We went to Tava 2 times for dinner. The best Indian food, you can taste the ingredients are fresh and good quality. We ordered chicken makhani and we wiped the plate clean. We also ordered tandori chicken and some other combination plate which we also wiped clean. Of course we got the garlic nan which is delicious and I love this kind of pistachio ice cream that they have. The first time we took the waiter's recommendation and we loved everything, the second we just went with whatever we read in the reviews and it was just as good. Btw you have the option of organic chicken too which is what we ordered. I love when restaurants offer healthy options as I don't have to worry about what I ate. I can say now I am addicted to that food. I wasn't a big Indian food fan before not cuz I didn't like it but cuz my palate wasn't used  to it, but my friend loved Indian food so much and whenever she brought it at work she would rave about it so I'd try lil by lil til I became a fan of it. Now is my favorite. The food tastes really fresh and high quality, they also give you the option of mild spiciness so you don't have to worry about being too spicy.
The restaurant is really nice and intimate just like it looks in the pictures, very cute place to bring a date which the first time we went there they were many couples having cocktails and eating, while slipping each other a hand squeeze or a kiss, while couple families were dinning and the kids were very well behaved and they seemed to enjoy too. A great place to bring a date, friends or family. If they like Indian food they'll love this place, if they never had Indian food they will get great recommendation and will have a lot of yummy options. I guess now I am turning into a foodie as I don't think I can live n any area that you can't get the types of food that you get in Chicago area, btw getting to Tava is very easy from every direction as it is very conveniently located on dempster not far from Edens.
Just love this place. Been here couple of times for lunch. They have lunch buffets. Food is good. Not a typical Devon restaurant, it's way better than one on Devon. Server amit and two others boys enjoy serving you. Love their garlic naan, chivken biryani, chiken makhani, samosa chat, mango lassi, gulab jamun, ras malai, dal makhani, aloo mutter & rilled mix veggies. Tava Rocks !!!
Review Source:I never complain about food in restaurants, but I have to tell you this story. My first experience at Tava was amazing; outstanding spices and flavors, so most recently (May 2013), I went back expecting to taste delicious Indian cousin and try more exotic goat dish. Per menu, there are supposed to be delicate pieces of goat meat in flavorful sauce. Sauce had nice spices, but I went through each piece of goat and I would not call it meat, it was most disgusting food I have ever seen in front of me!!! Â There was one tiny piece of meat and about 8 large chunks of fat and skin with pieces of bones. Food maybe for dog, not for human! I tossed it all into garbage. I do not understand how restaurant can serve something like this and count on people to come back. As much as I wanted local business to thrive, I will never go back after this Fear Factor experience!
Review Source:Had a wonderful dinner at Tava. Â We were on our way to another restaurant and decided last minute to give this Indian restaurant a try. Â Service from Tony was outstanding - very attentive, explained everything - and the food was delicious. Â We eat out frequently and have become somewhat cynical about restaurants. Â Tonight was a pleasant surprise. Â Will positively return!
Review Source:Compared to other Indian restaurants, this place has bland food. Â Its edible but not that great, and I've had Indian food in Japan, S. Korea, and Thailand that all tasted better than this place. Â Its worth the trip to head over to Devon Ave instead. Â As other reviewers have mentioned: small portions and overly priced.
Review Source:My absolute favorite Indian restaurant! I have introduced my boyfriend, my family, and numerous friends to this restaurant and they have all loved it. The food is fresh and made from scratch, so the wait time to eat is a bit longer than I would consider average. The decor is nice, and they have a fireplace which I enjoy. In particular, the vegetable tandoori, chicken makhani and gost pasanda are favorites. I also love the momos and the chaat for appetizers. Prices are normal for an Indian restaurant, and the owner is a very nice man.
Review Source:W-what happened Tava?
I used to love you guys, your food was awesome.
Or is this because I've only ever had dinner?
Went a few days ago and got the lunch buffet.
Everything tasted sour. Â Sour. Â
I've never had this happen before and the service wasn't too awesome either...
Hopefully they'll be back to my old, loveable Tava next time. :(
Back again. Food great as usual BUT when you are in the mood for a refreshing mixed drink come here as well. Â With dinner, as we enjoyed my Blushing Lady (better when ordered on the rocks) and his Maker's Manhattan it occurred to us that Tava has a small bar and that it would be a nice place to stop in for a pre-night out cocktail.
