Taste Of India
| Address: | 14706 Lee Hwy, Gainesville, VA 20155, USA |
| Phone: | +1 703-743-5151 |
| Site: | tasteofindianova.com |
| Rating: | 4.3 |
| Working: | 11AM–2:30PM 11AM–2:30PM 11AM–2:30PM 11AM–2:30PM 11AM–2:30PM 11AM–2:30PM 11AM–2:30PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 9
AR
arbit dudi
Never order a "Indian Spice" dish. We were five, just finished a hike on Shenandoah and were really tired. Thought we would go to a Indian place on our way back to calm our appetites with a touch of home food. And the restaurant was right next to highway. We ordered 2 chicken and 1 lamb biryani, chicken and lamb curry. My friend thought, as most of the restaurants spice levels are lower than actual Indian spice levels, it will be alright to order Indian spice level. That is a terrible mistake. Around 30 min later our food arrived. I took a bite of lamb biryani my palette blew off. It is so hot I never ate something that spicy in my life. I swear to God, this is so hot it kicked me out of my senses. Finally a glass of mango lassi brought me back to life. This is not Indian spice, I knew it on first bite. This is Jalapeno pepper spice. If you have ever tried California Tortillas Ghost pepper hot sauce, thats the level of spice I am talking about here in all five dishes. Fortunately waiter(nice guy) gave us a normal dish in exchange for an untouched one. We had to mix white rice with little biryani rice with yogurt to satisfy our hunger. Man, it was so terrible. I wish we never stopped here. Fun fact is waiter and cashier/server both know it is going to be inedible hot. Apparently their reasoning goes by, there were some customers who were not satisfied with previous spice levels and they had to up it to the Ghost pepper levels. I had a chance to talk Chef, he is also a nice guy and asked him to show the peppers he used to create "Indian Spice", yup they are Ghost peppers. Well I told him how hot it is and the situation I am in , he listened but said he followed his recipe. Everybody in that restaurant were nice, they served us well (even though food was terrible). But what infuriates me is every one from chef to waiter know its too hot for a normal human being to consume "Indian Spice", there was no caution or advice on spice levels. We had to buy couple more lassis and raithas to calm the hunger. Finally I am going to finish by saying we felt like we were cheated on. We paid like 150 USD for this horrific experience and untasteful memories.
I.
I. Perera
Overall: Will go back again - This place can also be recommended to people new to Indian food, and those who have been craving it, alike. This is a fairly new restaurant the husband and I went to check out for dinner. Note: The people running the restaurant are not new to the business, we should be in good hands :-) The menu: We loved the variety of pan-Indian dishes offered on the menu. To find some of the items you would usually have to visit another regional restaurant. The service: Attentive, never had to ask for my water-glass to be refilled. The food: We ordered an appetizer and two entrees (chaat, lamb biryani and pistachio chicken korma). The appetizer was presented beautifully, as were the two entrees. The food arrived in individual, beautiful hammered copper pots.The dishes were sized well for family-style dining - we ate till we simply couldnt and still had some to take home for a mid-night snack. The food was cooked and seasoned well and very tasty...we ate beyond feeling satiated and beyond feeling full. We didnt have dessert, but the dessert menu looks promising and will be tested next time. For those interested in the setting: Linen tablecloths, and linen napkins, dimmed lighting, comfortable feel. Until someone turns on fast-paced bollywood music, that is...Beautiful Indian carved sculptures (the modern pendant lamps from the previous restaurant somewhat clash with this more traditional decor)
MI
Michael Lee
We come here regularly for lunch but will not be returning in the future. Since they changed their buffet style from platters to bins, it seems they are re-heating leftovers as food is not fresh anymore. As result, cubed pieces of chicken are falling apart in flakes, and the sauce is salty from constant re-heating. Also, their chicken tandoori was gamey as if its old meat. Were going to Manassas for lunch now. Its a shame since weve been coming here since they opened, and we did like their food before quality went down. To whoever thought this was a good idea to save few pennies at the restaurant, youll lose customers this way and its a bad idea.
FL
Fluffytigerb
The service was so good here! We went on a Thursday night and it was so peaceful and relaxing. The food is amazing and they have so many options for everyone. We came here for my birthday, my husband and I are vegetarians but our families are not so it was great to find a restaurant that catered to all our needs and tastes. Word of advice, their spicy food is very spicy. Medium was my personal limit and I put Saracha sauce on everything. Also, their appetizers are very large so if you order 1 its good for 2-3 people. We were so full that by the time the food arrived we took most of it to go. Portions are huge.
FL
floyd thompson
The lunch buffet was our first venture into Indian food as a couple. I had partaken several times in the past. I was motivated to try this place based on two things: recommendation from an Indian friend and seeing the Netflix movie, "Todays Special". Great movie and this place is a super great lunch at great price. Staff exceptionally friendly, music culturally matched and the food; Chicken Tadoori, Marsala mint and onion sauces etc all were delicious. Highly recommend this place. Lunch is the most economic though.
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Jef P
Not overly impressed. The tandoori sampler I had was totally dried out. Lamb cubes were more like a jerky, actually inedible. We asked the host if it was always this dry and he said yes. We needed to ask our waiter for a dipping sauce. Really. Dont tell me its raining while your peeing on my leg. I dont want to go back but I was told we would give it another chance. All the reviews made a big deal about the water glasses being filled. I didnt pay for water. If you order food make sure its in a sauce.
WA
Warren Keely
Generally, it was a fine enough meal. We love Indian food and are quite partial to it, so we speak from a passionate view. Since having first gone there, the quality has dropped some. There are so few Indian options locally, so we dont have other options. If we did, and they were better, we would patronize them. I believe Taste of India offers good service and wants to provide good food, but for different reasons, their quality of food is less than ideal. I would love to see improvement.
PU
Puneet Singh
This is a very decent Indian restaurant in and around Gainesville and Haymarket area. I love their hospitality. The people there are very friendly and provide very good service. The place is very neat and clean. They have a buffet in afternoon which is reasonably priced. However I like to order off the menu as I like spicy and choose from different spice levels. They cook the food according to your preference of spice. My favorites are Chicken Korma and Malai Kofta.
BR
Brent Burich
I travel the northeast foe work and this is one of the nicest indian restaurants Ive ever eaten at. Nice decor with a beautiful bar and a nice cozy feeling. The mixed Tikka Masala appetizer is great, loved the chilli chicken as well. Fresh hot garlic Naan bread goes great with everything. Fast and friendly service with a smile! I cant wait to come back and try the lunch buffet. You wont be disappointed!
