Haveli Indian Cuisine
| Address: | 116-33 Queens Blvd, Forest Hills, NY 11375, USA |
| Phone: | +1 718-261-8880 |
| Site: | haveliindianforesthills.com |
| Rating: | 3.2 |
| Working: | 12–3PM 12–3PM 12–3PM 12–3PM 12–3PM 12–3:30PM 12–3:30PM |
Location
Photos 48
Reviews 6
ST
Stephanie Perez
Came here last week for a close friends wedding. She rented out their downstairs area and the happy couple had their nuptials and reception there. This was her 2nd wedding ceremony (same [lucky] guy) since her first one was in Costa Rica where they met and a lot of her friends and family couldnt attend. This restaurant is HUGE and has 2 floors which are beautiful, very Eastern Indian and quite fancy-pants. Definitely a hall type place perfect for a wedding reception. The problem for my friends and I was the lack of ventilation made for not so great air quality... At an open bar and spicy food buffet...on a day where its like 95+ degrees outside...where a DJ is pumping away and people are getting their groove on in dancefloor-land - it was hard to not go upstairs, away from the wedding party to go the upstairs loungey part which was significantly cooler. I mean this is the first open bar wedding Ive ever attended where I left completely sober because all I could guzzle down was water and lots of it. Havelli really needs to step up their game and perhaps install central air conditioning downstairs - my boyfriend and friends were dizzy, not feeling too great and with poor air conditions its really hard to have fun and enjoy such a special day. The food was fantastic, best food Ive ever had at a wedding, but not the best Indian food Ive ever had. Chicken tikka, tikka masala, delicious Indian-style saucy shrimp, white biryani rice, a spinach platter, potato & peas samosa, cucumber raita sauce and naan (obviously) were among the foods offered buffet style. The sauce-less (but seasoned) chicken tikka during appetizer hour was a bit on the bland side, but the chicken tikka masala was much juicier, tender and much tastier - although spicier than Im used to for a generally "mild" dish (I dont do spicy and Im slowly training myself to deal with it since one of the boys fave cuisines is Indian food) - thank GOODNESS for the huge bowl of raita that they provided at the buffet table! Lol. Dont know if I would go out of my way to come back here to try their $12.95 all-you-can-eat special because there are so many better options around Jackson Heights and Astoria that are cheaper and tastier...but if I randomly find myself hungry and in this particular neighborhood I would swing by and try it out. The restaurant staff was friendly, attentive and overall pretty nice - except there was one thing that rubbed me off the wrong way - during the actual exchanging of vows between the bride and groom someone at the bar was very loudly filling up the ice container. I was seated as far away from the bar as possible and had trouble hearing the grooms vows because of the ice noise - NOT COOL, they seriously could have waited for a better time to do that. In all Havelli is a great place to host a large event - but definitely try renting out the upstairs (ground level) part because downstairs (at least during a summer heatwave) is BRUTAL.
CH
Christine Yup
Unfortunately the Sunday buffet I sat for turned out to be not what I had expected. The Yelp fan fare held strong at four stars for as long as I has been wanting to check Havalli out, were talking the better part of a full calendar year. Huge, spacious dining room, clean and quite regal upon entering. But as I found my seating, unassisted, I peered at the hot buffet tray count which totalled 8. Now I do understand that your really not going to get the most out of an 11:00-3:00 brunch when you show up at 2:15, however... The dishes not been torn through with reckless abandon only held a few morsels and no restock was on the horizon. Worse yet, I felt the food was Americanized Indian, toned down and muted, bland and frankly boring. King Fisher was out if stock,I blame the delivery company, as that was how it was explained in all due sincerity. The mystery spicy Indian mixed drink would have put the face of any casual drinker flat in the naan, but alas, Im a pro. But wowser was it potent. A return trip will most definitely be in my future plans, Im sure that I just caught them at an odd time.
RI
Rie Bohn
On the menu under the salad section, there is crispy okra salad with red onions, tomatoes and lime. What we got was ONLY crispy okra. We called them and complained. They says that the menu is old and Crispy Okra doesnt come with the rest. We paid $9 for the tiny crispy okra and they are not even Salad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Moreover, what surprised us was that this place has no interests in a good customer service. They had zero interests in staying in business. The person answering the phone hung up on me and super rude. Please dont go there and please dont order crispy okra. It is serious rip-off!!!!! Update: The manager called and apologized for the whole thing. Crispy Okra is supposed to come with other items and it is Salad as we expected. The staff last nights attitude was still not acceptable at all but we appreciate the managers effort. Their food is decent. Please note that the manager is nice but sometimes this restraint has staff members who dont know how to treat the customer.
LI
Limor Nesher
We ordered online .we were told we should expect a 45 minute wait time . After an hour the food disint arrive .we called to find out the status ,and were told to wait ten minutes as the food is on its way to us . Every ten minutes we called again and were told the same thing . After TWO HOURS of wait time for the food - we decided to order pizza and called to cancel the order . The delivery gal called and said shes on her way ! We had to argue and asked to cancel this rediculous order and get our money back . When I told this to my family member they reminded me that the same thing happened to us with this place a while back ..I have crossed their name in my memory instead of remembering it so o wont forget Never to order again
MI
Miao Chen
I have only gone once but I will be going back again. While I was there I had the buttered chicken, biryani, spinach with fresh cheese and eggplant and a few other dishes with friends. The resturant carries many Indian staple foods and offer mild versions for those who are newer to Indian cuisine. The spices were fresh and really well balanced. I had the best naan Ive ever had at the resturant. It came fresh and piping hot! My friends and I ended up trying three different kinds of them in the end: the buttered, with garlic, and the sweet naan stuffed with cherries, raisins and carrots. I highly recommend this place whether you are a frequent consumer of Indian food or someone trying it for the first time!
EV
Evan Boccardi
Outstanding weekend buffet, delicious food. I live right around the corner, and my girlfriend and I love the place. Goat curry, saag paneer and chicken tikka masala are common staples, theyll also make new dishes regularly, which keeps it interesting. Once I told them the saag paneer didnt taste right one day, they actually removed the entire tray from the buffet and replaced it with a new one; they offered us free drinks for our trouble. They always bring fresh Naan to the table, occasionally they have gulab jamun for dessert, my absolute favorite. Only cause for concern is slow service, but it is a buffet, so youre not exactly waiting for much. Give them a try!