Review Source:Dont get surprised by the way it looks from outside..the food and ambience is awesome..I will certainly recommend  the lamb curry and other lamb curies..the lamb was very well cooked with the right amount of spices..We also got samosas which was fresh and delicious..i guess its one of the best indian restaurant in Chicago .
Review Source:Ok, I just can't keep quiet about this one....
I love Indian food. And I love swankier, white-cloth, pendant-light, fire-placey eateries.
The combo of both seems like a win on paper, right? Nope.... The place is ridiculously overpriced.
We went for a sit-down dinner, twice.
Authentic as it may be - this is Indian food, *not* sturgeon caviar over truffles. So give me a break... $18-20 for a dish (not a combo, one-person miniscule, dime-sized entrée). I don't think so.
We went twice, once because I found a $20 groupon online, and second time to see if we get better sized portions without a voucher. Â Both times the meal was around $70 for two, with 2 drinks and two entrees/shared app.
My main gripe is the size of the portions - they are outrageously small, even for European standards.
We had some sort of a seafood stew - $18, a couple of slivers only. The chicken curry - $11, literally 6 cubes of meat in sauce. Â
Both seafood stew and curry came in a tiniest dishes - the size of an individual rice bowl at any other place.
But wait - there is more!
Speaking of rice - tadah!! ALL SIDES come ala carte. Rice and naan - ala carte? You mean the $18 fish stew doesn't include 2-cent portion of rice. Well, how about that.
It was such poor value, I felt like a tourist (except we were sitting in a strip mall next to Subway so I can't even wright that off to an amazing view...).
Good service, nice ambiance. Aside from a family of 4 with 2 devil-child tots, who shrieked and hurled spoonfuls of food across the floor. Not Tava's fault of course but they could have politely asked the parents to contain the chaos or leave (no one attempted to address them at all, so the spectacle lasted for about 45 minutes at least). Â
The dishes tasted good/ok - but not much better then Mt. Everest Evanston or Himalayan Niles, where you can get similar for a fraction of the price, minus the ambiance.
To summarize: good to average food + poor value = two star overall. Â
No, we won't be back (in case you haven't figured that out.... too many local options for better deal all round). Â Â
I am still very irked we went there twice, trying to like the place. Learned meself a lesson, for sure.
Wow finally an Indian restaurant with great service! With my experience with Indian restaurants, I find it almost impossible to get great food & great service together. Well at Tava you get both :-) The buffet is super tasty, clean & fresh. Naan and sizzling chicken is brought right to your table and will be happily refilled as needed. All buffet items were delicious(especially the sizzling vegetables). The staff, especially who I believe was the owner/manager was so nice, friendly & welcoming. My 8 month old even loved him! Will definitely be back and recommend to my family & friends. Thanks TAVA!
Review Source:If you like naan, get the garlic naan! Â It's so soft and delicious! Â It's a perfect match with the Chicken Makahani! Â
If you've never tried Indian food or have been hesitant to do so, Tava will not disappoint you. Â You will be pleasantly surprised with the selection and superior taste of their offerings. Â It is not extremely spicey like you would expect at a typical Indian restaurant. Â It is great for the first timer to Indian food as well as the ultra cultured Indian.
The service is by far superior as well. Â It is a big difference from going to a restaurant on Devon Ave. Â
If you have the opportunity to make it out to Morton Grove, visit Tava and you're Indian food experience will be changed forever!
In terms of Indian Resturants in chicago I have always been a fan of India House downtown. It was heads and shoulders above  all the rest. BUT NOW........ I was surprised with this gem of a find. Their chicken 65 and samosas were the best I have had. Stick with the recommendations of the wait staff. DONT come and try your normal standbys. This place was great.
