Kadhai Boutique Indian Cuisine

My wife and I moved to Bethesda a year ago. I refrained from rating places to give them all a chance. This is the overall winner: our favorite place to go out to dinner or get takeout. It’s a tiny bit formal and pricey for Indian, but it’s the best ethnic food in Bethesda. I have tried a lot of the menu, and I can’t say that every single thing is always amazing. But everything is at least above average good. And our two favorite dishes are excellent — the Baingan Bharta (eggplant in a delicious sauce) and Lamb Saag. I recommend this place to anyone looking for something flavorful in Bethesda. I have only been there for dinner and menu orders, so can’t speak to the lunch or buffet.

Nice spot for an Indian dinner. My boyfriend and I came here late on a Saturday night and sat outside. The wait staff was superb– professional, kind, and attentive. The menu was extensive and we ordered samosas, chicken tikka masala, and seekh kabab tandoori. The chicken tikka masala was more tomato based than cream based which I liked. Portion sizes were large (definitely at least two meals for me with the chicken tikka masala). Will return next time I am craving Indian food.

Weeekend buffet special — can’t beat it. The inside of the place is nice also. The FOOD though most importantly was the tastiest Indian food I’ve had in all of Bethesda. Even with serving large portions through buffet the quality was great !
The saag paneer, chicken tikka masala, and all of the accompaniments like pakora, chutneys and everything was great.
Will definitely be here again for dinner or lunch buffet on weekends

Best Indian Food in the DC area! We ordered butter chicken, vegetable korma, Chicken tikka Massala and the fried spinach appetizers. It was all so tasty and delicious.
Butter chicken was savory and very sweet. The tikka masala was so juicy and flavorful and the sauce was delicious. The chicken had a barbequed taste and the sauce was very mild. I added some of the mint and tamarind chutney to give it a more aour taste. The korma is a vegetarian favorite in a delicious curry cashew sauce. It was awesome! One good thing is they dont overflow cumin in their rice. Their rice was also very good. The naan was pipping hot, soft and delicious.
The overall experience was outstanding. The staff was always there to fill our waters and provide great service! Highly recommend this place. Food was superb. Probably one of the. Best indian places in the DC/​maryland area.

Sooooooooooo good! Not only is the food phenomenal, the staff is equally as great. I asked my server if a dish had milk in it before I ordered, and he said no. When they brought the food out to the table he gave me a separate bowl of rice that was made without cream. I had no idea the rice even contained cream, but he was such a good server that he knew from my asking about the main dish that I would need a dairy free meal. I was impressed by that. My whole family thoroughly enjoyed their meal here.

I came here for their lunch buffet and it was great. The service was great, and for an Indian buffet, I usually rate service as quick delivery of the Naan (5 stars), water refilled in a timely fashion (5 stars), and plates cleared quickly (5 stars). Not only was the service great, but the food was delicious. The Naan was so soft and tasty. They had a ton of yummy chutneys and two different desserts, and this was just the regular weekday buffet. I imagine that the weekend buffet is even more extravagant. I am a vegetarian, and there was plenty for me to eat. I will definitely be coming back.

This place is consistently outstanding. Service is very good. The dried fruit naan is Kadhai for (sorry).

If you’re in the mood for simple no-​frills North Indian food then it really doesn’t get any better than Kadhai in Bethesda!
The food is rich, flavorful & impeccably well-​done. They use the freshest and best ingredients & you can tell when it all comes together. It’s basically like every other generic North Indian Punjabi-​centric restaurant out there – they just do everything a little better. The butter chicken is a must try as is their Channa masala. The carrot Halwa is sinfully good. Ahem Ahem – if you’re counting calories this isn’t the place you should be in — food is lathered in butter and cream (whenever applicable) so perhaps not something you can eat everyday. Kadhai doesn’t have the most extensive & diverse menu (like Rasika for example) but whatever it does – it does expectionally well!
The service is spot on and staff very attentive and perhaps the best part is that food doesn’t taken forever to arrive!

