I've lived in SF and NYC and this is by far the worst Indian I've had in either city, including Chicago. DEFINITELY DO NOT GET FOOD FROM HERE. Their Chicken Tikka Masala, for example, tastes like a watered down marinara sauce, and they included jalapenos to heat it up. Huh? I've never had Indian that included jalapenos in Chicken Tikka Masala. Bad news, and way over priced.
GO TO HEMA's KITCHEN II which is right near bye and twice as good.
I order deliver from them and they were really slow. Also the curry was really runny/ watery. Additionally the spice was all off for the dish I order, I kinda felt like they put barbecue sauce in my dish to make it spicy.... I order mattar panner medium spicy; I have gotten this dish at tons of other indian restaurants. The curry I got was not even close to what I thought I ordered. I throw it out after a couple of bites.
Review Source:I may have found a good go-to Indian place.
I (we) came in late on a Sunday, around 9:10 and they close at 10:00 (sorry!), happily equipped with some beverages. (It is BYOB.) Our server was very nice and polite despite our late arrival and brought glasses and an opener for our drinks. We started off with the Vegetable Pakoras, which came as an assortment of different fried veggies, some cauliflower and some potato. Not the best I've ever had, but they were pretty tasty. The chutneys/sauces on the table were great additions with the pakoras.
We then tried the Baingan Bharta and the Vegetable Kofta, two of my favorite vegetable dishes. Both were quite tasty. Neither was overly spicy (perhaps you can order them prepared more so), the dumplings in the Kofta were great (although there were only two :( ), and the Bharta was delectable and not too seedy. A good achievement given the main ingredient! We did not try any Naan, despite my affinity for it, and because we arrived so late, they were giving signs that they would be grateful if we finished quickly, and I get that (especially because it was Sunday).
I would happily come back to Indian Grill, beverages likely in tow again, and I will also try the Naan so I can write a full review of their cuisine. Oh, and the prices were very fair! Bonus!!
Noms. Ordered delivery from here after a day of sluggish activity. Despite really slow delivery (and a very apologetic and sweet delivery guy), the food was really delicious. I split the samosa chat with my friend, and then had the sag paneer. Well seasoned, not overly spicy, and fairly priced.
Review Source:*Delivery Review*
Another lazy day and didn't feel like getting up again! Ordered from this highly acclaimed place and it did not disappoint.
They made it to my place in about 25 minutes after ordering (I'm right up the street).
I got the chicken tikka masala and garlic naan...so good!
HIghly recommended...maybe I will actually go inside one day
I came in here last week on a monday. They were about half full and sat down right away. For some reason we had a choice of two tables and one was by the door and the other was in the middle of the room. I understand having sections, but there was only one server and the people who came in after were able to sit where we wanted to sit.
We ordered Naan, Chicken Tikka Masala, and Chicken Saag. I ordered a hot chai tea and my friend ordered something like a mango smoothy. The chai tea was ok. The mango smoothy had ice cubes in it and tasted more like coconut and texture and not like a smoothy. We waited for our food for about 30 minutes and were considering walking out which I never consider. Our naan came out with our food when we asked for it to come out before. The Masala had great flavor but the chicken was extremly dry. The saag was awful and the chicken did not look cooked all the way. I only had 2 pieces. When the server came to check on us, you could tell we were disappointed with a great amount of saag left and she never asked if there was something was wrong. will never come back
The food is always really good, but every time we've ordered there's been a  problem with the delivery.  If it's going to take two and a half hours, just tell us - the chicken makhani is so good I'll wait that long for it.  It's annoying to expect dinner in forty-five minutes and end up waiting at least two hours.
Review Source:I absolutely love this place. I cannot give it enough praises. The food is wonderful, the owner is amazing. I try to come here at least once a month and it's the only place in the city I go for Indian food, it is great to me!
Their dal mahkani is cooked to perfection and their samosas are just the right amount of crispy. Check out their weekend lunch buffet, plentiful and very reasonably priced.
Similar to other cheap Indian restaurant in Chicago, this place will have just about every Indian dish you can think of. And what better way to look at the options than on a wipe clean menu that hasn't been wiped clean!
Overall, the food was decent, a little hit and miss as it was fairly greasy. The atmosphere was surprising quiet for a Saturday night (just two other tables in use). It's byob so if you want toroom keep the cost down, its definitely an option.
