India Cafe

Great food, I kept it a little traditional with the normal chicken curry and I was disappointed. I ask for it to be a little spicier than normal and they were right on the money. For my first time going there I wouldn’t say they were the best Indian food I’ve had but they were definitely on par with the rest. My wife had the lamb curry and she tried mine and she wished she would have got the chicken curry. Oh if you haven’t been there it is a take out only place. Great place for the first time and I would definitely try it again.

India Café was my first prolonged exposure to Indian food, and I fell in love with it (I’m actually getting a little nostalgic writing this) at this place. I have been coming here since shortly after it opened in Kailua. I remember the first thing I ever ordered was the lamb curry with chana masala, and after eating Subway and plate lunches for all my life it was like my taste buds were instantly transformed by the spices in that curry and the tenderness of the lamb. It was a culinary revelation for me (I can’t tell you how many times I have tried to copycat the ingredients in that chana masala). It was probably the best meal I had up until then in my early twenties, all for two bucks more than a steak plate.
I have been going there ever since. I have filled dozens of those free stamp cards. I have probably tried just about everything from there over the years. The food can be a little hit or miss a little now depending on the chef working (it’s usually still good, just not awesome like if you get a good one). But when the lamb curry or chana masala or the okra curry and some of the other dishes are just right, I would put India Café’s food up against the higher-​class Indian restaurants in Hawaii.
India Café’s will always be one of my favorite places on the Island.

Overpriced is one thing BUT these people don’t know how to cook Indian food. Everything is spiced with clove and honey. Hello. You’re not cooking a Christmas ham, I ordered chicken tikka masala!
The lassi had chunks of unripe mango in it which made it impossible to drink as it kept jamming the straw. I ordered a lassi NOT a chunky smoothie. How can you mess that up.
Thought I’d be brave and try something else other than Maharani but that was a big mistake.

Tons of vegan options, in their own convenient section on the menu. I’ve tried almost all of them and they’re all really really good.
The naan is also vegan! A rare occurrence and very exciting!
As far as I know, this is the only Indian food place in Kailua. But no worries because it’s delish.
Everyone that works there is always nice as well :)

Did the two person meal for $ 29…fish curry, chicken tikka masala, and curried potatoes. (Samosas, naan, roti, chutney, rice… great deal!) They were making a new batch of tikka so we had to wait about 20 minutes for the order. SO WORTH IT! Food was absolutely delicious! Super fresh and great flavors! Looking forward to trying many more things on their menu! (And cheerful customer service to boot…)

Great food. Little slow and very little seating. But sometimes these places are the best!

If I could give you zero stars I would. I love. love Indian food… especially vindaloo. I ordered a take out of fiery lamb vindaloo, cheesy naan, and garlic naan… what a pathetic excuse for lamb vindaloo… I had more fat than actual lamb. I spent more time spitting out fatty tissue than I did actually eating lamb. and let’s talk about your portions. I paid 37 dollars. including tip… for half a bowls worth of vindaloo. now I have small shallow bowls, and it filled up half… the onnnllyyyy thing I can even give praise for was it actually being spicy… now the naan. like I said I ordered garlic and cheesy… annndddd wait for it… I got… regular naan… this was my first and last with this business. Not a chance I will ever waste my time or money with such a low grade vindaloo and a pathetic excuse for a serving compared to price. Seriously do not waste your time.

I’ve been here three time now over the course of the past four months and have always tried something different on the menu. I have never had any Indian food (Northern or Southern) like the kind of food served at India Café and have always been slightly underwhelmed with most of the options. It’s fine when you need an Indian fix on the windward side, but definitely not the place if you’re looking for true, flavorful Indian food. Unfortunately, the most recent time I was in (on a Sunday night) it took an HOUR for my food to be ready. The customers who came in after me eventually just asked for a refund and left without their food. This place is essentially grab-​and-​go fast food so to wait an hour with no explanation and no complementary appetizer or drink thrown in was just poor service. I’m sure I’ll be back, but I won’t be in any rush.

Spot on indian food. I had the chicken tikka, and it was delicious. My friend had the lamb curry, and he raved on how tender the lamb was, and how flavorful it was. The food is vibrant and exciting. In addition, it was served quickly. The only negative thing i have to say is their drink selection is rather limited. All in all though, a great dining experience.

Being from India I was quite enbarrassed when the uncooked pancake came to my table when I ordered a dosa. Lack of good taste or consistency. It seems the staff was not taught much about the real Indian food. I wonder if the owners are aware?

Being a half Indian from Malaysia, i know what Malaysian food is and i know Indian food as well. When these guys were a mobile vendors their Roti was better and came with a better pricing combo years ago. Their Roti Paratha now was unfortunately worse than frozen pre package ones imported from Malaysia. A good authentic Roti should be hot, buttery, fluffy and soft, served with a good flavorful curry. Their curry was okay, i would still eat it if it was the last curry in this earth. I expected a lot more, with owners being Indian. If you think you’d like something exotic and this is a different fare than your regular meal and wouldn’t know any better for comparison then it’s not a big deal. The naan was nothing like a real naan, i am sure it never saw the end of the tandoori oven. The cheese topping on top of the naan is a pathetic touch trying to mark up the profit for a non fresh naan is unacceptable. Entire time spent at the shop about 1 hour, service was extremely slow but it was good, server had good manners and did his job well but what was going on in the back, i wouldn’t even want to imagine. A lady walked in said she had already phone ordered and still had to wait 45 minutes and the server told her that they had a sudden rush and they were sorry, as long as i’ve sat there i did not see any «rush» and a few people walked out on them and 1 even said to give his meal to the next person because he couldn’t wait any longer. I hope the management would find a way to resolve their execution method to maximize their revenue if they even care. Me and my family for one, will not be coming back which is really sad.

