The first time you take someone to Kalachandji’s, the reaction is invariably disbelief. How could Dallas be home to a Hare Krishna temple with a restaurant that serves a vegetarian (mostly vegan) buffet?
Disbelief is followed by wonder. How do they make such good bread? It’s a regular feature of the buffet, and it comes in whole wheat or cinnamon raisin. But everything here is proficiently done. Rice infused with sweet, musky cardamom. Stir-fried cabbage and carrots, with a crackling of black pepper. Shepherd’s pie, the mashed potatoes fluffy yet firm, and with lentils standing in for ground beef. Yam pakoras, fritters made of al dente slices of earthy sweet potato in a crisp crust. Many dishes have an Indian flavor, such as the crisp pappadum wafers and the meaty garbanzo beans in curry sauce.
It’s a modest buffet within a dining room you’d never expect inside this glorious, ornate temple complex. More remarkable is the stepped courtyard, overgrown with greenery and bathed in sunshine, that’s the favored dining area. The staff is composed of Krishna devotees who bring your choice of dessert: milky rice pudding or assorted flavors of halava, a bread-like pudding made from Cream of Wheat.
Once your wonder has worn off, you’ll feel gratitude. Not just for the wholesome dinner you’ve had, but for the mere existence of Kalachandji’s in a city that can seem otherwise unfunky.
Get contact information for Kalachandji’s Palace.
