethnic restaurant that we all wanted for so long. Finally something that is better than Neelam!!!! Yeah, I am so happy. | ||
| Mr. Big Poppa Citizen Username: Big_poppa Post Number: 834 Registered: 7-2004  |
You're joking, right, Alley? Miniscule servings, average quality, very expensive Doesn't sound like its so much better than Neelam. | ||
| Virtual It Girl Citizen Username: Shh Post Number: 4905 Registered: 5-2001 |
I do believe Alley is being facetious. He was very vocal about this on the other thread. Hopefully they will see this and realize we all very badly want to support them in this endeavor, but to do so we expect good food at a fair price...and throw in the rice! | ||
| susan1014 Supporter Username: Susan1014 Post Number: 1731 Registered: 3-2002 |
I wouldn't go there for takeout, but am looking forward to going back for in-house dining. (once the heat wave is over and I'm sure that the A/C is adequate). I don't like charging extra for rice, but the serving was enough for two, and the entree prices were a few dollars less than what we pay for quality dishes in Indian elsewhere (e.g. Raagini). Servings were plenty for us -- massively pregnant lady, man who had fruit salad for lunch and 7 year old ordered three entrees, two samosas, naan, and left food over. Personally felt that the dishes we had were good -- in some cases excellent. VIG -- less expensive than Khun Thai...if you eat there, then give Sona a try before letting the take-out crowd scare you away. (I wouldn't go to Khun Thai for take out either!) | ||
| jab Citizen Username: Jab Post Number: 596 Registered: 3-2003 |
Interesting. I was just thinking about what to do for dinner tonight and decided to check for the first time whether there was any feedback about Sona on MOL. | ||
| Virtual It Girl Citizen Username: Shh Post Number: 4907 Registered: 5-2001 |
Susan, thanks for that perspective. Hearing ridiculously expensive and miniscule portions was a turn-off. We will give it a try in a few weeks. | ||
| jem Citizen Username: Jem Post Number: 1599 Registered: 5-2001 |
We had dinner there tonight. I was also a bit surprised that the rice wasn't included, but the portions were NOT minuscule at all - neither of us were able to finish all that was on the plate. The food was tasty, the waitress was nice and attentive and the place looks nice - all traces of the horrible renovation by D'Asti's are gone. We'll go back. | ||
| calypso Citizen Username: Calypso Post Number: 63 Registered: 1-2006 |
I had take out on Friday, their first day open. The portions were quite good sized, and the food was good. Mulligatawny soup was peppery and flavorful, and lamb rogan josh was delicious. I agree that the high cost for rice is irritating, but I'll order from them again. | ||
| angel Citizen Username: Angelia Post Number: 10 Registered: 9-2005 |
I had lunch on Tuesday. The food was oustanding it's the best that I've eaten so far and believe me I do eat out alot. the food was fresh and not greasy. I will have to take my friends there for dinner. | ||
| Gregor Samsa Citizen Username: Oldsctls67 Post Number: 582 Registered: 11-2002  |
OK, so here's my plan...I'm opening a new restaurant in Maplewood. My first order of business is to hold a private dinner party for all MOLers before my grand opening. I'm going to prepare and serve every meal myself to make sure that each poster is 110% satisfied, and then, I'm going to write "On the house" on every bill after the meal. This way, my restaurant in to which I would have sunk my heart and soul (no pun intended), will not be doomed to failure by a relatively small group of food nazis who objected to paying $ for the side of whatever, or were mad because there were no after dinner mints on a little silver tray with the bill. Sheesh! | ||
| John Beltsos Citizen Username: Belts_boy Post Number: 187 Registered: 4-2004 |
OK OK I will give at another try. Let me just explain what I mean by small servings. Starter: two tiny pieces of cottage chese (both roughly 4 square inches) and some pieces of pineapple (hard to say if fresh or canned) Entree: Chicken Jalfreezi: four pieces of meat and some grave Naan: one (uno, eins, un, 1) little triangle wedge (my five year old finished it in 5 seconds) As mentioned before all of this didn't comne with rice. So luckily I ordered some extra. The chicken Jalfreezi was some $13.95 by the way. | ||
| Stuart0628 Citizen Username: Stuart0628 Post Number: 316 Registered: 2-2003 |
