Aromas of India Cooks Up Vegetarian Comfort Food in Williston 

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• James Buck
• Paneer tikka and garlic naan

Sarita Devi's new restaurant, Aromas of India, draws inspiration from North Indian dhabas — roadside stands that offer affordable comfort food to travelers. Time will tell if the Williston spot, which opened in July, becomes a stopping point for cars zipping by on Interstate 89, but it's already making locals happy as a one-of-a-kind restaurant in a land of big-box stores and their eatery equivalents.

Aromas of India is located off Route 2, a stone's throw from Maple Tree Place. It marks a big step for Devi, who started cooking for customers from her South Burlington home and, more recently, through regular pop-ups at Richmond Community Kitchen under the name Sarita's Kitchen.

Devi quickly built a devoted clientele for her takeout Indian vegetarian menu, all made from scratch, including the breads and chutneys. Guests at her new restaurant will find expanded offerings, such as generously stuffed samosas enveloped in flaky pastry; a wide array of hearty paneer dishes; and a rich dessert called carrot halwa, made with milk, dry fruit and cardamom.

Devi's husband, Yogi Singh, who helps at the restaurant when his information technology job allows, said Aromas of India has been busy from the start. The couple moved to the United States from northern India in 2010 and lived in Minnesota before following Singh's job to Vermont, now as a family of four.

In her new home, Devi invited acquaintances over for dinner as a way to develop friendships and forge community. Impressed, her guests encouraged her to start a business and told their friends where to find her delicious, authentic Indian food.

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• James Buck
• Sarita Devi and Yogi Singh

"Sarita truly takes pride in her cooking," said close family friend Riddhi Patel over a snack of fritters called pakoras and a cup of spicy-sweet gingery masala chai at the restaurant. "It gives her that sense of purpose, that her cooking is bringing people together."

An interior designer, Patel has been involved with Aromas of India since the beginning, helping to plan and design it as the community gathering space that Devi and Singh envisioned. According to Patel, they considered a fast-casual model without servers but changed course when they realized they couldn't name a local sit-down Indian place that met their expectations for great food, ambience and service.

A step inside makes the gray strip-mall exterior of the building feel miles away. Brightly colored, intricately decorated wallpaper portrays traditional Indian figures gathering, dancing and playing music. Houseplants and shelves of artifacts add whimsy, as does the turquoise-painted tiki-style bar that serves as the room's centerpiece. Tasseled, multicolored umbrellas from India add flair.

The festive atmosphere provided the perfect setting for a late lunch when my sister and I stopped in on a recent Saturday. We were in a heightened mood, buzzing with excitement for our afternoon plans: seeing Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour at the Majestic 10.

I asked Singh, who was working the front of house, for advice on navigating the extensive menu, as I had on my first visit. "Always," he replied graciously. For our entrées, we settled on rajma curry ($10.99), a kidney bean dish that is one of Singh's favorites, and aloo gobi ($12.99), a potato and cauliflower combination I recognized from other Indian restaurants.

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• James Buck
• Samosas, bhindi masala and garlic naan

To start the meal, we gambled on the papri chaat appetizer ($6.99), which was new to us. The menu description mysteriously said just "chickpea, potato, and papri." (The online menu, available by QR code from the paper menu, explains that it's a popular north Indian street food that also includes yogurt and chutneys.)

Our bet paid off with a wealth of flavors and textures, delivered by a base of perfectly cooked chickpeas and potatoes topped with yogurt, red onion, herbs, and fried noodles called sev that look like sprinkles. A generous dusting of red chile powder brought heat that nicely countered the sweetness of the tamarind sauce drizzle. The papri turned out to be airy crisps to scoop it all up.

I had to cut myself off to save room for the curries, which arrived in shiny metal bowls and — depending on the selections — run the gamut of fall foliage colors: deep reds and browns, rich yellow, and earthy orange. I'm a big fan of beans, so the rajma hit the spot with its thick, heavily spiced tomato sauce and tender legumes. The aloo gobi provided textural contrast with its chunky potatoes, cauliflower and onion. Both were intensely flavorful and so filling I didn't need dinner that night.

Devi tailors the spice level of each dish to individual preference, but if, like me, you dine with people whose capsaicin tolerance exceeds your own, a side order of soft, tender naan ($1.99 to $4.99) can help. It comes in nine varieties, including cheese, butter and chile garlic. (Be advised: The last variety is delicious but does not subdue spiciness.) Singh also suggested a cooling side order of the yogurt-based condiment called raita ($2.99) or a bright, creamy mango lassi ($3.99).

Over two visits, I tried a representative sampling of four types of main course: paneer, bean, dal and vegetable, each accompanied by basmati rice ($10.99 to $14.49). For the uninitiated, dal is made from lentils, and paneer is a soft Indian cheese that, when served cubed in sauce, is reminiscent of tofu. It subs for chicken in dishes such as paneer tikka masala and butter paneer masala, as Aromas of India is fully meatless.

click to enlarge

• James Buck
• Samosas and mixed pakora

Devi and Singh are vegetarian themselves, a common religious and lifestyle choice in India. "She is 200 percent vegetarian, and I am maybe 101 percent," Singh joked. He occasionally eats eggs, which are widely categorized with meat in India.

In Singh's view, the lentils, beans, milk and cheese on the menu provide ample protein, but he said some people order takeout and add their own meat at home. Devi has no plans to add meat to the menu, but wine and beer will soon be available.

Word has spread quickly about Vermont's newest Indian restaurant. While my sister and I sang along with other Swifties in the multiplex down the street, state Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale (D-Chittenden-Southeast) shared a meal with New York-based Indian deputy consul general Varun Jeph, I learned later from Singh. The consulate had held an event to provide passport and visa services in Essex Junction that day.

Reached by email afterward, Ram Hinsdale, whose father emigrated from India, said she heard Hindi, Urdu and Bengali at tables around the restaurant. That is a sure sign that Aromas is drawing interest from Vermont's diverse Indian communities.

"We ordered comfort foods like matar paneer, bhindi masala (okra) and potato paratha," Ram Hinsdale wrote, noting that she plans to return with a group of young Indian moms. "I can't tell you how much that felt like a taste of home."