The Yarra Indian best Indian Restaurant in South Yarra — Restaurant in Melbourne

Ah, Yarra Indian Restaurant. A so-called purveyor of fine Indian cuisine that boldly goes where no restaurant should ever go into the abyss of mediocrity and culinary disappointment. If one were to diagram my expectations versus reality, it would resemble a plummeting trajectory similar to a spacecraft that failed launch due to gross negligence in engineering. And speaking of negligence, let’s discuss the abomination that arrived at my table.

Let’s begin with the butter chicken, a dish that when prepared correctly ought to be a harmonious blend of tender, diced chicken enveloped in a symphony of rich, creamy, and mildly sweet tomato-based sauce. What I received, however, was a slapdash concoction that appeared to be the result of an amateur experiment in a culinary lab staffed entirely by interns. The chicken pieces were neither diced properly nor adequately cooked, resembling haphazardly torn fragments as if someone had angrily ripped apart a rotisserie chicken with their bare hands in an act of frustration. The sauce, the very essence of this dish, lacked any semblance of the balanced sweetness and depth that is characteristic of well-executed butter chicken. Instead, I was treated to a flavor profile as lifeless as a failed chemistry experiment , bland, uninspired, and a disservice to Indian cuisine itself.

Ah, the garlic naan. A simple dish, one that requires minimal effort to perfect. And yet, somehow, this establishment managed to botch even this elementary task. Instead of being infused with the aromatic, buttery essence of garlic, my naan appeared as though someone hastily crushed a clove with their fists, smeared it across the surface, and called it a day. The texture? An uninspired, subpar carb disc that had the density of a neutron star and the flavor profile of a cardboard box.

Now, let us address the insult to my intelligence , the so-called Buy One Get One Free naan offer. Being a man of science, I am quite familiar with the concept of basic arithmetic. I ordered two naans under this magnanimous offer, which any rational being with the cognitive function of a first grader would conclude should result in me receiving four naan pieces in total. But alas, this establishment operates within its own warped mathematical reality, where two magically translates to three. A blatant case of deceptive advertising, or worse, a clerical error caused by an individual who failed their elementary-level addition exams. Either way, I was left naan-deficient, betrayed, and forced to contemplate the sheer incompetence at play.

Had I been dining in a parallel universe where disappointment was the standard, perhaps I would have found solace in this travesty. But, alas, I am burdened with high standards, rational thought, and a well-functioning palate attributes that made this dining experience all the more unbearable. Yarra Indian Restaurant has achieved something truly remarkable: it has failed on every conceivable level. If you wish to waste your money, test your patience, and subject your taste buds to an exercise in futility, by all...

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This restaurant always gets recommended on DoorDash and Uber Eats. I finally gave in, and ordered a few items from this place. Yes, it took a while to reach me, and the wait was definitely worth it. Read on to find my hot takes on the food and if this place deserves to have 'best indian' in their title.

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I wanted to have a heavy meal, so after browsing for a while, I ended up ordering a box of Chicken Biryani ($14.50) and one box of Chole Tikki (2 pc per serve, $9.00), respectively. Given the distance between my place and the restaurant, I was a tad apprehensive about receiving lukewarm, or the worst, cold food. Luckily, that wasn't the case, and the food temperature was fine by me.

The food was good. The Chole Tikki (Potato patties deep-fried and dipped in chickpea curry), being the starter, was very good! The tikkis were dense but moist inside, and evenly coated in the curry, and I was gobsmacked with it. I finished the box in no time!😆

Second is the Chicken Biryani (Tender marinated chicken pieces cooked with basmati rice, and spices), which was alright. I was a turned off by the rice, which wasn't bad, but felt like mediocre basmati rice. Perhaps it was the cooking, quality or whatever the reason, the lack of impact of the rice brought down the overall flavours of the biryani. It was a decent meal, and for the price, isn't all that bad. But, with a hefty restaurant name, one expects better.

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Overall, my experience with their food was alright, but there's always scope to do much better. I'm willing to give this place a visit in tge future (if I'm in the area, that is), and check out their other offerings. Till then, I don't think 'best indian' applies here.

Dishes ordered:

🍗 Chicken Biryani ($14.50), 1 box 🧆 Chole Tikki (2 pc per serve,...

Been ordering here over 10 times now. Food is always good chicken korma is to die for! Have not ordered from another Indian place for months now my husband who's an Indian food lover was so happy I took a chance on this place. Although the one time I ordered beef and fish dishes I thought it could be better, the beef was not as tender as their lamb(which is beautiful) and fish were most likely frozen fillets, didn't taste fresh but if you're willing to go for the other dishes you won't be disappointed! Best Indian in south side hands down.

Update: I've been a long time customer with these guys and I feel like lately they haven't been putting much effort into their service. This is what I got delivered to me. Everything's spilled I've waited over an hour for it and when I called they said they would replace the whole order but they wanted this order back... So now I've got to wait another hour of being hungry what a total waste of time! It's a $5 delivery fee ffs! I hope they do something about this to improve on their service because I'd be very sad to go to a different restaurant cuz the food is so good but come on, lift your...