John, Our Chicken Makhni came with 8-10 nice size pieces of chicken and ample sauce. Totally within the normal bounds from my prior experience--we actually left a piece or so over. Our Onion naan was a full round naan, of similar diameter to others inthe area, cut into two semicircular pieces. Unless the take-out portions are smaller than the in-house portions--and Calypso's entry above would refute that--I don't know how to explain your experience. I do agree with all posters on the rice issue. | ||
| Dego Diva Citizen Username: Fmingione Post Number: 782 Registered: 12-2003 |
just had lunch buffet too stuffed to type AWESOME food!! more later ::burp:: | ||
| tjd Citizen Username: Tjd Post Number: 33 Registered: 6-2001 |
I am Indian and I absolutely HATE it when Indian restaurants charge extra for some plain, Basmati rice! B/c of the heaviness of Punjabi food (and that is the food in the restaurants), you NEED to have rice. I doubt there is a Punjabi person who skips rice at meals, especially dinner. | ||
| magmasystems Citizen Username: Magmasystems Post Number: 373 Registered: 1-2002 |
Could it be possible that the people at Sona have been monitoring the comments here on MOL and have been adjusting as the comments have been flowing in? It wouldn't be a bad idea for a business to clandenstinely monitor the feedback and to make quick improvements in order to reduce the growing pains of the new business. I would not be surprised if the people from Sona eventually reduce the price of the rice, or even throw it in for free. | ||
| Jgberkeley Citizen Username: Jgberkeley Post Number: 4634 Registered: 5-2001 |
We had dinner lastnight. The no rice part was kinda stupid and the whole meal was just too expensive for what we received. Oh, and someone needs to go into the kitchen and take away the salt. Wayyyyy to salty. Later, George | ||
| Dave Supporter Username: Dave Post Number: 10321 Registered: 4-1997  |
If they just added $0.40 to each dish and offered rice they'd likely make more money than by overcharging for it and getting fewer orders (while simultaneously turning people off). | ||
| Factvsfiction Citizen Username: Factvsfiction Post Number: 1320 Registered: 4-2006 |
Kitchens always need a bit of time to work things out. It's unfortunate that online reviews can sink a place before it gets up to speed. We do need to support diversity in our culinary choices in the area since we always get the same regurgitated styles, faux continental and Italian. Since people have money to burn here, I think bitching about a rice charge as a basis to avoid a restaurant is nonsense. Have them call the owner or manager over and explain to them it can't fly. Work with the place, is what I am saying. Personally I think a good Indian cuisine place should offer dhosa, even if it is viewed by some as plebian. | ||
| angel Citizen Username: Angelia Post Number: 12 Registered: 9-2005 |
I had dinner on Saturday night. everyone would be happy to know that rice now comes with the meal. Had chicken with apricots out of this world | ||
| Virtual It Girl Citizen Username: Shh Post Number: 4914 Registered: 5-2001 |
Wow Angel, you eat at Sona a lot! Glad to hear our request for rice has been heard. Will have to try it, maybe tonight. | ||
| Soparents Supporter Username: Soparents Post Number: 2607 Registered: 5-2005  |
Hubby is on the way there now to pick up a menu.. Will report later! | ||
| Soparents Supporter Username: Soparents Post Number: 2615 Registered: 5-2005 |
Very good! Ordered what we thought would be just right and we had loads over. Rice (as stated above) was included. Will happily go back | ||
| calypso Citizen Username: Calypso Post Number: 68 Registered: 1-2006 |
Hmm, I got take out tonight, and the owner generously comped me on three rices--but then charged for three more! The rest of the food was good, though, and they seem to have worked on the salt issue. | ||
| Dego Diva Citizen Username: Fmingione Post Number: 787 Registered: 12-2003 |
