Kootenay Tamil Kitchen — Restaurant in Nelson

We had our lunch yesterday August 12th 2025 , totally disappointed . First of all the waitress gave us side plates to have our maincourse , totally weird how can you eat your main course food on a side plate and when I asked the server later she gave an answer which was amazing and that was the tables are small and that’s why they give the side plates and the bigger plates tend to break easily while washing them .

We ordered chicken 65 , 2 chicken kothu parotta , steamed rice , 3 parattas , beef chukka , chicken Varuval , both these dishes came out with ZERO SALT and no taste nor flavour at all . Then a chicken fried rice . We returned the beef chukka and chicken varuval back to the server saying it has no salt . She apologized and took them back and after 20 minutes she brought back again and apologized again . When we ate it was, it was the same dish with NO SALT again and she came after 15 minutes to check how was the food . I just asked her is it possible for me to speak to the chef and a cook came out and I said why is it that we got the same food with NO SALT again and he said the server has informed him that we complaint saying that the food is salty . I called the server she and cook are debating in front of us saying that you said more salt and the server said i said no salt . The cook and the server came out with an excuse saying the kitchen was loud so he don’t hear her properly .

They served a yellow rice probably they might say that as a saffron rice which was no flavour no taste zero salt just with some turmeric powder and some whole garam masala in it . The fried rice was so amazing we thought it was a Chinese dish expecting it to be with soya sauce and julienne chicken with some veggies and scallions . But we got a dish like typical Tamil Nadu road side rice which had diced the same chicken 65 in it . When I checked with the cook he said that is the recipe which he was asked to follow . Then the server said that the cook is new , old cook has left the place .

OVER ALL WORST EXPERIENCE , NEVER WILL WE GO...

We chose to spend Valentines dinner at this restaurant, having their set menu. Each course had a choice of 2 or 3 items, with a glass of rose' to start the meal. Hint: book a reservation no matter what day as it is a popular place and many are turned away.

The restaurant is pleasant, simply decorated and almost minimalist; a clean look. We liked the tables are not crammed together but have enough space there is at least some sense of "on your own".

Service was good right out of the gate and all staff were friendly and attentive as they could be given the occasional chaos. If there was a shortcoming it was the drink service, which was well behind the food service.

We both ordered separate items so we could taste test and of items, the Sri Lankan Beef rolls, Beet Watermelon and Feta salad, and the King Fish Steak deserve mention. Overall, the meal left us pleasantly full and very satisfied. Spices were on the mark.

The only unpleasant moment was out of control of the restaurant, as a homeless person came in loudly and rudely; disrupting things for 3-4 minutes while they warmed up. Staff were very good at handling the situation. It would be wise for the City of Nelson to address this much broader...

I have my own business so I very rarely leave a negative review. We were in a hurry to get back on the road and wanted to try this place. The food was good especially the bread. But the portions were really small especially the rice ( my 9 your old ate it in 3 spoons). We ordered enough for 2 adults and 2 kids but the food was not enough so I ended up ordering more bread and another meal. In the end I paid over $167 and i have been to many restaurants rarely do we pay more than $120 for the same or similar orders. We did not order drinks or any appetizers or dessert just curry. The staff were helpful in ordering food fast but they were bored and uninterested and no smile or thank you or have a nice day. After we finished the food, I sort of regretted coming to this place as we had a nice day and this made me feel like something was not right. I am writing this review in hopes they improve their portions and learn to have some...