Seaside Shahi - Wollongong — Restaurant in Wollongong City Council

@seasideshahi A Flavourful Indian Escape by the Sea. Nestled along the coast in Wollongong, Seaside Shahi offers not just a meal, but a rich cultural and culinary experience. From the moment we stepped in, we were warmly welcomed by the staff, followed by a very enjoyable evening. Starter was the Chicken Tikka, which set the tone beautifully—tender, smoky, fired chicken. For mains, we enjoyed the Beef Corma and Beef Madras—both absolutely packed with flavour, aromatic spices that showed off the true Indian flavours. A surprising highlight was their signature mocktail, the Seaside Shahi, which served as a perfect palate cleanser between courses. It allowed each curry’s unique flavour profile to shine through. Dessert was another delight—we tried the Pistachio (Pista) and Mango Kulfi, and they were both creamy, subtly sweet, and refreshing—like a frozen yoghurt with an Indian twist. We enjoyed the ambiance just as much. The restaurant overlooks the sea, and on a clear day, you can sit out on the balcony and enjoy a cool ocean breeze with your meal. Inside, beautifully painted murals of Indian ladies dancing add a touch of elegance and cultural warmth. The seating is comfortable (especially the softer bench seating along the wall), and it’s easy to hold a conversation without shouting over background noise. Service was excellent. Our hostess was welcoming, friendly, and professional throughout. Jess, the manageress, took the time to explain the dishes and make sure we were comfortable. The waiter also recommended we try their Indian beer next time—advice we’ll gladly take. They also offer a lunchtime Thali, which we’re told is excellent, and takeaway options are available too. One detail we really appreciated: they have an Indian chef preparing the meals. That authenticity came through in every dish. When it comes to food, there’s no better way to experience the heart of a culture than to taste it from someone who lives and breathes it. In short, our experience at Seaside Shahi was great—from the flavours to the service to the setting. We left with full hearts and even fuller bellies dragging out the door. Highly...

I think this restaurant would get a lot more popular if they offered the all you can eat on a Friday and Saturday night! Apparently they only offer the thali at lunch!

When I go to Indian I literally want to try every dish so I can experience new dishes and expand my knowledge on Indian cuisine.

We ordered the non veg platter, samosas, chef goat curry, palak panner & the rainbow paratha? The lamb chops were by far the best! And all other meats were nicely marinated too.

As for palak paneer I found it to be a bit flavourless compared to any others I’ve had before, possibly less fenugreek leaves? And also no spice ):

Goat was great too but we found it had a lot of bones in it.

And the rainbow paratha, it was unfortunately not flakey and sadly flavourless, I was expecting the colours within it to have spices in it but I think it was just food colouring? But incorporating Indian spices with the flavours would go so far and customers would be happy to pay more if the flavours were there! Even a drizzle of garlic on it? I think it’s such a cool thing you have that takes you apart from other Indian restaurants though!

Overall I think I was a little mislead by seaside sahis TikTok video that show cases their thali being a dinner dish! I was really looking forward to having a rainbow filled dinner with variety, so was super bummed out I could only try two curries...

The food had flavour and was spicy, however we didn't appreciate our food being fingered on the table in front of us. THAT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE & UNSANITARY. Safe to say we didnt eat it and when we brought it to their attention they lied to our faces and said they didnt touch the food... LIES!!!

The service was absolutely atrocious. There was a total of 3 other tables dining in so it definitely was not busy, they had 4 people working the floor and we had to seek confirmation on a few dishes and WE HAD TO ASK FOR THE TABLE TO BE CLEARED AFTER THE PLATES WERE SITTING PILED UP FOR 20MINS WITH THREE SERVERS STANDING THERE TALKING. Customer service was poor, not welcoming, not engaging, almost non-exsistant.

BEWARE THE BATHROOMS ARE PUTRID. ABSOLUTELY SO DISGUSTING, THAT I REFUSED TO USE THEM OR TOUCH ANYTHING. I DOUBT THEY HAVE BEEN CLEANED IN A VERY LONG TIME. DEFINITELY NOT UP TO OH&S STANDARDS THAT IS FOR SURE & THE SMELL... THAT WAS ON A WHOLE OTHER LEVEL OF GROSS.

Our online booking was not confirmed professionally and when we called to check, they had no idea and booked us in again. When we rocked up, they were not aware of our booking and we had to seat ourselves

I hope they take ALL this feedback seriously and make some...