Review Source:Went here on a Sunday just as they were opening.Saw it on the way home from the city ,and since WE WERE STARVING ,thought we would make a detour.Had the dinner for two special.The food alterated between good and bad.The chicken 65? was my least favorite.Some of the things we were served just had an off taste to the tongue.But the rating on the food alone would be 3 stars.Not horrible,but just ok for the MOST part.Its a shame we ordered that special,since they did seem to have an interesting menu with many vegan options.There was only one otherparty when we arrived at 5ish.Then it was nearly 15 mins to get our first app,then it was after or close to 6 when our entrees started rolling in.We did not even get our salads after the app so I had to ask the server to take that off the bill to wich he said he would comp an extra dessert.I had to ask him to take it to go and please bring the bill asap because we really needed to go.Overall, service was friendly,the restaurant itself was cozy.But for the portions and complexity of the food we got (indian basics in sampler portions)
it was just unnaceptable to have to wait an hour + for your food to arrive when  you arrive at 5, party of 2 ,and the restaurant is still empty besides another family.That and being given old plates to eat off... chipped and some dirty with food stains is just a shame.I think this place has a great vive and potential ,but just was not the experience I was hoping for.
Quality of food should not be lowered for the speed the food is made....but we got neither that night.
I have been meaning to write a review of TAVA for sometime and it is really good food. They have stated they are zabiha/halal which is awesome. It is a organic and a healthier type of meat which is considered kosher for Muslims. Now to the actual review - I have to recommended for starters or appetizers the vegetable samosas, paneer pakoras and vegetable pakoras. They are quite generous with their portions and tasty. For entrees, we ordered the the TAVA mix grill platter which had a great variety and seasoned well. My brother and friend who are vegetarian ordered the aloo gobhi and mutter paneer. They were very pleased. Naan was really good. Service was impeccable. I will be definitely coming back for more!
Review Source:I loved this Indian place. They have tons of vegan options. Everything is really fresh. Â I had the Saag with mushrooms, and it was delicious. My husband's meal was really good as well.
The atmosphere is really nice. There is a fireplace and white tablecloths. The prices are really reasonable. We had an appetizer, a couple curries and a beer and the total tab was around $30. I will definitely go to Taza again.
This is quite good Indian food. Â I'm really excited to see another nice restaurant in the area. Â I'm also quite pleased with the decor. Â Usually at an Indian restaurant you'll get good food or nice decor, but not both. Â Somehow this place breaks that mold.
Went for the buffet at lunch and tried everything. Â My favorite was the chicken tikka masala. Â The tandoori chicken was quite good as well. Â I'll definitely be back.
We were here on Black Friday to catch up with a couple of my husband's pals. The decor is warm and welcoming (love the fire place!) and our waitress was sweet. Me and my husband were starving and decided to get the veggie dinner for 2 ($30), while his friend simply stuck to an order of momo (Nepalese dumplings), basic naan and Okra masala. We were glad that they didn't order too much food because the dinner for 2 is really a dinner for 4.
The tasty veggie dinner included an appetizer ( veggie pakora, paneer pakora or samosa), a salad with tamarind chutney dressing, the entrees included naan with dal makhni, alu gobi, saag panner, sizzling tandoori vegetables and also a pilaf with raita. For the dessert, we got the ras malai for a $1 extra and it was yum. Will be back to try the buffet when we're feeling gluttony!!
The restaurant is clean, newly decorated, and spacey. It felt like a much nicer place than the strip mall where it is located.
The waiting staff was professional, friendly and polite.
I had the buffet. It's a small buffet but everything was very tasty and freshly made. It had two meat dishes (chicken and goat), four vegetarian dishes, rice, salad bar and desert. All the sauces were thick, tasty. I loved the goat dish, it was slow cooked with bone-in the meat just fell right off. They brought the naan and tandoori chicken (on a hot plate) separately to your table (as a part of the buffet). Both were excellent in quality.
My only regret was that I wasn't hungry enough to put more food down. Will absolutely come back to this place. Might have to make it my "usual" indian place.
The buffet is 11 bucks before tax. To me, it's very reasonable priced for what you're getting.
First off , Tango Mango martini. Â Yum. Â Must.
Secondly, in the group we're all vegetarians. Â Samosa chaat is one of the most amazing things ever. Â It's crispy, and creamy, and spicy, and sweet all at once. Â Yummm.
Thirdly, the veggie dishes are great. Â The cauliflower and the eggplant are definitely the highlights, and the daal wasn't bad either.