I love this restaurant. My boyfriend and I live in the area and go here at least twice a month. Â We take everyone here, and have turned other people onto the place too. Â The service is great, and the food is consistently delicious.
I've never been to Hema's up the street, but I guarantee this is better! SO YUMMY!
Never do a delivery from this place.
Let me tell the whole story. I live literally 2 mins walking distance from this place. However, it was a rainy night and I was too lazy to go eat out so I ordered some food from this place. First of all it took them 1 hour 20 minutes to deliver. I was very hungry and was kind of annoyed, but I totally understood since it might get busy sometimes and delivering takes time. However, as soon as I opened the bag to see the food they delivered, I was very angry. The naan was cold and not edible. The chicken I ordered didn't have any flavor to it whatsoever. It tasted liked boiled chicken. Also, I should mention it was cold. And remember I live right next to this place so the food didn't get cold on its way to my place.
I am never doing a delivery from this restaurant ever again. This was a gross meal at best. Not worth any of the $23 I paid.
i love this place - i have been going here for years and every time i love it. just got done with a dinner with my fiancee, as always the food was great, reasonably priced and the service was perfect. even so much that we forgot our leftovers, i specifically wanted for lunch...called them and they had actually put them in the fridge for us. we got the chicken tikka masala, saag (with cottage cheese), naan, and samosas. all great.
not only is this place good for a reasonable date (plus they send 20% off coupon in the mailer packets that never expire), it's great for groups. went a few backs with a group of girlfriends, had tons of food and wine (place is byob). we had a great time, all the food same delicious and hot.
over the years i've really enjoyed this place and hope others can experience what i have.
Here's the thing. Â In a pinch, it's not bad. But it's really not great either.
I've dined in twice and gotten take out a bunch. Â I'll start with my dine-in experiences.
My first time was a few years back for the weekend lunch buffet. I honestly don't remember much about it other than I didn't hate it. Â But that's not a bad thing to remember.
My second time was on an awesome date on a Sunday night. Â We were the only table in there and the manager really fussed over us. Â
The server service isn't great, though, which makes this quote from the front page of their website pretty laughable:
"A sophisticated fine dining experience with charming staff, incredible service and tantalising food that few can compete with."
I'm not sure what their experiences are with "fine dining" that they call what they do "fine dining." Â As everyone says, the servers are inattentive and you feel like they couldn't give less of a sh*t about your experience.
Regarding take out, I've never had a problem with the food. Â It satisfies my cravings even though I'm well aware that there are better places out there. Â
My biggest complaint with this place is the pricing. Â It's SO expensive for not a lot of food. Â My guess is they justify this because, as we've covered, they claim they're fine dining. Â Two entrees will set you back close to $30. Â It's good, but it's not $30-for-two-entrees good.
"Chicken tikka masala, regular naan, samosa chut. Â That will be for delivery."
I have a confession to make: I live a block away from Indian Grill, and I've never dined in. Â Don't get me wrong, it's a very nice place with a very nice interior. The problem is that I've been a lazy piece of shit when it comes to eating Indian Food. Â I just want to crush my chicken tikka whilst on my couch, watching whatever idiotic MTV reality show is on (I'm just saying that so people think I'm important. Â I really love MTV).
The delivery is fast. Â The food is hot. Â Oh, and it's really tasty too. Â I may just be a wimp when it comes to Indian desserts, but I'd rather eat garbage. I just have not found an indian dessert that I like. Â You think that the ice cream is actually ice cream? It's not. Â
So, you want a reliably good Indian place, where you PROMISE not to get any weird desserts? Â Indian Grill is the place for you.
Similar to Mike K's experience, this has been our go-to place for Indian food in the area for the past couple years, and we'd order from them a few times each month. Â We always thought the garlic naan was tasty, and the speed and convenience outweighed the little annoyances like "the chunks of paneer in your dish are precisely rationed out, there will be exactly 10 hiding somewhere in your tub of sauce" (the fact that we know exactly how many pieces there will be should tell you something...). Â However, the startling decline in service has convinced us that it's time to find a new restaurant from which to order.
