Woodlands Silver Spring Maryland
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Address Woodlands
8046 New Hampshire AveLangley Park, MD 20783 Other Maryland Indian Restaurants |
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Woodlands Langley Park: Spoiled, Crappy Food; Dirty Plates
About eight years back, we visited Woodlands Indian restaurant in Langley Park/Silver Spring, MD and our meal was so good we couldn't stop raving about the fine food at this Indian vegetarian restaurant.
Recently, we dined at the same Woodlands and, alas, our meal was so lousy that we haven't stopped raging at the trashy dump this Silver Spring Indian restaurant has morphed into.
Sad. All good things of life must come to an end, eh?
Spoiled Indian Food
We can forgive bad Indian food (God knows most Indian restaurants in the U.S. serve unpalatable food) but we can not bring ourselves to condone restaurants serving spoiled stuff.That is a heinous crime for which no absolution is possible in our not-so-humble opinion.
During our recent visit to Woodlands, we were hopping mad to discover that the Lemon Rice was clearly spoiled. Folks, a restaurant that serves spoiled food to diners is basically showing its disdainful contempt to paying diners.
Apart from its spoiled state, Woodlands' Lemon Rice also suffered from eggregiously bad labeling because there was not the least flavor of Lemon in the spoiled Lemon Rice.
Besides the spoiled Lemon Rice, much of the food at Woodlands was mediocre.
Even Basic Items Go Awry
What stunned us was how Woodlands managed to mess up even basic South Indian items like Vada, Sambar and Rasam.As in most Indian restaurants, the Chutneys (Coconut and Tomato) were very cold suggesting they weren't fresh. Coconut Chutney had a funny spell and was way too bland. Mercifully, the Tomato Chutney, although very cold, was flavorful.
Medhu Vada, which ought to be crisp since it's fried, was a soft and tasteless mishap at Woodlands.
There was no evidence of any chilies being used in the so-called Special Uppuma rendering this popular South Indian fixture bland and tasteless. Way too pasty, it seemed like Rava had been boiled in hot water with mustard seeds and curry leaves and rushed out by a harebrained chef.
Even the commonplace Sambar was a disaster at the hands of the inept baboons in Woodlands' kitchen. You see, the medium-thick Drumstick-Brinjal Sambar was low on Tamarind, low on Sambar spices and more than anything low on a competent chef's touch.
Rasam, a watery soup-like delight from South India, was nothing more than Tamarind water at Woodlands, bereft of Curry Leaf seasoning or the addition of Pepper Powder.
Out of a Rubber Factory?
Uttapam seemed like the leftovers from a rubber factory. We swear that's how rubbery the texture was.Perhaps it'd have made a good tire for our car! Who needs Michelin with Woodlands' Uttapam.
The small-sized Bathura and the Paratha were more instances of the rubber fiends busy at work.
Gobi Manchurian, daubed with an ugly red-color, was a travesty. Rubbery and flavorless, it's a shame they were even offered to diners. No self-respecting kitchen would have placed these monstrosities before diners.
Masala Dosa had too many issues: It was soft; It was flavorless; And it lacked seasoning for the potato+onion filling inside.
Jeera Alu tasted like plain boiled potato pieces and had not a whiff of the Jeera flavor.
By this time, we were in tears and wondered when our suffering would end.
Paneer Makhani (a North Indian item) was one of the few exceptions at Woodlands that was not an enemy of the palate. Cottage cheese cubes set in a medium-thick orangish creamy sauce, it went well with both the Bathura and Rice.
But we hit another pot-hole soon.
Palak Makhi (spinach with corn) was unworthy of being served to humans. Way too bland, it also had an awfully raw taste owing to lack of spices. Had it even been cooked. Well, we have our doubts. If Woodlands' Palak Makhi had any raison d'etre, it was merely to kill our appetite.
Thankfully, we stumbled upon the Cabbage+Beans Poriyal, which turned out to be flavorful although lacking in shredded Coconut.
The Brinjal+Chickpeas+Potato Kootu was way too sweetish to find favor with us and we quickly gave it the heave-ho.
More Misery
Our misery showed no signs of ending and chugged along on the desserts train too.Gajar Halwa (Carrot Halwa) was a over-sweet, slightly burnt piece of shit we wouldn't feed to dogs. Except, maybe to the Republican curs in Congress.
Mercifully, Bambino Payasam provided some badly-needed relief to our suffering palates. With vermicelli, dry grapes and cashew pieces in milk, it was one of the rare solaces of our disastrous lunch.
Poor Service
If you thought horrid food was the only problem at Woodlands, you'd be so wrong.Several of the eating plates kept on the buffet table were dirty and had not been washed thoroughly after the previous diner's meal. There were food particles sticking to the plates showing a callous disregard for basic hygiene and a sneering disdain for paying customers.
We were not the only diners forced to sift through multiple plates before finding a clean plate. A few other diners faced the same problem.
Like headless chicken, Woodlands' waiters were in a frenzy, moving hither and thither but it was hard to catch their attention for extra napkins or to get our water glasses refilled.
Woodlands Langley Park Rating - Just Not Worth Visiting
Overall, Woodlands vegetarian Indian restaurant in Silver Spring is an Indian dump unworthy of your precious time or hard-earned money.Folks, just because there are crowds at a restaurant doesn't make it a temple of fine Indian dining. Remember, 99% of the world is comprised of dumb sheep who can't distinguish between the two holes down there and are easily misled.
Hesitate not to show these bozos at Woodlands your middle finger with gusto. - © MDIndia.us
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Tiffin Takoma Park - Disappointing Food, Poor ServiceGhar-E-Kabab Silver Spring - Trashy Outpost of Indian Cuisine