DESI TADKA INDIAN RESTAURANT - DECATUR

Reviews

• AJ

  Aliyah Jones

  2 days ago
  2.0
  Sad to say I had a really bad experience first time dining in this restaurant. It took over 10 min for a server to come say anything to us once we were seated. And another 10 just to place an order. I didn’t expect that from a fine dining experience. We were so hungry we ordered fries to come out fast and they gave us (not a joke) 2 ketchup packet for a whole tray of fries. When we asked for more, they gave us two more. Again not what to expect from a fine dining. Stingy and ketchup packets. Now starting with the food, we ordered the butter chicken that had half frozen chicken bites and half 50lbs of stewed sugar. Inedible. We also ordered the mutton biryani and I kid you not, the meat was frozen. The rice was okay and served hot but with the frozen meat, I couldn’t really enjoy anything. I usually like to order a lot to get the whole experience of the restaurant but between the ketchup packets, the sugary sauce and frozen meat, I was begging to leave. The service was very mediocre, I could tell we weren’t exactly welcome. The food was abysmal and maybe it was just one night, considering all these other great reviews but I probably will never return there. I put 5 stars for atmosphere because it is a truly beautiful place.
• UA

  Umar AlFarooq

  6 days ago
  2.0
  South Indian warning! You have NO business making biriyani, much less selling it. Possibly the worst biriyani we've had. No flavor. Just food coloring. They said that the Tikka was in gravy, it was not. Chicken 65 was decent but that's a south Indian dish. When you name the restaurant Desi TADKA you don't expect the sub standard quality. We were in a hurry and waited there. The food was there but nobody told us until much later. I would not recommend this place for north Indian dishes. All the hype in the decor doesn't mean anything when you serve bad food.
• ER

  Elias Reyes

  Jan 3, 2026
  1.0
  The food is flavorful, but the portions were very disappointing. We ordered three chicken curries (butter chicken, tikka masala, and kadhai), and all three combined had fewer than 10 pieces of chicken total, and came to our table cold, which felt unreasonable for the price. The wait time was long (they do disclose this with a sign at the entrance), but it was frustrating to see tables seated after us receive their food first. Service didn’t help the situation, our server was rarely around, and we had to ask other staff to take our order, reorder, and give us our check. Because the portions were so small, we ended up ordering an additional curry. The kadhai chicken in particular had very little meat, mostly scrap pieces of bone-in chicken, and did not feel like a proper serving. While the food itself tasted good, the portion sizes and service issues took away from the overall experience.
• SR

  Sam R

  Dec 30, 2025
  3.0
  Quality going down - I feel all the praise and great reviews have made this place a bit complacent. I went there first time in January 2025 and all the food was fabulous and service amazing .. now I went last week during a family trip and took them all praising this place but the food and service totally fell flat during this visit.. Pav bhaji was watery and very ordinary whereas was totally fire during my Jan visit.. curries and other apps were very average in taste and not hot when they came out making us wonder if we got fresh food.. it took forever to order and a long time to get our food.. so overall very average experience and not living up to the recent hype about this place.
• AN

  Archana Nayar

  Dec 26, 2025
  5.0
  Dining at Desi Tadka feels like stepping into a small but well-curated experiment in sensory stimulation. The decor is unique and eclectic, immediately signaling that this is a place unafraid of personality. Every visual detail seems intentional, inviting curiosity before the food even arrives. The real proof, of course, lies on the plate. We ordered the chicken hakka noodles and the mutton dum biryani, and both delivered an impressive depth of flavor. The hakka noodles were bold and satisfying, with seasoning that was assertive without being overwhelming. The mutton dum biryani was the standout. Aromatic, richly layered, and beautifully balanced, it demonstrated a confident command of spice, where no single note dominated and every bite revealed something new. Service was quick and efficient, reinforcing the sense that this restaurant operates with quiet precision. There was no unnecessary delay, no theatrics, just food delivered at the right moment and at its best. Desi Tadka succeeds because it understands a fundamental principle. Great cuisine is not about excess, but about balance, intention, and execution. If you appreciate flavorful food crafted with care and character, this is a place well worth visiting.