This evening we placed a sizeable order, and as (bad) luck would have it, two of the dishes were incorrect. Â This wasn't a big deal to us, as this actually is the first time we've had a mis-order from this particular establishment, and we called it in. Â We told the person on the phone that a credit would be fine, but they said they'd prefer to send out the food we'd actually ordered. Â Okay, no problem.
Driver showed up, apologized profusely, handed us the order, and said goodbye. Â We were happy, the replacement food was exactly what we'd ordered, and we figured that was the end of it. Â How wrong we were! Â A bit later, our phone rings (it went to voicemail, we were eating...), and it's the manager leaving a message saying that we owed them the two incorrect dishes (which the driver didn't ask for), and to call them back. Â What the...?? Â
We called back, thanked the manager for the replacement orders, and he re-states that we were supposed to have given the "wrong" orders to the driver. Â We indicated that the driver had not asked for this (we would have been happy to do so), and the manager said that the driver "did not want to ask for anything". Â He then went on to add that he "knew" that one of the two dishes was NOT incorrect, but that he'd sent it anyway, and then he wrapped up accusing us of lying by hanging up on us.
We understand that wrong orders happen. Â Not a big deal, and as mentioned, this was the first time we'd ever gotten a wrong order from them. Â We also understand that people have bad days. Â However, this particular manager was so rude and accusatory that we will never place an order with them again.
This had been our go-to take-out place basically since we moved to the neighborhood in November. Â Unfortunately the food is has gone downhill recently.
Last night might have been the final straw in the camel's back. Â We got a groupon now deal for our take out dinner, and when I got there the manager/owner wouldn't honor it for take out. Â He said it was for dine-in only, even though it didn't say so on the deal. Â He said he "designed" it for dine-in only, saying that where it say "Limit 1 per table" inferrs it is not valid for take-out. Â This is the standard text on groupon and has nothing to do with how he designed it. Â Despite not being able to find any proof that the deal he designed was for dine-in only he refused to accept it.
Then the owner/manager went on a rant about how Groupon owes him money. Â Seriously, I really don't care who owes this guy money or who he owes money. Â I am just looking for some decent, but not great, indian food. Â Please don't serenade me with your finances.
On top of that, the food sucked, which has become more common. Â The samosas were tasteless. Â I always get the Chicken Tikka. Â This time the chicken was tasteless, the naan was doughy and undercooked, and the onion was basically raw.
Sorry, I'll go down the street to the other indian place next time.
Stopped in with the recommendation of Groupon Now on a Tuesday night around 6pm and we were the only people there the whole time, though they did seem to be doing quite a few take out orders.
The smell of incense was almost overwhelming for the first few minutes but my nose soon became immune to it. Though sadly I never became immune to the instrumental music they were playing loudly.
BYOB but don't try to get it at 7-eleven next door because they don't carry wine.
We started with the Samosa Chat, which are essentially two potato samosa but in pieces and buried in delicious sauces. Great fresh herb flavor with a nice spice.
We split the Chicken Tika Masala and garlic nann. The nann is definitely garlicy. The Chicken Tika Masala was good as was the rice.
I will definitely be back!!
Love Love Love Indian Grill! Â My wife & I went there rather last minute on a Saturday night & we were able to get a table right away. Â The mood/ambiance of the place is nice & relaxing. Â Good music at just the right volume so you don't have to talk over it. Â My samosas were great! Â I thought they could have used a few more peas, but still quite tasty. Â I ordered the lamb vindaloo and it was so spicy & yummy that I probably won't order anything but this in the future. Â Yeah, it was that good. Â My wife had the chicken korma and it was a hit as well.
My only complaint with the place is that there are no refills on the pop. Â Sounds silly to complain about, but I gotta have some Sprite with my Indian.
Give it a whirl if you happen to be in the neighborhood & and Indian is sounding good.
If you haven't eaten in any Indian restaurant then maybe you can say this is a 5 star or even 4. If you know Indian food DO NOT go here. I would rate it a 0 if I could.
First of all there was only one other family patronizing this place when we went on a Tue. evening. You'd think service was amazing but NOPE it was horrible with all 3 ladies (incl hostess, if you can call her that) running around bumping into each other....literally. Â Pick up was busy, I give them that.
Complaints:
-One waitress filled the glass with water and spilled ice all over the place.
-They took forever to take our order
-No one seemed to be in charge of a/any table.
-Got our order wrong.
-Food was tasteless!