Now that I’ve finally awoken from my Indian-food-induced-coma, I’d like to give my feedback on the lunch buffet at Sona. I’ll be honest – I wanted to hate it!! There, I said it. I didn’t want another overpriced, mediocre Indian restaurant that I’d have to hear about for 6 months while it slowly went down in a blaze of glory. So I walked in there feeling very critical, but I walked out greatly satisfied and stuffed to the gills with some of the best Indian food I’ve had this side of the Hudson. The food was so good I just couldn’t help but overdo it! I sampled nearly everything on the buffet. Here’s what I had: Vegetable Pakora – this was the first time I’ve had Pakora where I could actually discern each vegetable that was in it. Usually I get doughy blobs with a veggie here and there. These were very crisp and chock full of fresh broccoli, onions, cauliflower, etc.. The thick tamarind sauce on the side was a nice blend of sweet and spicy. Tandoori Chicken – I usually stay away from this dish on buffets because the chicken tends to sit there and dry out. However, Sona has managed to create a tender, juicy version, sitting in just a bit of red sauce, surrounded by sautéed peppers and onions. This is some of the best I’ve ever had, but I will say it’s tangier than most I’ve had in the past. I guess they marinate it in yogurt longer than usual, which might also contribute to the tenderness. Paneer Jalfrezi – I’ve never been a big paneer fan, but had to try the dish for the sake of evaluating options for my Vegetarian hubby. It was darn good!! The paneer itself was nice and firm, almost like tofu, which made it a bit more palatable for me. But what I enjoyed most was the spicy tomato sauce it was in, along with onions and strips of fresh red and green peppers. Dahl Mahkani – I wasn’t sure what to make of this at first because I didn’t know how to eat it with the rest of my meal. Dahl has always been a side dish to me, or a sauce to pour over the rice, but this had a very thick consistency that wouldn’t really work in that way. I skipped it at first. Then when I got my basket of Naan bread, which comes WITH the buffet, I though to slather the dahl on the naan. So good!! The flavor of the lentils came through nicely, along with a perfect blend of spices. If you see it on the buffet, put some in a bowl and try it. If you’re ordering off the menu, it would be a great appetizer to share, like a dip, with bread. Mixed Veggies – A very non-descript name for an extraordinary dish!! This was by far my favorite thing on the buffet, so I’ll do my best to do it justice in my description. This was not your average “vegetable curry” with the usual veggies swimming in loads of sauce. Instead they were nice big chunks of broccoli and cauliflower, along with carrots, green peas and onions, and probably some others I’m missing, coated in curry and spices and cooked just until they had a nice crunchy texture – NOT until they became mush. There as just enough sauce in them to slightly bind them together, but for the most part, they had more of a roasted or sautéed consistency. To me, it was a unique and tasty variation on a vegetable curry. Chicken Mahkani – OK, this is always my dish of choice at any Indian restaurant, and if a place can’t get it right, I will most likely never go back. I have very high standards for my Chicken Mahkani, and Sona definitely met them. Thick, creamy sauce, spicy and slightly tangy, all white meat chicken – it’s a winner! My minor complaint is that the chicken was slightly dry, but the sauce easily resolved that, and I will certainly try it again. Carrot Pudding – wonderful fresh grated carrots with crunchy cashews and sweet golden raisins. Again, I loved that I could actually bite into something and taste individual components instead of eating an orange blob of sweetness. A very nice end to a perfectly delicious meal! The only thing I didn’t try was the lamb curry, since I just don’t do lamb, but I can bet it was as good as everything else. Overall, I give Sona a big thumbs up, and though the menu prices are a bit high, I will definitely try it out for dinner, especially now that it seems they’re including rice with meals. Folks, this is what we’ve been crying out for in this area – a good Indian restaurant!! Let’s do what we can to support it and keep it afloat. Yes, I wish it was in a price range that would allow me to go more often, but I’m lucky enough to work from home two days a week, so I will definitely be taking advantage of the lunch buffet, which is a bargain, for sure. If you’ve been reading the mixed reviews on MOL and have been reluctant to try it, I highly encourage you to check it out yourself. We’ll always have critics, but good food speaks for itself, and I bet the majority of people will really enjoy this place. | ||
| Wilkanoid Citizen Username: Cseleosida Post Number: 623 Registered: 10-2002 |
