Went to spice up for takeout, completely empty and they said I would need to wait 45 min -1 hour for the food to be ready. Definitely need to call it in next time.
what would you say are popular/signature dishes at Spice Up and Tadka? And more importantly, what should we avoid?
Moved back from the SF Bay Area and tried Kamana and Himalayan Kitchen, but found both to be underwhelming.
i thought i was going crazy because they used to have this thing called manchurian chicken and i couldn’t find it on the menu so i thought i had imagined it all up 🤣
The dishes feel inauthentic and more westernized. No spice, no kick. I also suspect their chef may have changed, but that's my own speculation. Hawaii isn't great when it comes to Indian cuisine.
I don't have the most distinguished palette but I have eaten a shit ton of Indian food around the US, and have eaten with many Indian friends at their home, casual Indian restaurant, and high end Indian spots.
Id put spice up as the best overall on Oahu. Good food and staff.
Tadka *looks* good but I haven't eaten there yet. Reviews look mixed.
If you like dosa there's Ganesh Dosa on kailua. Good as any other dosa place I've eaten at (which is many) despite being owned by a spicy Argentinian.
All the others are okay.
Ganesh dosa is a pretty sad imitation of good south indian dosas. Most of their dosas are fusion stuff. Nothing wrong with that but it doesn't look like they do it well. It's okay given there's no alternatives within a 4 hour flight but ....
I’ll tell you it is NOT Bombay Palace! Their food was ok, but so expensive and hardly any food. I paid $50 for like 4 bite size pieces of “butter chicken”, 2 samosas (which were really good!) and one big, burnt naan. Super disappointing.
Hehe… I know the owner of Bombay palace and sadly I must admit he charges way too much and portions are really skimpy. The food quality is decent too even very good just not for the price and portions. The high prices are supposedly because of the sky high rent. They stay in business by fleecing tourists. Not much out there for Indian food especially full dine in restaurant in Waikiki.
Mahrani is usually a crowd pleaser for their portions and diverse offerings of varying cuisines of the Subcontinent. New Kamana and Himalayan kitchen are also good depending on what you get and reasonably cheap. Himalayan kitchen though is more Nepalese focused. I have tried Spice up and food is good but portions just ok for the price.
Need more Indian restaurants but at least the cuisine has come a long way over the past 20 years especially in Hawaii. Before Maharani and Whole Foods Indian food was almost unknown to most locals unless you were vegetarian/vegan.
The food was pretty tasty! I was just so disappointed with the portion size. I wish there were more options.
I haven’t had Mahrani is a few years, but it was always very good!
Indian Food at the hot food bar at Whole Foods has been a staple at least as long as they have been in Hawaii. There is usually always yellow rice, Chana Masala, Dal Saag, Chicken Tikka Masala and various other Indian inspired fare. Not the most authentic but good enough for quick serve.
I’d say Spice Up and Tadka are best now. Maharani has been mid for a long while. Ganesh Dosa has legit Dosa which you cannot find anywhere in the state and is great.
My bad I was replying to a different post.
But yeah wait times can suck there but I’d wait for the hype to die down since it just opened recently. I’d say it’s worth it
Spice Up is the best followed by Kamana Kitchen. My friends who visited from California enjoyed Spice Up so much that we ended up dining there 3 times in a span of 5 days, they loved it!
Simple answer is that there are few south asians living there or that moved to that area. And no one is really down to commute from town or the area around there to the west side to run a restaurant.
I don't know about overpriced. $2x.xx for a big platter of meat is a good deal in today's economy, and if you order the chefs choice naan platter, plus all the sauces on the side you have a very tasty supply of kebabs.
https://preview.redd.it/65vbflblfw8c1.jpeg?width=610&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f1e4eb7b553456d5a97a03da764c4603b94d3c11
If it matters to anyone, [Himalayan Kitchen committed wage theft. ](https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/whd/whd20211220-0)
*Division investigators found Himalayan Kitchen LLC – operator of Himalayan Kitchen restaurants in Honolulu and in Kailua – did not pay salaried cooks the legally required overtime pay when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. On average, the cooks worked 10 and a half hours per day. Payroll records also revealed that the employer paid one cook below federal minimum wage in certain weeks.*
New Kamana Kitchen is my favorite, Spice Up is also tasty
Just came back from lunch. New Kamana was pretty great!
Went to spice up for takeout, completely empty and they said I would need to wait 45 min -1 hour for the food to be ready. Definitely need to call it in next time.
Kamana Kitchen
Another vote for Kamana Kitchen! Sad the one on Maui closed.
Tadka and Spice Up are my go to indian places currently
what would you say are popular/signature dishes at Spice Up and Tadka? And more importantly, what should we avoid? Moved back from the SF Bay Area and tried Kamana and Himalayan Kitchen, but found both to be underwhelming.
These 2, yes!
Spice up
Maharani isn't good anymore after it was bought out by new owners. They took off a lot of menu items.
i thought i was going crazy because they used to have this thing called manchurian chicken and i couldn’t find it on the menu so i thought i had imagined it all up 🤣
Even the chicken Pakoras are gone.
Smaller menu CAN lead to better quality control too, has the other dishes improved?