-2 patrons actually walked out of the restaurants
-We could hear them being rude to customers
Ordered:
Samosas - flavorless
Garlic naan - didn't taste anything garlic and it was thin and crispy....naan is suppose to be soft and fluffy
Butter chicken - worst I've had, it was sour! You should  love to dunk your naan or soak your rice with this sauce if it's made right.
Bhuna Gosht (lamb) - it needed salt and beware, this is very spicy even when we asked for mild
Gulab jamun - the only thing that taste like it should be
Bottom line: don't go here for Indian food, go to Devon where authentic Indian restaurants are plentiful. (India House downtown has great variety & buffet is delicious).
I'm not your best critic for Indian food, but my girlfriend drags me to some of these places whenever one of her cravings strikes. Indian Grill is actually a place I don't mind for her to drag me into...
The service is very efficient and kind. The prices are similar to other indian places, but the service sizes are absolutely ENORMOUS. Rarely do I ever need to take home a doggie bag from any place, but every time I visit IG it is my ultimate fate to bring some home for the night afterwards.
BYOB?? Don't mind if I do...
Indian Grill you have a fan in me!
I absolutely love Indian food so when I discovered Indian Grill I was quite excited and had high expectations. I must say they met almost all of them.
Pros:
1) Friendly, attentive service
2) Well seasoned and cooked meals
3) BYOB
4) Welcoming atmosphere
5) Delivery
Con:
1) Portion size of Naan is smaller (but cost the same) as other Indian restaurants
As you can see there is much to like about Indian Grill and little to not. I ordered their Bengan Bharta (roasted eggplant mashed with spices), which I order at every new Indian place I try so I can equally compare them all. This Bengan was a bit spicy just the way I like it. My friend ordered the Lamb Vindaloo which he loved. Our garlic naan was potent as expected and we loved even the little bit that came in an order.
Ps... I have ordered delivery from here a couple times and is always shows up warm and yummy!
This is my go-to place for Indian delivery. Â I can NEVER decide to get, so naturally, I've gotten in the habit of ordering two entrees and a side of garlic naan for myself each time I order from Indian Grill. Â Is it the smartest thing? Â Maybe, maybe not. Â All I know is that I get delicious Indian food for approximately 2.5-3 meals. Â
The garlic naan is a must-have, in my opinion. Â You definitely don't need it, as the entrees come with a generous container of rice, but what better to use to really wipe your plate clean?
I've never actually been to the restaurant itself, so I can't speak for their buffet, etc, but Indian Grill is a great option for delivery - everything I've gotten has been delicious and the delivery is super quick.
THEIR DELIVERY ROCKS!!!
Have you ever yelped a place before you get delivery? Well my friend, you have come to the right review! If you are looking for a place that will deliver rock your world indian food right to your door, Indian Grill is it!
They are super fast and their food is AMAZING! Everything came wrapped tightly and securely and the food was still really hot!
We also ordered mango lassi (which was to die for) as well as the chai tea and they both came tightly wrapped without leaving a mess in the delivery bag. They can be a bit pricey compared to others but their food and delivery service rocks.
I would not suggest this place to anyone.
I was there for my Saturday lunch buffet, and everything was crappy about the restaurant. First of all, the service was really bad. The server did not ask us for more naan or anything. She just served us once and that's it.
Also, they did not had any good vegetarian options (Paneer), usually offered in every single Indian restaurant in town.
Their dal makhani tasted like it was from ready to eat packets. Same taste and texture. I am not there for eating a food that's been cooked a long time ago.
Food was cooked in too much oil. I could scoop the oil out of the chicken dish with my spoon.
Their rice was hard to eat, probably cooked a 2-3 days back and they have been using it till it finishes. Highly disappointed  at this time. Usually I don't waste the food; but the rice was so bad that I had to leave it.
Also, only 1 appetizer, 1 dessert; usually more in Indian buffets at other places.
I would suggest going to other places near by, on Belmont (Standard India Restaurant). I am not going to this place ever again.
Please note this is a review for take out.
I ordered food for a few friends on a Friday night and we were all really happy with our food and the service. It was really quick, and the food was warm when we got it. (which is not always the case with delivery) We ordered Chicken Tikka Masala, Mutter Paneer, some Naan and a few veggie dishes and they all were really good. Â
Overall I was happy with Indian Grill for take out. I will for sure go back for dine in and see how that is.
