This place is Indian fast food. The only reason to ever go is if you are really craving Indian but want something quick and cheap. The entrees (usually consisting of chana masala, palak paneer and chicken tikka) just kind of sit in a hot serving thing all day, similar to what you'd see at Panda Express.
The only reason I ever went is when I was craving samosa chaat and didn't want to go through ordering and getting delivery from a real place. Let me be clear: The samosa chaat here is nowhere near as good as the samosa chaat in a real Indian restaurant. They take a samosa that's been sitting there god knows how long, add the chana masala that's been sitting there, take some yoghurt sauce that is not as decadent as the real stuff, and top with sweet tamarind and spicy cilantro sauce and some diced tomato. They never put nearly enough of anything on it and the ingredients aren't that great. But, it is the closest you will get to samosa chaat unless you go to a real Indian place more than a mile away. It was decent enough that I got it several times when I lived nearby. I was able to pop into the Ogilvie Transportation Center and grab this for dinner on my way home from work, or on the weekends if a craving struck.
My first time in OTC's food court and very happy to see an Indian vendor in here. I had to try it instead of getting the sandwich or burger. It was kind of average and a bit pricey but at least it is an alternative option which is not far from my office.
I opted for two entrees meal with Lamb Curry (additional charge) and Paneer veggie. The naan was warm and nice. I was not too impressed with rice. Lamb curry was too salty and lacking of other flavors. The meat was kind of tough to chew. The Paneer was pretty good which went pretty well with the warm naan. The mango lassi was decent.
So I spent $15 plus and ate half of my lunch in the container which was not cost effective. I will look harder for another indian place around this area.
For Americanized Indian food, come to Chutney Joe's to try the infamous "Bombayritto." Â The main location has closed, and the current location is not associated with prior ownership (in fact, they do not want to be associated due to lower quality food). Â I can see why they don't want to be associated... the food is average at best and the prices are still high enough to be disappointed. Â Luckily, they are located in Ogilvie Train Station's Food Court, leading to high foot traffic. Â If you are in the area, and not craving the other places, this may be a restaurant to think about trying.
Review Source:I decided to take a chance on this place after walking past it dozens of times over the past year or two.
1. The layout of the menu and the way your options are presented are EXTREMELY confusing. There are options for a 1 or 2 entree meal, with no explanation for what your choices of entrees are -- presumably, you have to look at the bins of cooked food and their labels and try to figure it out. But even the labelling of the food is confusing, with some things in large letters and others in smaller letters, and even those don't seem to match up with entrees vs. sides. I would recommend that they totally reconfigure the menu to read clearer -- small plates/sides clearly on one sign, entrees/sandwiches on another. And list the entree options!
2. The 2 employees didn't seem to know what they were doing. I asked what a particular item was in the choices for the naan sandwich, and they didn't know what it was. And it's not like they have more than 7-8 different kinds of meat/fillings to choose from.
3. The type of meat I ordered apparently wasn't in the bins of ready to serve food, and instead came from the back (after being microwaved, I presume, given the dryness of the chicken).
4. The choices of toppings for sandwiches were kinda limited -- lettuce, tomato, onions and...jalapeno peppers. Uh....OK.
With Mezza in the same building and I Dream of Falafel just a few blocks away, I can't think of any reason why I'd come back here. The food was passable, but at the same price point there are 2 far superior places nearby.
I must say I was disappointed with the food here. The flavor was missing and the breads were stale. But it is a decent place if you are looking a vegan option or want a quick Indian fix (and are lazy to walk down to the other Chutney Joe's on State where I have had better Indian food!).
Pros:
1) Location - Ogilvie Transportation Center
2) Vegan Options
Cons:
1) If you know your Indian food, then you will be able to tell the difference - lacks flavor
2) Smaller potions
3) Stale food
I might give this place another try to see if it was just a bad day for them or if that is just their standard.
If this place was on Devon at Western, I'd say give it a pass. Â But it's in the Ogilvie Metra station downtown. Â Anytime I can get a halfway interesting cheap meal in a Metra station that isn't McDonald's or Arby's, I'm interested. Â (Yeah, I know there are better options in the French Market next door, but the hours there are quite limited).
I had a one-entree meal consisting of chicken tika masala, a generous serving of rice, a pretty good warm garlic naan and a small container of a harissa-like tomato hot sauce. Â That was $6.98 and I added a tasty mango lassi drink for another $3.50. Â With tax (no tip required) the total came to $11.62, not bad in my book. Â Now the rice didn't seem freshly cooked (possibly thawed from frozen?) but the boneless chicken pieces seemed pretty good quality--not the bones and gristle you'd expect in a cheap joint. Â And the curry sauce was good, as was the naan and lassi. Â So, in the context of finding something interesting, healthy and cheap to eat in the train station, particularly late in the day when the French Market has shut down, this place is just fine.
Awful, Awful, Awful Indian food. In fact I wouldn't call this Indian food. For what the price is, you'd expect a lot more food. I'm not even suggesting "generous" portions, try "Fair" portions at least. What they served as 'tandoori chicken' is more closely resembling cheap fajita chicken- in both taste and quality. I don't even know where or when they cooked the meat, because when I ordered this guy scooped these bits into the container and microwaved it :|, so that some of it was scalding hot, and some of it was ice cold... I'm not expecting freshly prepared meals at a train station food court, but if popeyes next door can fry their chicken, and all the other places have their grills and sometimes freshly prepared food, I'd expect and Indian place with like 5 menu options to not microwave its fajita meat. The naan isn't naan either, it's pita bread... that comes from packets, not produced anywhere.
This food isn't even average or below average, compared to what I would have called 'average' Indian food in the past, Chutney Joes hits a low that I can't even define.
I would avoid this place at all costs. Not worth the price, not worth putting in your mouth. Garbage food.
I wanted to like this place...but I just can't give it a good review. Â The rice was very close to stale--it seemed old and cold. Â And my chicken tikka masala was also cold. Â All the dishes seemed very watery. Â There were some nice blends of spices/herbs, but sadly I don't think I'll be back.
Review Source:Pathetic Indian food. Guys, these guys serve biryani which is minimum 2 days old. They will tell you that biryani is made to order. Actually, he simply pull out the tray and heat it in microwave. Chiken served here in the biryani sucks.
Please, save yourself from eating food at this place.
I was pleasantly surprised that there was vegan options at Ogilive Station open late!
I ordered the Samoasa Chaat, I was surprised how much flavor it had the staff was nice, maybe because see kept commenting on my eyeshadow. Â She threw in two chutneys, cilantro and red chili, they were delicious! THe samoasa side was only $4.46 with tax and it did the trick, vegan, spicy, warm, and the chick peas where the perfect consistency. Â Give it a try if you are looking for something different than the typical late-night options at Ogilive Station.
I was excited when they opened up at Ogilvie since the original on State St is decent. Â Unfortunately, this location sucks. Â It's a total rip off. Â The portions are very very tiny, especially for the price. Â 2 "entrees" with lamb and chicken was over $11. Â More like 2 little spoonfuls of meat. Â In total there were three tiny pieces of lamb and four similarly sized pieces of chicken. Â Taste was so-so. Â Their motto is "Authentic home style, Indian food." Â Umm ok. You serve beef! Â Never again.
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