The star is missing due to the slooooow service. Â The place was fairly empty, and we had to wait about 20 minutes for someone to come grab our drink orders. Â We already had crackers and dip to snack on, but that was still really slow. Â We also had to remind them about our parantha bread, which we were then informed that was being made from scratch... but you still should let your customers know about such things prior to inquiry. Â
The expeditor/ busser was the busiest guy in the house...
I will definitely be back, but don't come here if you're in a hurry. Â It's a lounge type atmosphere, and a laid back service that matches.
My review is based on my take-out experiences.
The first time, a friend brought me their lunch special with the tandoori chicken and Makhani (buttered) chicken. It came with rice and flat bread... It was all soooo good and perfect! The sauce was rich flavorful, and everything was cooked just right.
Today, I was craving it so we drove out to Morton Grove for that same lunch special!
Again... soooo good. Oh my gosh that sauce! Definitely worth the drive.
I hear they're drinks are awesome too so I am definitely gonna have to plan a girls night out to this place soon!
Went here for an early dinner for the first time. Â Found the place had a nice decor for the size, but didn't like them leaving the front door open for a while. Â Also thought the wait for the food was a little long, 45 minutes, but it was for 11 people.
The food was ok, but just a little off from what I'm used to at other Indian restaurants. Â Â The chicken tikka masala was a little off and I thought the paneer makhani had a little too much tomato. Â
What I did like was the appetizers and chicken saag.
I've eaten at some of the best Indian restaurants in Chicago (Jaipur in the west loop, Tiffin on Devon and others that I wouldn't put in the same category), and I was excited when Tava opened a little over a year ago. Tava uses fresh, healthy ingredients and it shows in the flavor.
My wife and I are regulars here. Her favorite is the chicken makhani with piyazi kulcha (onion naan), while I enjoy something on the spicier side such as Tava chicken vindaloo. We usually get an order of samosas too and the mixed vegetable pakora has grown on me.
Definitely recommend Tava.
We went here for lunch buffet. They do not have tons of items like some other buffet places but have enough variety and all items on the buffet was very tasty. The naan could be better otherwise food was very good.
Will definitely come here again.
UPDATE:
I went within 3 days of my prior visit (for dinner this time around) and the food did not disappoint. Â They have some dinner specials for 2 adults that was priced between $29 - $35 and offered a good variety. Â The service as also very good.
Strongly recommend this restaurant. Â Only downside is it on a busy street but not really a place I would expect an Indian restaurant.
Was on the north side visiting family and we were craving Indian so I whipped out the Yelp app and found Tava - what an unexpected surprise!
Tucked away in a random stripmall not far from Golf Mill, Tava is an exceptional restaurant with quality food, great service and a nice atmosphere. The inside of the restaurant is sleek and modern with a bar area, tables and booths. On the night we were there they were hosting a guitarist who was softly playing in the corner. Overall this is a more upscale experience then the usual "Curry in a Hurry" places I've encountered.
The menu has a lot of the typical suspects (Chicken Tika Masala, Saag Paneer, etc) but also some interesting twists (Tava Samundri Taka-tak ). Specially appreciated is the organic menu - essentially Indian dishes made from entirely organic ingredients. Since we had a large group of six we ordered family style and shared - the Chicken Tika Masala, Chicken Tika, Lamb Tika, Chicken Vindaloo, Saag Paneer, the Bread basket, Raita and then started with the mixed appetizer plate.
The appetizers were great - mildly spiced, very fresh and hot. The kids especially loved the kabobs! In fact the lamb kabob was such a hit that we ended up adding the Lamb Tika.
The real treat was the main course - everything was good! The Chicken Tika Masala was fragrant, creamy and the chicken was exceptionally good. The Saag Paneer was also very fresh, and the homemade cheese was excellent. I had ordered the Chicken Vindaloo 'volcano hot' since I like spicy food, and was surprised at how hot it was! Wonderful stuff, very spicy but flavorful. The Chicken and Lamb Tika was also juicy, well seasoned and very generous. The bread basket had all kinds of goodies - garlic Naan and stuffed Kulcha to name just two.
What also set our experience apart was the service - our waitress was very attentive and patient, even when dealing with three little children. Everyone was delivered on time, still warm and follow-up service was very attentive.
Honestly I wish this place was closer to us because we would be regulars. Well done Tava!