Wow this place has so many vegetarian and vegan options and everything was delicious! With the veggie plates, you can choose up to three options, which includes seasoned rice, salad and soup! We each had two options and that was plenty. You can also add bread appetizers and chutneys to enhance your meal.
There are only two small tables inside and two tables outside so if you have a bigger group, take out is a better choice. They have group meals that would be a good option too. It was delicious and wish I could have tried more dishes.
The watermelon juice was also very good.
They also have other protein dishes if you are interested in that.
The girl taking our order was very friendly and helped us decide what to order.

Got the Raja Kings Dinner Special for 4 for take out, decently priced but the food is just mediocre. The best was probably the samosa, the batter is almost croissant-​like and different than I’ve had.
Would recommend the okra, curry chicken, and spicy curry shrimp.
Would NOT recommend the pork (we don’t remember ordering this, but the container was labeled as such) or the tandoori chicken (super skimpy portion and super dry).
Considering this is the only Indian place around this area, would only go back if I’m desperately craving Indian food which is unlikely to be anytime soon.

I am very shocked to see some of the reviews on here. I have been here a few times and just went there for dinner tonight. I am always very happy with the food and the service is always good. The Caucasian lady that was working tonight was extremely helpful and took my experience at this restaurant over the top and that is the reason I am taking the time to write this review. I will be back again and again I highly recommend this restaurant if your looking for good Indian food with great service.

Always so Ono. The kids request to stop by the India Café quite regularly. It’s a good place to get an Indian curry fix.

Service is everything, and the white girl in the front was probably the most rude, incompetent server/​cashier ever.
When she took our order she didn’t seem to know what she was doing. We ordered the curry and masala, then she asked which vegetables, then she stammered that «you can’t order two, they come with one». I gave her each order separately.
Then we order the naan and she said that their tandoori oven broke 20 minutes ago. No politeness whatoever, just snapping at us as if she was trying to defend herself.
They don’t answer the phone even though they aren’t that busy, we tried. I hope the food is that good.
The food is great and the other server was exceptional.
The constant bickering in the back also was distasteful. When they got our order wrong we could hear the white girl slandering us in the back.
She is not meant for people service.

Here’s the thing. The food is really good. I’d say definitely 4 stars. But the service is so slow and so lacking that I refuse to come back here.
Came in for lunch today and there was one guy in line ahead of me. It took the cashier 10 mins to take his order, ring it up, realise he was out of what the customer wanted, refund him and make idle chit chat. I’d really like to order please. It’s ridiculous for it to take ten mins.
Finally I get to order. There’s a sign behind the register that says fresh naan takes 10 mins to make. I order some and the cashier informs me it will take 30 mins. Are you kidding? So I say I’ll just order my plate without the naan. The cashier spends a longer than necessary amount of time counting change as I pay and he says it will take ten mins. Ugh.
When I finally picked up my food I realized the whole ordeal from entering the café
To picking up my food is 25 minutes. That’s just ridiculous for a café that doesn’t even have customers in it. And I get home with my food to find out that I didn’t even get the raita which my plate is supposed to come with. Food may taste good but not great enough for me to waste my time coming back. Also they may want to cut down on their «smoke breaks». Bloodshot eyes give it away every time.

Meh. Rice was rice. chicken masala is decent. Chana masala had no flavour whatsoever. Raita was watery and bland. Potato/​pea was super bland.
I don’t think they know how what chilis are. The chicken masala was tasty and had creaminess but no spice nor heat whatsoever. Got chilis? Please?
Chana masala was bland bland bland. Raita was more water than yogurt and forgettable. Potato/​peas were decent consistency wise but lacked a thing called flavour. Bland bland.
Pretty sure they’re not cooking with ghee, chilis or adequate amounts of spices. It’s kinda like making a milk shake with nonfat milk and stevia. Sure it’s kinda the same but who wants it?
Oh and the roti? Yeah that’s not roti, it’s some kind of bastardised thin naan. I love naan but it’s not roti.
Samosa with Thai chili sauce? No thanks. That said I can’t give them 1 star because it’s not truly terrible. I’d give them 2.5 stars if I could because it’s definitely edible, it’s just not any good. It’s like airplane food — nourishment divorced from joy, elevated only by the thrill of travel to an exotic destination. Except your flight got diverted to O’Hare.

Coconut Curry, that is where it’s at my fellow food lovers. This is no ordinary curry… spices blended so perfectly you’ll never want to try anything else. There’s no overuse of one spice or under usage of another, it is just right and more than you’ll expect. The chicken was so tender it fell off of the bone, does it get any better than that? No. The zitti, which was my veggie of choice, was soft and delectable but not mushy. They even had an awesome homemade vegan salad dressing that was light and refreshing for these hot Hawaii days.
I have been back time and time again and it’s always as amazing as the time before!
Not to mention I’d love to run my fingers through (who I assume is) the managers blonde curly hair… mmhmmmmmm ;)

Get the eggplant side! It is spicy and delicious!
I stumbled upon this eatery while thinking about food while shopping at the grocery market next door, Times. The sign they displayed outside of their restaurant looked enticing. I decided to give them a shot and ordered their lamb masala. The girl taking my order noted to me that the eggplant side was going to be very spicy. Acknowledging the danger that was to come ahead, I took the risk anyway.
Later, a bit into the eggplant side, and I need some milk to tame the fire! Anyhow, it was all worth it… The eggplant side was delicious, the lamb masala was incredible and the meal left me dancing!
I came back another day and gave their chicken curry a try. In my opinion, the masalas are definitely better than the curries. The Indian rice that comes with each plate is very flavorful! Thumbs up.
This is a small eatery with about 3 or 4 tables. But the masalas are yummy!