Shasta Journey, Part II

Superb Indian Cuisine at Glassy Junction, in Weed, CA.  

We lucked out and found a room in Shasta that allowed dogs. It was a little more than Motel 6, but the shower I took Sunday morning was so exhilarating it was worth the extra money. Combination of water pressure, pure water, and a massage effect on my cranium from all those spry little bubbles. Felt like a thousand enlightened gnomes were applying acupuncture and shiatsu massage. 

On our way back from getting the water bottle filled at the Shasta Springs, I spotted this view of the sacred mountain.

Above and below: breakfast at Lily's, a locavore/organic restaurant in Shasta, which is more centered around salads, but I thought their Smoked  Salmon Benedict was divine (though a bit odd they used mixed greens instead of spinach); Robin didn't like her Chicken Fried Steak as much. 

Here's 5 photos of Mt. Shasta.

I can't believe how great this food was last night, and it completely changes my frames of reference for Weed and the region around Mt. Shasta, even Northern California itself. So how odd is it that a restaurant that's been known for pizza & BBQ, which recently started serving Indian cuisine was packed last night full of Indians (with one or two tables with Anglos), meanwhile the old part of the restaurant is empty?

Perhaps the explanation has to do with the fact that Weed, CA has a junior college, College of the Siskiyous, which feeds many students into places like UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and various Cal State colleges. Many of those students are foreign students, including Indians, keen on paying cheap rent, and hey, the rent's pretty cheap in this part of the state. If it wasn't for immigrants, would there be enough demand for an Indian restaurant way out here?

Garlic Naan. Clearly made from scratch using a tandoori oven. You can't fake bubbles like that. Perfect blend of dough and crisp.

Chicken Biryani. Absolutely stunning. All about the intense spice blend. Rice though was perfectly cooked and redolent of saffron, clove and other spices. Chicken was more like a flavoring, but succulent & tender.

At left, a perfect bowl of basmati rice, and to the right: Goat Saag. Praise be to all the Deities of the Hindu Pantheon, especially mighty Ganesh. Hallelujah! Great spinach flavor blended with the intense flavor & aroma of goat, so tender, so buttery, and yet it occurred to me they probably used ghee.

This was so exquisite, I'm pretty sure I've never had better Indian food in a restaurant in my life.