So yummy! Â This could become my go to Indian place in Chicago (current go to is Mt. Everest in Evanston, but at this point I really need a good excuse to get up there). Â The food was great and the menu featured my favorite dishes, which often don't appear together: lamb korma AND chicken or paneer makhani. Â (Admittedly, while I love Indian food, I'm not the most adventurous :)
I've only been to Indian Grill once for take away, so my comments are limited, but I was very impressed. Â The paneer comes in huge chunks and is very, very fresh and flavorful. Â The saag and makhani are also both delicious, with just a hint of spice but a well developed and deep flavor. My favorite part though, was that you could still taste the spinach and tomato in each respective dish, which I find rare even in some of my favorite saags and makhani sauces.
And then there is the naan. Â I might vote this my new favorite naan! Â It's not too thick, isn't too charred and has a lot of flavor in it.
Yes, the prices are a tad on the high side. Â But here's the thing: even with 2 paneer dishes (ie. no filling meat) my husband and I had enough left over for a second meal for each of us. Â If I compare this to having gone to a buffet (my standard Indian food consumption method), where I would have had a few more dishes but no more overall food in a single meal, it really is a bargain. Â And, I really can't stress enough how fresh our food was, which made the extra dollar or two totally worth.
After coming off the worst migraine of my life, I was finally ready to eat. I was beat down. Spent. And hungry as hell after eating my last meal 24 hours prior. I turned to GrubHub and started a search that would span almost an hour (hey, when I'm really hungry, I get picky). Finally, I decided on Indian Grill and placed an order for Chicken Tikka Masala and garlic naan.
Though I was quoted a wait of almost an hour, I received my food less than 45 minutes later. HUGE for the busiest delivery night of the week (you got it, Sunday!). I fixed myself a plate, sunk into my sofa, and began a journey that would encompass 20 minutes of fork to mouth. Was I satiated? Yes. Was I impressed? Definitely. Did I sop up every last bit pf masala sauce with my garlic naan? You betcha!
For about $20 plus tip, this was a lifesaving meal. And now I have a new go-to guy for Indian delivery.
Now, I'm really picky when it comes to Indian food. I grew up not far from Bradford, England, and spent many evenings eating amazing home cooked food from my Pakistani, Indian, and Sri Lankan friends' houses.
I have to say, Indian Grill has been one of the better Indian cuisine experiences I've had in Chicago. While most of the menu is Northern Indian (I'm more partial to South Indian fare), it is well-prepared, and has good flavor. I ordered a vegetable jalfrezi , and asked for it extremely hot (I usually have to tell Indian restaurants to make it "so hot white people won't eat it"). It arrived very spicy. There were huge chunks of spicy peppers in it and it made my nose run (in a good way), but it didn't make me sweat. It had good flavor, plenty of cauliflower (yum!) and it wasn't overly creamy. I had plain rice with it, which was cooked perfectly.
The boyfriend ordered chicken tikka (cooked in a tandoor) and was very moist and flavorful. He had a garlic naan with it, which was fluffy and -super- garlicy (we're both huge fans of garlic, though if you're not that keen on it I'd steer clear- there were big chunks in it). There was also a cilantro chutney with the chicken that was very fresh and delicious.
Delivery was fast (less than thirty minutes) and the food arrived piping hot. The delivery lady was also very nice to boot!
All in all, one of the better North Indian places in Chicago. Now, if I could just find a South Indian or Sri Lankan place that would make me feel like I'm back at home.
Okay, so admittedly, I'm not an Indian food connoisseur. Â That being said, I am a huge fan of the Paneer Makhani at Indian Grill. Â Granted, I've only ordered take-out/delivery, but man ... some days I just crave that rice-cheese-creamy goodness.
Oh my good lord, if I could, I'd eat it twice a week. Â Delicious.
Indian cuisine varies from region, including Northern, Southern and Western. Our lunch was primarily dishes of Northern India. North Indian cuisine is distinguished by the higher proportion-wise use of dairy products like milk, paneer (cottage cheese), ghee (clarified butter), and yogurt. Indian Grill's dishes are well cooked, which is exemplified by the non-greasiness of some dishes.