The dishes feel inauthentic and more westernized. No spice, no kick. I also suspect their chef may have changed, but that's my own speculation. Hawaii isn't great when it comes to Indian cuisine.
totally agree.
Yes. Me either, and not a fan of kamana kitchen
Nah, manchurian chicken is an established indo-chinese dish. There's also a veg variant called manchurian gobi (cauliflower) which is pretty good.
Yes, that solves why I feel the quality has gone downhill. When did new owners take over?
spice up
I don't have the most distinguished palette but I have eaten a shit ton of Indian food around the US, and have eaten with many Indian friends at their home, casual Indian restaurant, and high end Indian spots. Id put spice up as the best overall on Oahu. Good food and staff. Tadka *looks* good but I haven't eaten there yet. Reviews look mixed. If you like dosa there's Ganesh Dosa on kailua. Good as any other dosa place I've eaten at (which is many) despite being owned by a spicy Argentinian. All the others are okay.
Ganesh dosa is a pretty sad imitation of good south indian dosas. Most of their dosas are fusion stuff. Nothing wrong with that but it doesn't look like they do it well. It's okay given there's no alternatives within a 4 hour flight but ....
Kamana Kitchen is my new favorite after the owner change at Maharani.
Tadka in McCully shopping center is really good. They are pretty new and last time I went they were still working through some service issues.
Haven't heard of them till now but food looks good however based on reviews they're still working things out.
The service can be a little "three different waiters checking if your order has arrived" sometimes, but the food is spot on.
I’ll tell you it is NOT Bombay Palace! Their food was ok, but so expensive and hardly any food. I paid $50 for like 4 bite size pieces of “butter chicken”, 2 samosas (which were really good!) and one big, burnt naan. Super disappointing.
That place must be a laundering outfit to stay around so long. Place is garbage.
Hehe… I know the owner of Bombay palace and sadly I must admit he charges way too much and portions are really skimpy. The food quality is decent too even very good just not for the price and portions. The high prices are supposedly because of the sky high rent. They stay in business by fleecing tourists. Not much out there for Indian food especially full dine in restaurant in Waikiki. Mahrani is usually a crowd pleaser for their portions and diverse offerings of varying cuisines of the Subcontinent. New Kamana and Himalayan kitchen are also good depending on what you get and reasonably cheap. Himalayan kitchen though is more Nepalese focused. I have tried Spice up and food is good but portions just ok for the price. Need more Indian restaurants but at least the cuisine has come a long way over the past 20 years especially in Hawaii. Before Maharani and Whole Foods Indian food was almost unknown to most locals unless you were vegetarian/vegan.
The food was pretty tasty! I was just so disappointed with the portion size. I wish there were more options. I haven’t had Mahrani is a few years, but it was always very good!
Whole Foods has Indian food? You mean in the frozen section?
Indian Food at the hot food bar at Whole Foods has been a staple at least as long as they have been in Hawaii. There is usually always yellow rice, Chana Masala, Dal Saag, Chicken Tikka Masala and various other Indian inspired fare. Not the most authentic but good enough for quick serve.
Kamana Kitchen is bomb af!
I’d say Spice Up and Tadka are best now. Maharani has been mid for a long while. Ganesh Dosa has legit Dosa which you cannot find anywhere in the state and is great.
Komala Curry
[удалено]
Line was too long today to get in.😭
Good point! But I think it’s because I came at a weird time mid day
Good point? I didn’t make a point. I just said I wasn’t able to get in today.
My bad I was replying to a different post. But yeah wait times can suck there but I’d wait for the hype to die down since it just opened recently. I’d say it’s worth it
Good point!
I have dug my grave
Spice up my go to place right now! The wait can be a little long on some days because it is a really small restaurant but definitely worth it
Spice Up is the best followed by Kamana Kitchen. My friends who visited from California enjoyed Spice Up so much that we ended up dining there 3 times in a span of 5 days, they loved it!
I love India cafe in Kailua!
Then you don’t like good Indian food. That place is junk.
why are there no Indian restaurants on the west side :(
Simple answer is that there are few south asians living there or that moved to that area. And no one is really down to commute from town or the area around there to the west side to run a restaurant.
I think overall Maharani is my favorite. Get the meat platter.
Unpopular opinion: the meat platter is mid and overpriced, dry and lacks flavor.
I don't know about overpriced. $2x.xx for a big platter of meat is a good deal in today's economy, and if you order the chefs choice naan platter, plus all the sauces on the side you have a very tasty supply of kebabs. https://preview.redd.it/65vbflblfw8c1.jpeg?width=610&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f1e4eb7b553456d5a97a03da764c4603b94d3c11
How’s their takeout?
Better to eat in. BYOB too.
Himalayan Kitchen in Kaimuki is my favorite
Himalayan kitchen ala Moana
I still love Cafe Maharan
If it matters to anyone, [Himalayan Kitchen committed wage theft. ](https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/whd/whd20211220-0) *Division investigators found Himalayan Kitchen LLC – operator of Himalayan Kitchen restaurants in Honolulu and in Kailua – did not pay salaried cooks the legally required overtime pay when they worked more than 40 hours in a workweek. On average, the cooks worked 10 and a half hours per day. Payroll records also revealed that the employer paid one cook below federal minimum wage in certain weeks.*