Type: Indian (duh!)
Location: Outside of Hensill Hall
Price: $$
Speed: Of actual food, pretty fast. The line, on the other hand….
Variety: Choice of kati roll or rice plate with 5 options: chicken tikka masala, gobi aloo (vegetarian), and 3 daily specials. Combos, samosas, and beverages available. Vegan/gluten-free options.
Payment Methods: Cash, card

Disclaimer: We’ve totally been here before.

Nena sips her mango lassi

The Omnivore Got: Chicken Tikka Masala Kati Roll, Samosa and Mango Lassi

In case any of you are wondering what food truck to go to, hike your butt out to the West Campus Green location because all you lazy people at the top of campus make the line a nightmare! Kasa Indian was at Hensill Hall this Tuesday and it was literally a half an hour wait! The food was pretty fast after that but the line was seriously ridiculous. Last time I went to the West Campus Green location, there was no line whatsoever. Seriously people, distribute!

Once I finally got food, I had chicken tikka masala in a kati roll with a samosa and mango lassi. I love chicken tikka masala. I’ve gotten it before at this food truck, but as a rice plate. Kasa’s food truck gives you the same three options that you can either have in a roll or rice plate, and I gave a kati roll a test drive since I wasn’t as hungry.

I unwrapped it to find a huge masala mess. It was just sauce and chicken wrapped up in a naan, burrito-style but much smaller. I didn’t get it with onions and spicy sauce, but that was an option. I got sauce and lost pieces of chicken everywhere as I ate; I probably shouldn’t have unwrapped the whole thing. The struggle with eating it really took away from the meal. But on the upside, the mint chutney and yogurt sauces that came with it were way yummier on the roll than the rice plate.

Samosa? Perfect every time. My favorite part of my samosa was the slight burns in a few key places that made it extra crunchy…love! Always good with the sauces as well.

The most interesting was getting the mango lassi. I’ve never tried their mango lassi before, and for those of you who don’t know, it’s a traditional yogurt-based drink with mango and spices that’s thick and yummy. When trying their drink though, the first thing I tasted was tang. It tasted much more lemony than anything else at first, slowly turning to yogurty-mango after that. It was…very interesting. Not bad, but not what I expected. Not sure I’d get it again.

Score from the Omnivore: ⅗. Get the masala as a rice plate — and only go to West Campus Green!!

Holly digs into her Samosa.

The Vegan Got: Rice Plate combo with Gobi Aloo, Samosa

I’ve eaten at this food truck a few times before, and it always manages to satisfy my spicy Indian food cravings. I’ve had the veggie kati rolls, but this was my first time splurging on a rice plate. I was pretty hungry when we arrived, and we had to wait 30 minutes in a long line before we even got a chance to order. This is either a testament to the awesome quality of Kasa Indian’s food, or the lack of food options around this area of campus. Probably both.

Once we ordered, the food was ready fairly quickly, within 5 minutes or so. I was told that the Gobi Aloo was dairy-free, so I’m assuming it was vegan. Indian food is usually prepared with ghee (clarified butter), so I was skeptical, but hungry enough not to care. The website, however, says the rice plates can all be prepared either gluten-free or vegan, so I guess I’m in the clear! Although my rice plate was vegan, I can’t eat Indian without a samosa, so I splurged on a little cheat there. If you’ve never had a veggie samosa before, stop everything and eat one NOW. It is a spicy potato/pea/flaky triangular crust full of of deliciousness. Steer clear if you have celiac though, because that flaky crust is packed with wheat.

My dish consisted mostly of cauliflower and potatoes, medium on the spicy scale. It was a long trek from Hensill Hall back to the journalism department in Humanities, so my food was sort of lukewarm when we returned – not great.
The extras on the rice plate were a yummy bonus: daal (slow cooked black lentils), kachumbaar salad (a pinch of veggies with coconut-lime dressing) and basmati rice. This was just enough food: I felt satisfied but not overly full. The presentation was nice and I’m sure it would have been a lot more delicious if I ate it while it was still warm.

Score from the Vegan: ⅗. I’m in agreement with Nena, I won’t be coming back to the truck in this area. The food was good but the wait was way too long! Loving the gluten free/vegan options. Don’t wait to eat! Get it while it’s hot. If you’re extra hungry (or gluten-free), go for the rice plate, but I personally preferred my veggies in a kati roll.