My boyfriend and I had passed by this place many times, and I always said I wanted to try it, since I was looking for someplace with good Indian food, and didn't have to travel down in the city to Devon. Â We live right around the corner, so I was very excited to try it. Â I have had Indian food at many places before, and this was one of the best I've tried. Â My boyfriend has never been a fan of Indian food, and even he really enjoyed it, agreeing to go there again! Â To me, this sealed the deal.
I really like the atmosphere and ambience of the restaurant. Â They had live guitar music, which was really lovely. Â It made the whole evening that much more enjoyable. Â
I was incredibly impressed and will be going here regularly from now on!
We went to this place on my husband's boss's recommendation. He absolutely wanted us to try this place and give him our opinion :)
I was skeptical about going to an Indian restaurant in the 'burbs. But I was pleasantly surprised. The restaurant and ambiance is better than most of the Indian restaurants I have been to. Service was great too. They have a superb deal - vegetarian dinner for 2 for $29. It includes a choice of appetizer, salad, naan, saffron rice pilaf with peas and 4 veg entrees with raita and dessert! I know - Its a boat load of food :). It can easily feed 4 ppl.
We got the paneer pakora as the appetizer and it was very very good. For the veg dishes we had the tandoori vegatables, aloo gobi, saag paneer, dal makhani and raita. Each and every dish was delicious. I cannot really complain about any of them. The tandoori veggies were absolutely delicious and you could taste the yogurt marinade - yum!! For dessert we had the pistachio kulfi - I did not really like this much, it was just mediocre. We had leftovers which were more than enough for lunch for the both of us. I am still thinking about their tandoori vegetables - it was pretty darn delicious!!
Service during Mother's Day dinner was bad. We were a party of 5 and our dinner at Tava was completely spur of the moment since we had already celebrated Mother's Day. We arrived at 7:10 PM. We were seated at 7:20 - so far so good but downhill from here. Our waiter finally took our order at 7:30. Our appetizers, only 2 orders of samosa's, arrived at 8:00. Our entrees started to arrive at 8:29. We received everything by 8:31.
This wasn't our first time at the restaurant; service was never like this before. I let the waiter know I was displeased with all the waiting (1 hour for 2 entrees and 2 side dishes is not acceptable). He kindly apologized and seemed sincere but there was no visit from a manager. On our way out, there was no one near the entrance/exit to thank us for our visit and to ask if everything was to our liking.
Was it busy on Mother's Day at Tava? Yes. Is that an excuse for bad service. No. Bad review on Yelp? Deservedly so.
Okay, so let me get my feelings straight here. I like Indian food, it's not my favorite type of cuisine and I've only had it like twice before so I'm by no means an expert. The place is semi-cute inside, went on a Sunday when it was pretty empty and were seated right away. I also have to mention that we bought a living social which is what got us in the area in the first place..not exactly my hood. Anyways, on to the food, it was actually pretty good, we had simosas, chicken tikka masala, tandorri chicken and of course naan and more of it. Everything was tasty, not the best that I've had, but pretty good and was going to give them 3 or even 4 stars for quality of food.
However, then a big no no comes to mind when thinking of their horrific service. The server was okay, but the management was horrible. They were not happy when we wanted to use our living social and gave us a hard time, when we clearly followed the rules, ordered the right amount, but we're off by 30cents, c'mon now, can you seriously not make an exception forcing us to order extra naan bread, which is kinda ridiculous. I called out the manager and told him that if you do not want to give out these deals, then don't. But if you do, you should be fair when people attempt to use it. He was just rude and unnecessarily so, so we will not be back. It's not in our area, and we made the effort, but even free food isn't worth the sh*tty service we received.
The 5 best restaurants in the 2015 Denver Restaurant Week
3,611 Views | Category: Denver
The complete list of 2015 Denver Restaurant Week businesses
1,972 Views | Category: Denver
The tourists' guide to Portillos: 5 must have dishes
3,318 Views | Category: Chicago
Pho = Pronounced "fuh" not "foe" for pho-king sake
2,915 Views | Category: Denver
Indulgery selected to exhibit at Collision Conference
2,987 Views | Category: Press Releases
Not Logged In
BUSINESSES
Local Businesses
Near Me
My Favorites
SOCIAL
Blog & News
MY ACCOUNT
Login
Register
Contact Us
Add Your Business