Saw all the great reviews on Unilocal and called the restaurant at 1:41 pm on a Saturday. We were informed that they stop the buffet at 2:30 pm. Cool, we got a great meter and parking spot right in front of the restaurant on Norfolk Ave & walked in at 2:03 pm. My friend and I were seated in a small 2 diner table by the entrance and food stations immediately. They were out of the Okra which was one of three vegetarian dishes and the Tandoori Chicken as well. I asked one of the waiters to kindly bring out some more. He actually went around to the three gentlemen including the manager standing behind the buffet playing with their cell phones to ask if we could get some more. The manager in a blue shirt and a nice blue tie answered in Hindi (most common language in India) and sighed about our timing and expecting to get more food 20 minutes «at a buffet» before they close. Now I can affectionately refer to him as Moron #1. He was the gentleman who answered the phone at 1:41 pm and invited us to come in, seated us at 2:03 pm and then was bothered to be a good and fair host; whining in one of 8 languages that his guests do understand and speak. It gets better — at 2:15 pm, I walked past the appetizer station and went through a stack of serving cups to find one as the top two were dirty. Another gentleman whose name tag read «Moron #2» actually snapped at me telling me to get them from by the dessert section on the other side, not to touch this section. It really took a lot for me to contain myself and not do my favorite «Paul Vitti» impression from the sequel «Analyze That» — «Listen, I’ve only got two hands, I can smack you with my left hand or my right hand.» No no wait, I am holding your two filthy serving bowls with my right hand.
Got to admit — the food was extraordinary. They did bring out the Okra or Bhindi which was scrumptious and my friend said her Chicken was very, very good. At 2:21 pm, the manager went around the restaurant and notified all guests that the buffet was being shut down in a few; kindly go and help yourselves. It was amazing clockwork, at 2:25 pm he was the conductor of the symphony and lifted his 2 hands and all the waiters cleared out all the food and buffet selections in 90 seconds flat. We got our check at 2:27 pm. At 2:30 pm, the entire waitstaff (all men) converged from the kitchen in t shirts and comfortable attire with their plates full of food, grabbed a table of 8; sat down and started eating as they opened up a jar of Indian pickles or achar and passed it around. Not a thank you, not a see you next time. Love that — love the team spirit and the eating together. Great, tasty food — would have been 5 stars except for Moron #1 and Moron #2 (hey gotta love the late great Dennis Farina and his dialogue in the Robert De Niro Charles Grodin classic «Midnight Run») and their stuck up attitude and how we were treated.
To the owner — amazing food for the $ 15 weekend lunch buffet and great, great reviews. You guys are doing wonderful business. Too bad it has gone to your staff’s head. Hope you continue to treat others as you want to be treated for the long haul in the true and real Indian spirit. This review is only my second non 5 star review out of 77 Unilocal reviews. Hence I do always look for and acknowledge the gold but do speak up when faced with such bs.
Lots of options in Bethesda and Rockville. Time to explore. Kadhai can kiss my Tukhas!

Kadhai looks like an old-​school Indian joint — white table cloths, institutional chairs, overly bright lighting. But the food is a cut above most Indian joints. Do yourself a favor and skip the tandoori chicken — it’s that usual oddly red, slightly overcooked chicken. Instead, stick with the vegetarian options, especially the bhindi (okra) which was cooked to perfection, or the various saags (you can even ask them to just do saag if you’re feeling in the mood for an infusion of green veggies).

First time there —
my friend and I shared the «METHI MALAI PANEER» ($ 13), the DAAL MAKHIN ($ 10) and also the SPECIAL BREAD BASKET ($ 10) which is a combination of a several breads altogether.
The masala tea I took ($ 3) felt just like regular tea, served with milk…
All the dishes were pretty big! We didn’t finish it all, and took whats left back home in boxes (yayy, no need to cook tomorrow :))
The service was fast, professional and kind. The place is clean and the ambiance was calm and nice.
The food was pretty good, and the prices are very reasonable (and as I mentioned — big dishes!), yet, I give the place 4 stars, and not 5, as I didn’t feel their food is the best, it felt a bit heavy.
Nevertheless, I would not hesitate visiting there again.

Excellent! Arrived Saturday for a late brunch buffet. They had at least nine entrée options plus dessert and salad and sides. BBQ chicken was excellent, along with the eggplant and the paneer. Definitely recommend!

I recently went to Kadhai for the first time. And I’m disappointed that I hadn’t discovered this gem until now. The ambiance is very cozy and inviting. I was very pleased with the staff waiting my table — they had dropped by multiple times to check if everything was going well and they refilled the glasses when deemed appropriate.
I had ordered a chicken biryani. The rice was a bit under-​cooked, and it felt as though a chicken curry was just mixed in with under-​cooked rice. But despite this, I had a really pleasant meal. I also had a taste of lamb cooked with spinach and served with rice on the side. The lamb was delish! So so delish!
We were having a celebratory dinner and my server bought out a candle lit mango kulfi — I thought that made the meal very special. I definitely plan to revisit Kadhai real soon. Thank you, Team Kadhai, for making my dinner such a pleasurable experience!

