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Chicken Tikka Masala from Surya Indian Cuisine on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Surya Indian Cuisine has been around for quite a while and a favorite of mine when it comes to Indian cuisine. Admittedly, I periodically forget that it’s there tucked behind the bright lights of Dunkin Donuts on Shrewsbury Street and for that reason was excited to get reacquainted with Surya on this Foodies visit. I chose the Chicken Tikka Masala and my favorite Surya Special Naan. The cubed tandoori chicken was even more tender than I had remembered and the cuts of chicken perfectly trimmed. I’m an all white meat type of person – no gristle in this dish. The ‘exotic’ red colored sauce burst with sweet flavors. The Surya Special Naan was my dessert. This sweet bread stuffed with almonds, raisins, and shredded coconut tasted as if it was straight out of the clay oven and could easily take the place of a breakfast scone and topped with jam or fruit chutney. Overall, a great meal served by friendly family run staff. -MO

When I found out Foodies was going to Surya Indian Cuisine I was excited about the opportunity because while I have had Indian food on many occasions, I have not been to Surya and I am by no means an expert and wanted to try something new.

As many of the online reviews have said, Surya is a tough place to find if you are not familiar with Shrewsbury Street as it is essentially behind Funky Murphy’s and does not have its own parking lot or even valet for that matter. When I walked in I was surprised at the size of the two, big dining rooms decorated with colorful Indian artwork and decor. We sat in the back room and was greeted by an extremely pleasant waitress who smiled every single time she came back to our table.

I had a hard time choosing from the expansive (not expensive) menu. I finally decided on the Chicken Chili and my dining companion and I chose a cauliflower and onion naan to share along with some plain jasmine rice. Our server asked how much spice I wanted and since I am always disappointed with how little heat there is in a dish I told her to bring it hot (more on that later).

Before our food arrived our server brought out some wonderful sauces and spicy chutney. When my dish was served it looked plentiful enough with large chunks of chicken and potato served with a brightly colored spicy sauce. The chicken was moist and delicious…and spicy! So spicy that I immediately looked for some rice to take the edge off. I had also ordered a Taj Majal pale ale and the clean, crisp beer took a little of the heat away while enhancing the taste and flavors of my dish. The naan was outstanding, freshly made, light, fluffy and served warm.

Overall, the freshness of the food, combined with the outstanding service of our waitress, made for an outstanding evening at Surya.