Badmaash

Reviews 6

AN

Andrew Marvin

Ive traveled the world in search of great Indian cuisine and this is by far the very worst of the worst. Check out my other reviews of Indian restaurants in places like Beijing, Ho Chi MInh City, etc. You cant get any worse than BADmaash. Lets start with the service. The greeter was cheery enough, but made my party wait a full-blown hour on the dark curb. She didnt bring us any sort of snack while we were waiting. Nothing. The waiter was friendly, though inept. He knew nothing about the food and we therefore had to be very careful as half our party was vegan. He refused to clear our plates even as they piled up on our tiny table. When I finally requested he do so, he acted like he was doing us a big favor. At Badmaash, tips are expected not earned. Next lets talk about the ambiance. The rap music being played was so loud and obnoxious that our party couldnt even carry on a normal conversation. The walls were plastered with racist, tacky Hindi letters reminiscent of high school kids who think getting random Kanji tattoos is cool. The smells of the cooking was so overwhelming that it left my clothes and hair reeking long after we had left. The feeling was so alien compared to all the other Indian restaurants Ive been to. It might have had something to do with them not having a single Indian person on the staff. Finally the food. TINY portions for MASSIVE prices. Vegans beware, there are a grand total of three vegan options on the pint-sized menu. I ordered the broccoli tandoori for 14 dollars. A small charred twig drenched in oil is what I received. Our finally bill came to $204. They didnt so much as thank us on our way out despite the massive amount of cash they had just scammed us out of. I cant believe this hellhole gets as much business as it does. NEVER COME HERE.

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JA

Jake B

Im usually pretty skeptical of "fusion" type food, and with stuff like chicken tikka poutine on the menu, thats pretty much what is going on here. It isnt that I dont think cuisines should mix or that Im desperate for "authenticity," whatever that is, it is just that I think in most cases you end up with something that is neither fish nor fowl, and so it is just not very good. I dont think Baadmash is entirely an exception to this rule - I think the poutine here is pretty much overrated, for example, but what they do well they do really very well. I could eat the papri chaat they server here all day, but then Id have to spend the next day eating the "2-bite fish fry" which was another highlight. It seemed appropriate to order butter chicken here, with as much sending up of the cheesy Indian restaurant shtick they do here, and that was also pretty good. It is also nice to go to a (mostly) Indian place that doesnt look and taste exactly like all the other ones youve ever been to in LA, so the decor and their offbeat attitude is a plus as well. Service staff seemed a little bored, but basically efficient, and we never felt like we were either rushed or had to wait longer than we wanted. Oh! Almost forgot about dessert, which was super basic but my wife has talked about it ever since - just ice cream sandwiches made from good vanilla ice cream and Indian Parle-G biscuits. I personally thought this was really good, but nothing amazing, but I think it brought her some nostalgia of the time she spent in India or something. Maybe Ill go buy some of those cookies and some ice cream this weekend.

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YE

Yenny Du

Yum! Came here on a Wednesday night with 2 friends around 8PM. We were seated right away at a table. Unfortunately, no tables were available upstairs in the loft area. FOOD: - traditonal samosas - yum! Potato filling, goes great with the cilantro chutney that comes with it. - butter chicken samosas - these were also super delicious! Chicken was so flavorful and tender. This went well with the tamarind chutney. - chili cheese naan - kinda like a quesadilla. Not too memorable for me - chicken tikka poutine - Ive never had poutine before (I dont like gravy) But this wasnt bad! Chicken itself was delish, fries were still crisp but I thought the gravy was a bit salty. - spiced pork belly - yummm! Super tender, and the mango sauce on top wasnt too weird -short ribs - I didnt try this but my friends liked it but found it a bit salty as well SERVICE: Friendly! Everyone was knowledgeable about recommendations and this one guy with the most awesome beard was telling us about this awesome sounding naan-pork belly-poutine taco they had created one night! Sounds awesome! Water was refilled without us asking and food came out pretty quickly. VENUE /PARKING: Space is small, bathroom is a single unisex one. Street parking aplenty. Kinda on the expensive side for Indian food and its def a bit more modern than traditional Indian cuisine - but delish!

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JO

John Marsico

The food is very good, unique, great place to bring people visiting town. That being said, have had several (3) bad experiences now with the staff. On 3 separate occasions our reservation was at least a half hour late, the third time reaching 45 minutes until we just finally left. Look, I get it, I worked in the service industry for a long time, stuff happens, whatever. I understand and am not the type to be rude to service staff. But they never really seem apologetic about it, you know, at least offer us a free appetizer or something. And the final time I went, where we waited for 45 minutes before leaving, was particularly annoying. We arrived at 10, the time of our reservation, and they said just a few minutes. So on and so on and so on, until finally, after 45 minutes, they tell us that we had actually made our reservation for 10:15pm, not 10pm. I said it seemed strange that they were suddenly bringing that up, but even if that is true, its currently 10:45, so wheres our table? "Just another minute. Several people who had arrived after us were seated. Maybe they had earlier reservations than us even, who knows. But we ultimately just left and after three bad experiences, probably wont go again.

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SH

Shal Metztli

One of my favorite spots to go for dinner before I catch my train home. I have fallen in love with the menu since I tried their butter chicken at the LA street food fest in 2013. Come with your friends and grab one of each item for maximum sensory overload. My favorites are: Chicken Tikka Poutine - juicy chicken, gravy, gooey cheese curds, and fries. A heavy item that packs flavor. The Chicken Tikka takes this Canadian dish to new heights; you may wonder why Canada doesnt adopt this version as its national dish. Butter Chicken Samosa - delicious butter chicken is wrapped up in a crispy shell. Filling is light and creamy with more juicy chicken. Chickpeas and Chips - refreshing and slightly sweet. The crispy chips are generously topped with chickpeas. If you ordered a really spicy item, this is a nice cool dish to have Interior is nicely decorated, seating can get cozy. On weekends its best to make a reservation if you want a table or have a group. The beer selection is nice curated, its a mixture of imports and craft beers. Service is quick; very polite, approachable, and knowledgeable staff. tl;dr a must try if you like a new take on Indian dishes and flavors

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R?

Rāhul Pōtéra

I had dinner Saturday night here with my wife. The food is a delectable take on Punjabi staples with LA flair. We tried the chicken tikka samosas and Punjabi fish for appetizers- both fantastic. I had the cutting chai, served in a handle reminiscent of Mumbai streets. It tasted great but not very authentic. My wife had mango lassi which was OK, not great. We then ordered badass chicken tikka and salmon tikka with Rosemary Naan (Great) and Tandoori Roti (OK) which both tasted just right. We only wished the portions werent so scanty. Chocolate chai creme de pot and mango mousse for dessert, which were both satisfying for what they were but I was hoping to try something more informed by Indian cuisine (granted though that desserts arent the strong suite of Indian food). The place had a lively vibe on the Saturday night with an old Bollywood movie projected on the wall, more as a mood setter than a distraction. The clientele was a cross-section of young urban LA. Our server was very helpful and engaging. We had a great time and will come back to try more menu items.

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