I really liked Kahdai. It has an unassuming appearance on the outside but very nice inside. Cloth tables and napkins immediate friendly greeting and service with a smile. I ordered the buffet for lunch $ 12.95 and a glass of Cabernet. Chicken tikka, lamb dish, saag, another chicken dish and lentils were all part of the buffet. All dishes had nice flavor I’ve come to like at Indian restaurants and were not too spicy but still had enough to warm your mouth. Very good food I recommend it!

He usually calls for carry-​out here but the better half dragged my homebody-​self outdoors to dine in this evening. Change of pace will do.
Well hello, we were the first to enter their cozy calming clean interior of white-​tableclothed booths and tables.
But steadily the space was filling up w/​Monday dinner diners. The restaurant gradually became wonderfully fragrant. Ahhhhh~
Familiar spicy flavorful dishes are my habits so I usually surrender to their chicken vindaloo. Chicken pieces are tender and potatoes hold its shape until forked. Torn naan pieces are dipped to saturation in the sauce too. The heat level, for me, is pleasant and lingers well to clear my sinus. Satisfying.
Eventually I’ll direct my attention to other chicken entrees but that vindaloo voodoo put a spell on me.
Hubs favors their malai kofta. The vegetable and cottage cheese dumplings’ inners are soft and moist to his liking. Creamy sauce, left over, pairs well w/​aloo paratha (whole wheat bread stuffed w/​spiced potatoes & green peas).
If only I can say no to naan then I’d have room for dessert. Darn my passion for fluffy carbs. Oh well — FirstWorldStruggles.
Good eats w/​good folks. Courteous friendly professional staff led by a genuinely likable easygoing manager/​owner.
Watch those few steps when entering and metered street parking for the talented and patient.

this place is so delicious! (…if only it was closer to rockville… sigh). this is probably the second time ive had indian food and the only other comparison i have is rasika but this place left me so full and satisfied. got my go-​to indian spot in MD now.
the meat in the chicken masala was so tender. the samosas were so crispy on the outside and the potatoes on the inside were so fluffy and flavorful. not to mention that you get two per order and they are HUGE. the chicken tandoori was a litttttttttle dry but still flavorful enough.
portions are great. id say one appetizer, two entrees and 1 – 2 orders of bread is plenty for two people (probably will have leftovers)!
gets pretty busy for dinner time (even up until 8ish) so id make sure to call ahead!

Another disappointing Bethesda restaurant. Maybe I am a DC snob, but I find highly rated restaurants in Bethesda sub par compared to any restaurant in the city of DC. I was hoping for the best Indian food (as the review says), but left disappointed.
The restaurant is big and close to the Bethesda Metro Station. The staff is friendly and they have a large menu. I ordered the chicken tikka masala and it was plenty of food, but it wasn’t super flavorful and the chicken was fatty and had grizzle. I ordered naan and for the price, wasn’t that much.
If you want the truly best Indian food in the DC Metro area, head over to Dishes of India in Huntington. The BEST!

Very good Indian buffet for $ 15, slighter higher than most other Indian buffet. I liked the variety, 10 main dishes. Their lamb was good along with the lamb seekh kebab and malai kofta. Many Indian buffet does not have malai kofta.
Chicken Murg makhani and tandoori chicken were tasty and moist.
The vegetarian dishes were also tasty.
The service was very good and they kept our table clean and drinks refilled.
I heard that there is another indian
restaurant around the corner Bethesda Curry Kitchen is also good and slightly less expensive $ 13. So I’ll try that next time I’m in town. But I definitely would recommend this place for its buffet. They even have outdoor seating, which is suitable for the area.

Mos Def coming back to this spot. I posted a picture as well, but hummunahummuna… no words can really say how I feel about this place. The rice. The Roti (the Roti being so good, I’m sure the Naan is just as good, if not better!). The curry! I had the Lamb Punjabi with a side order of Roti and a Johnny Black for my drink. I was feeling so good after this, I went next door, bought a cigar and smoked it immediately as I walked around the area scoping out my next targets. Kadhai is a Must try and a definite 5-​star in my book. Enjoy!

This review is part of my Music Man Series Of Reviews.
This review is based on the song «Sincere» in The Music Man:
How can there be spice but non spicy?
Where is the naan in non sequitor?
You’re lunch buffet is a deal my dear
Everything for twelve ninety five
Tell me, what are your mysterious sauces on the bar, dear
While barely no single dish shines above
How can there be spice but non spicy?
Aren’t we sincerely in love?
Oh, we’re in love!