The best butter chicken in Vancouver!

Nearly everybody loves butter chicken, which shouldn't come as a surprise given how Indian food is so popular in Vancouver. But finding a really good butter chicken can be quite a challenge.

A dish that seems relatively simple to make is actually difficult to master because the seasoning and colour have to be just right. Typically, a good butter chicken is recognized by its orange colour. It shouldn't be a dull brown or red.

You can find butter chicken in most neighbourhoods and sometimes even get bombarded by the abundance of knockoffs, such as butter-chicken samosas and butter-chicken wraps. The truth is that it should be eaten just as butter chicken with warm, fluffy naan.

After eating it in so many Indian restaurants, I've come to the conclusion that Akbar's Own serves the best butter chicken in town. At $13 a serving, it's sufficient for two people. The secret of its magic is in its sauce (though in India, they call it gravy).

For starters, the colour is right with a mellow orange hue. The flavours of cardamom, cream, and tomato are smooth on your taste buds and denote an experienced hand.

According to Riley, a charming server at Akbar's Own, the chefs are very experienced and they will customize your request if you're dissatisfied. She did say that butter chicken remains one of Akbar's Own's most popular dishes and I couldn't help but agree. It's delicious, it's wholesome, and most importantly, it's authentic.

It's like tasting the food from restaurants in Delhi while sitting in Vancouver looking out the window at the cold rain.