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Recently, my daughter and I decided to try the lunch buffet at Msala India Restaurant (also known as Ceramic Grill), in High Point. I learned of the restaurant through a reader, who suggested they make the best chana masala in the Triad. Chana masala happens to be one of my favorite Indian dishes, so I was thrilled to add this recommendation to my list of places to visit.

I love Indian food - the complex combinations of flavors, the warm heartiness of the dishes, the charred breads, the variety, the way it's such easy food to enjoy with a big group of friends. I love the occasional fieriness of its spice.

Before we became parents, my husband and I ate Indian food almost as often as we ate Mexican food - which is to say, very often. We both love it. And as much as we aim to expose our 2-year-old daughter, Camille, to the pleasures of eating cuisine from around the globe, she has yet to discover the joy of tongue-tingling spicy food. Now, we ask for everything to be prepared "medium," which, to our dismay, often ends up meaning "mild." We doctor our own portions with hot sauce, but it's never quite the same.

Buffets in particular tend to err on the side of being too mild, I imagine, to please the most sensitive palate. Judging from my experience at Msala, this kitchen has a knack for achieving just the right balance of heat - enough fire to add a kick (even for someone who likes a lot of kick) but not so much as to overwhelm the other seasonings (or those more delicate diners).

Entering the tiny storefront, my daughter was immediately drawn to the bubbling fountain just inside the door. "Don't let her touch the fountain, please. The water has bleach in it," the owner gently warned, and I was thankful for his attention. With no music playing, the fountain's drip and trickle provided a soothing accompaniment to our meal.

Several of the dozen or so tables were filled when we arrived, with groups of work mates, couples meeting for a quick lunch and several solo diners. Many of the diners seemed to be regulars, carrying on easy conversation with the owner, who gracefully tended all aspects of the dining room. I'm sure there must have been at least one other person working behind the swinging door that separated us from the kitchen, but I got the feeling he could have managed all the cooking single-handedly, too, without breaking a sweat.

Msala offers its lunch buffet seven days a week, with offerings varying from day to day. On my visit, there were four vegetarian dishes (lentils, mixed vegetable curry, green beans and saag) and three different kinds of chicken (chicken makhani, chicken curry and tandoori chicken). Camille especially liked the tandoori chicken and the juicy chicken curry, with its rich and flavorful brown gravy. The lentils were hearty, and the curried vegetables (cauliflower, carrots, lima beans) tasted bright and lively, as did the green beans. Saag (spiced spinach puree) is typically another one of my favorite dishes, and I especially love it studded with homemade cheese cubes (paneer), but there were none included in the buffet dish. Surprisingly, it was the only dish for which I did not go back for seconds.

Besides the chicken and vegetable dishes, the buffet offered naan (grilled flatbread), vegetable pakoras (seasoned, battered and fried vegetables) and dessert. The pakoras were especially delightful - slices of zucchini, in this case, coated in a chickpea flour batter that remained light and crispy even on the buffet. Also delightful were the chutneys, made in house. They were fresh and vibrant. My favorite was the mint chutney with its jalapeno bite.My daughter loves rice pudding, so rather than having the mango custard offered on the buffet, we ordered kheer (Indian rice pudding) off the menu for dessert. Msala's kheer tasted much like the cinnamon-spiced rice pudding I make, and Camille barely saved a bite of it for me.Msala is in Oak Hollow Square, a strip mall on the northeast edge of High Point. If you're heading there from Greensboro, just keep driving past the seemingly endless jumble of chain restaurants and big-box stores on West Wendover until you reach the intersection with N.C. 68/Eastchester Drive. Don't let all those chains taint your impression of the food in store at Msala. This restaurant couldn't be more different from homogeneous fare leading up to it.

Cheap Eats features local restaurants for diners on a budget. It runs every other week in Go Triad. Contact Angie DeCola at angiedecola@hotmail.com.