They also use a tandoor, a large and cylindrical coal-fired oven, to cook meats like Chicken Tandoori - which was part of our meal... The chicken is marinated in a yogurt seasoned with garam masala - garlic, ginger, cumin, cayenne pepper, and other spices depending on the recipe. Indian Grill's tandoori chicken is wonderful - the smokiness from being cooked in the coal fired oven comes out, bringing a nice flavor and subtle crispness to the chicken.
Another important feature on North Indian cuisine are flat breads. These come in many different forms such as naan - which was also part of our meal. Naan resembles pita bread and, like pita bread, is usually leavened with yeast. Indian Grill's naan is crusty on the outside, yet soft on the inside.
Indian Grill offers a wonderful buffet of Indian dishes that serves as a great introduction to the cuisine. This is the restaurant I took my husband to after getting him to try indian food again, despite his bad experiences in the past. The verdict? He is now a fan of Indian cuisine and I have to thank Indian Grill for helping him open up to the cuisine's exotic and flavorful dishes.
If you're new to Indian cuisine or even looking for familiar Indian dishes to warm your soul, check out Indian Grill. Their buffet is priced reasonably during lunch and the weekends. The owner is also passionate about the cuisine and is eager to provide an explanation of the dishes, as well as answer any questions you may have.
(photos of some of the dishes mentioned have been added)
I'd love to clear this establishment's name-- despite Katya's warning from Nov 2nd, 2007, the Indian Grill has cleaned up and passed its inspection with "Good Standing!"
Feel free to check out the Chicago Food Inspection systems at:
<a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwebapps.cityofchicago.org%2Fhealth%2Finspectionresult.jsp%3Frow%3D10%26RR%3D1%26q%3D%2B%2528%2Blower%2528businessname%2529%2Blike%2Blower%2528%2527%2525Indian%2BGrill%2525%2527%2529%2Bor%2Blower%2528dba%2529%2Blike%2Blower%2528%2527%2525Indian%2BGrill%2525%2527%2529%2Bor%2Blower%2528aka%2529%2Blike%2Blower%2528%2527%2525Indian%2BGrill%2525%2527%2529%2B%2529&s=79e10404dfb2e88923c142c442400006a4a62d970d2bd288f3a6adf972650496" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://webapps.cityofchi…</a>
I ordered pickup for the first time tonight, due to the prices being far more reasonable than any other Indian restaurant around.
The Chicken Tika Masala is fantastic! Each dish comes with too much basmati rice so i'll be eating leftovers tomorrow for sure.
I also tried the Aloo Gobi (cauliflower and potatoes), which was pretty average but that might be because I was tasting it after the excellent masala.
The kheer was great too...not too sweet, tons of vanilla and coconut.
I'm pretty excited that I don't have to pay $18 for an entree.
You may never want to step foot in here, if it ever even opens again. Â According to the Friday, Nov 2, 2007 edition of RedEye:
"DIRTY DINING
Lincoln Park Indian restaurant closed
An Indian restaurant in Lincoln Park was shut down Thursday after city inspectors found evidence of rats on the premises.
Indian Grill, at 2258 N. Clark St., was cited for inadequate pest control, among other infractions, according to Matt Smith, spokesman for the Department of Streets and Sanitation.
Inspectors found 60 rat droppings in the food preparation area, including on a table where food was stored, and signs that rats had gnawed into a 15-pound bag of basmati rice, Smith said.
"Usually you find mice or bugs," Smith said. "Rats are a sign that things are out of control."
Ram Sharma, manager at Indian Grill, disputes that rat droppings were found inside the restaurant.
"There were some rat droppings outside, but not inside," he said.
Sharma blamed the rat problem on the building's other tenants throwing garbage on top of the restaurant's Dumpster.
Sharma said he hopes to pass a reinspection Friday and reopen immediately."
Sorry to undoubtedly gross you out, but in the interest of public health, I felt I had to share this.
Perfectly spiced Indian food, and large fluffy naan. Â This is a not-so-hole-in-the-wall, in a hole-in-the-wall type of way. Â Table cloths and napkins, it is a fantastic choice for a date, after a day at the beach or nearby zoo. Â Friendly and courteous staff, and you can even make arrangements for a larger party here. Â
This might just be the best Indian in this neck of the woods. Â
Note: Kitchen is only open after 5pm!