Many traditional Indian dishes are cooked in a clay oven, and as such the new India Clay Oven restaurant offers many of these dishes on their menu.
Our trip to India Clay Oven started with a friendly welcome from a staff member who “is from India” according to General Manager Caje Dourado. In fact, most of the staff at the restaurant come from the state of Gao on the southwestern coast of India, with the Konkan region. Formerly a Portuguese possession, the state of Gao became part of India in 1962 and attained statehood in 1987.
Caje Dourado has been in the restaurant business for over 25 years, and most recently managed the India Clay Oven in Bismarck. “We would see many people coming to eat at our restaurant in Bismarck, so we were looking for an opportunity to get into this market” according to Dourado.
The proximity between Minot and Bismarck were an important factor in determining the viability of the newest restaurant. “To go into a new market is very costly. This (Minot) restaurant worked well.”
The current staff at Clay Oven is about 15 people. As we were looking at the many offerings on the buffet line, which is open daily from 11 AM to 2:30 PM for lunch 7 days a week, one of the staff members took time to explain each item on the buffet that day. He took extra special care to point out the entrées that were a little more on the spicey side of the cuisine. The decision? We would start with small portions of the less spicey buffet items and fill in around the edges with the rice & the breads. It was a great decision, and eventually led us to choosing entrées that were a bit spicier. None of our selections were extremely spicey. Curry is the staple spice used in Indian food and has a very distinct flavor. “But there is other spice” according to Dourado “and once you have come to the lunch buffet and tried everything, we like you to come back for dinner, where we can explain the menu items better.”
The buffet is not the only menu item offered at lunch “about 50% of our guests go the buffet. During the summer it was like 90%, but that changed. We like to get people back to try the dinner after they have been here for the buffet, and so we give them a 10% off coupon.” Along with that “we offer a military discount of 10% on our menu, even on the buffet” Dourado shares.
Surjit Saroya owns both the Minot and Bismarck restaurants, and Dourado manages them both. Shannon Barretto is the chef for India Clay Oven in Minot and Tince Joseph hold the chef position in Bismarck.
The cuisine differs between the northern region of India vs. the southwestern region where Duorado, and most of his staff are from. The cuisine at the India Clay Oven is more influenced by the northern cuisine. “That is where the owner, and most of his family are from. There is more bread and cheeses.”
The expansion to Minot had a target audience that included Canadians and military people. The startup in Minot started about 2 years after the Bismarck restaurant. I would suggest the same tour of the buffet that we received if you try lunch or should a fine dining experience be more of what you like, just ask the friendly and informative staff about menu items allowing them to help you in your dining experience.
Welcome to Minot India Clay Oven, fine dining, and a great atmosphere.
