You can't miss the Curry Hut in Highwood - just keep an eye open for the curry-colored awnings that frame the two windows in front. (Highwood regulars will remember the Curry Hut space as an Italian restaurant called Two Guys from Italy.) If you have a hankering for Indian food, it would do you well to look at what's behind those awnings. The menu here is about as ambitious as you will find, so you will find - vegetarian or not choices as broad as the subcontinent itself.

One section on the menu deals with Nepalese dishes, but don't get too carried way - it is hard enough to get people to understand the basic approach (seasonings, etc.) to real Indian cooking as it is. However, if you love to explore and delve into world cuisines, the Curry Hut does feature an interesting goat dish, a Nepali bread, and several highly seasoned (using "Himalayan herbs and spices") chicken and vegetable dishes. It's an entire new take on the exotic spicing that that part of the world has to offer. The Curry Hut is one of maybe two or three Indian restaurants in the north and northwest suburbs, so I would not be stretching things by saying it is one of the best. Curry Hut can hold its own with any Indian restaurant in the city, Don't get me wrong. I am not about to drive from the city to Highwood just to eat Indian food. However, should I be in that neck of the woods, this would be my go-to Indian restaurant without question.

It's all about the spicing when it comes to Indian food, the understanding that the kitchen has when it comes to the proper usage of spices - masala in Hindi. Masala has several interpretations. In the culinary world it refers to a mixture of spices for a particular dish (and, of course, the amount and variety used). In informal usage, masala refers to a hodgepodge of elements mixed together to add spice to the final product. Garam masala refers to a premade mixture of spices (three or four in a simple recipe; possibly 10 in a more complex version) used to flavor foods (tandoori masala for chicken is one example). To take it one step further, in India, movies that are made up of a mixture of several things are called "masala movies." You get the idea.

The cooks in the kitchen at the Curry Hut have the spicing idea down pat. One dish that didn't quite cut it for me was the shrimp Madras, but then I have never been a fan of the shrimp and coconut relationship. Other than that I was more than pleased. (Once again it is necessary for me to offer full disclosure by letting you know that I have been to India. A few years ago I spent two weeks in and around Chennai [Madras], so I got to sample a good deal of the food, albeit in one particular area. And while the cooking in India is as diverse as its regions - as it is in Italy - the idea of flavor from region to region follows a certain pattern.)

Commonplace but enjoyable was chicken pakora, nuggets of chicken that had been marinated, spiced, given a turn in the tandoor, battered, deep-fried and served with dipping sauces. Nothing to let loose a barrage of adjectives about, just interesting eating.

However, there is so much more on this menu to enjoy that too many appetizers (the pakora) or even a salad would be a waste. More to enjoy, like breads. I am as nuts about Indian breads as I am pizza, and Curry Hut has a wealth of interesting breads to savor and enjoy. Straight away naan is excellent, but there are two that I particularly favor - kulcha (stuffed with onions and cilantro), and keema (minced lamb stuffing), The problem is that it is hard to stop eating this bread; one bite and I am off and running.

wheelchair accessible. Try: Tandoori chicken, lamb curry, tandoori breads, basmati rice, rice pudding. In a bite: The lunch buffet is a deal ($8.95) and includes a good representation of what the menu is all about. The dining space is comfortable and eye-pleasing. Tablecloths grace the tables, and swag drapery graces the windows. Low ceilings amp up the noise level when the place is full. A whole lot of arches (OK, so there is still a kind of Italian feel to the space). Service is right on the money and very accommodating. Good for children. Reservations accepted. Nice banquet rooms. Outdoor dining, too.

My favorite main dish to have with Indian bread is the classic tandoori chicken. Marinated in yogurt and spices and cooked in the tandoor until it turned an appealing shade of red (the dramatic red color comes from the tandoori paste rubbed on the chicken), the chicken was tender, moist, and the light spicing let the flavor come through quite magnificently.

Vegetable dishes are by the dozen. I love eggplant any which way, and the oven-roasted and mashed eggplant spread (beautifully spiced) was another pleasure, scooped up with chunks of bread.

Aloogobi is a veggie dish made up of cauliflower and potatoes with a light sauce that hints of ginger. It was quite good. Under the Nepalese entree choices, a similar dish is called tarekoaloo. I had one of each on two separate visits. Though the Nepalese dish boasts Himalayan spices, I couldn't pick up much of a difference in overall flavor. What does it matter? They were both enjoyable, except I was looking for some kind of Nepalese spice experience.

Lamb curry was a winner. In a restaurant called the Curry Hut, it had better be. Chunks of tender lamb mixed it up with onions and tomatoes in a light cardamom-scented gravy of a sort.

Pair that lamb with one of the rice dishes (a good half-dozen to choose from) that include peas and a hint of saffron. It does wonders for the lamb, and the lamb does wonders for the rice.

Seafood dishes number a few, but I am not big on seafood in Indian restaurants. I find that some of the spicing is a bit too much in relation to the milder seafood offerings. I am much more comfortable with chicken, lamb, vegetables and breads. A personal choice, without question.

Desserts are personal, too. I favor but one - kheer, which is Indian rice pudding. I totally enjoy the aromatics in Indian pudding, along with the raisins and almonds in this version. There is a milk pastry dumpling that is fried and laced with a honey syrup ("gulabjamn,"), but it is way too sweet for my tooth.

Pat Bruno is a local free-lance writer, critic and author.