What was the price on the lunch buffet? | ||
| Dego Diva Citizen Username: Fmingione Post Number: 789 Registered: 12-2003 |
$10.99 | ||
| saule fischer Citizen Username: Retro Post Number: 1 Registered: 8-2006 |
after reading the mixed reviews and uninformed statements (THE NAN IS PRE-MADE AND REHEATED) (the menu is to large to be freshly made) I decided to give SONA a try. I FOUND THE FOOD OUTSTANDIND, THE PORTIONS MORE TAN GENEROUS AND THE PRICE IN LINE OR LESS THAN OTHER INDIAN RESTAURANTS. tHE RICE WAS FREE BUT WOULD HAVE GLADLY PAYED. i AM EMBARRESSED BY THE NICKLE AND DIMERS WHO COMPLAIN ABOUT EVERYTHING AND PREDICT SONA WILL BE AROUND FOR A LONG TIME (JOHN) | ||
| papayagirl Citizen Username: Papayagirl Post Number: 621 Registered: 6-2002  |
You know... here's the thing. Besides the fact that there have been countless different threads about this place, which is unusual in itself... there have been quite a few really stellar reviews amidst the so-so ones, from people who are new or very infrequent posters. I'm not accusing anyone of not being who they say they are, because it's entirely possible that long time lurkers were so moved by the food at Sona that they felt compelled to post. But i'd be much more apt to pay attention to someone from Sona who actually came onto the board and said "Gee, i really appreciate hearing everyone's feedback about our rice... we'll definitely take that into consideration as we fine-tune our menu. Your business means a lot to us." I recently had an offline exchange with Helen of Freeman's Fishmarket about the food at the pool, and her response impressed me beyond measure. That's exactly the kind of thing that makes me inclined to spend a couple of bucks more for fish there than i would at other local places. | ||
| eliz Supporter Username: Eliz Post Number: 1644 Registered: 5-2001 |
I think you are on the right track Papaygirl - I just received a very rude PL from "Retro" - very suspicious. | ||
| Wendy Supporter Username: Wendy Post Number: 2902 Registered: 5-2001 |
While Retro's post was indeed suspicious (and rude PLs are upsetting to say the least), SoParents, Dego and Calypso - who all gave good reviews - are known posters on this board. | ||
| magmasystems Citizen Username: Magmasystems Post Number: 377 Registered: 1-2002 |
Papaya, Your posting echoes my feelings about some of these "first-timers" giving glowing reviews to Sona. Especially from people who seem as if they eat at Sona every night. That being said, I am encouraged about some of the good reviews from long-time posters, and the decision to make the rice complementary. I will probably give it a try the next time I am in the mood for some Indian food. | ||
| Stuart0628 Citizen Username: Stuart0628 Post Number: 319 Registered: 2-2003 |
Rice included....check Salt level adjusted...check Anyone know if they got the A/C fixed? I look forward to going back there as soon as that's taken care of. | ||
| eliz Supporter Username: Eliz Post Number: 1646 Registered: 5-2001 |
Check with Retro - I have a feeling he has the inside track. | ||
| susan1014 Supporter Username: Susan1014 Post Number: 1735 Registered: 3-2002 |
I'm another long time poster who had a very good meal there and is eager to go back (once the AC is fixed). | ||
| papayagirl Citizen Username: Papayagirl Post Number: 622 Registered: 6-2002 |
Just to be clear, i think everybody who spends any time on this board knows who the long-time posters are. We all recognize the names or can see the number of posts. I'm talking about people who just joined the board, or have posted anywhere between one and a dozen times. Check all of the Sona threads... there have been more than one or two, and none of them are saying "yeah, food not so good." Just seems weird, that's all. | ||
| Steve Weber Citizen Username: Steveweb Post Number: 1 Registered: 8-2006 |
OK, following everything thats been said here, I will boldly make my first post. We had takeout from Sona last week. Appetizers were mediocre, entrees were outstanding. Very fresh flavors and we were quite happy to see at least half of the menu extend itself beyond the chicken/lamb/vegetable korma/jalfrezi/vindaloo paradigm. Paying for rice was a bit of a surprise, but one order was enough for four adults (one on Atkins) and a ravenous three-year-old. We will definitely return. | ||
| Soparents Supporter Username: Soparents Post Number: 2624 Registered: 5-2005 |
Nice first post Steve Weber! Welcome |
