Host India-East — Restaurant in Ottawa

We were recommended to this place by our friend who loved it. Unfortunately, our experience was awful, both because of the food but especially because of the cruel customer service. There are far better restaurants to support during the COVID19 crisis, who are more deserving of our hard-earned dollars.

We hoped to support a local business with what little money we tend to have disposable. While we’ve had great experiences with other local establishments in Ottawa, like Pizza Nerds and Greek and Wheels and Shinka Sushi among many others, our experience at Host India was dreadful.

There was a miscommunication in the kitchen and what was supposed to be an item substitution to accommodate an allergy was quickly made into a meal substitution for a cheaper dish—even after the restaurant and I confirmed over the phone. I hoped to quickly and amicably resolve the issue directly with the restaurant. The barman who picked up the phone said that it was my problem, denied my account of our conversation, and said the most they could do was refund the difference between the dish I wanted and the random dish they gave us. He then said I would have to pick up the money in cash in person. When I asked for alternatives that were contactless he dismissed me.

I decided to just eat the cost and enjoy the rest of the dinner until I discovered that the condiments for which I explicitly asked, and which in Indian cuisine are essential to particular dishes, were missing and that the samosas were besides undercooked and gummy. I called and asked to speak to the owner/manager to explain the situation and receive recompense for the wrong dish that we weren’t going to eat, having thought that we were being taken for granted.

The owner/manager immediately escalated and yelled at me, said that I was just being greedy for money and he didn’t need my business. To affirm, we were hoping to receive some sort of correction because we didn’t receive the correct order after spending about $100.

I rarely leave reviews online, and when I do it’s only to praise local businesses to ensure they do well. But this is by far not only the worst restaurant experience I’ve had but the worst customer service experience I’ve ever had.

It was especially cruel to have a rude and presumptuous restaurant owner scream at us that we just wanted money when my wife and I struggle to support our community as much as we can. This was a heartbreaking experience. Never again.

Also, frankly, it’s overpriced. I’d personally recommend to go elsewhere for your Indian food. Save your business for someone who cares...

Check your recipes before paying!!

It was all good from the start. My in-laws and I went out to try a new something new. We got there and they sat us, near the window. We looked at the menu and we decided to get a bunch of appetizers and just split it among all of us. The waiter was kind enough to do that but, as time went on you can tell on his face and the tone of his voice, he didn’t like that we did that. His customer service was a 0/10. He didn’t smile once, he kept asking us what else we’d like on the menu but all we wanted to a bunch of appetizers to share. Throughout the night he looked annoyed and very unprofessional.

My sister-in-law is lactose intolerant and has a 1-year-old (babies cannot eat spicy food) we tried looking on the menu to accommodate her and her son’s dietary needs. Unfortunately there was only 1 thing that she could have that didn’t have dairy but it had spices in it. The waiter kept saying that’s it’s spicy and they couldn’t do anything to remove the spice. She kept having to ask him over and over that it couldn’t be spicy so she could feed her son. He finally at the end made an exception and they made something with no diary and no spice (as someone who works in customer service my number one goal is to make my client happy and satisfied, in this case her needs were not met without having to constantly reinsurance it).

My in-laws ordered rounds of corona beers and to keep count, they kept the empty bottles on the side tables to count them at the end. Overall it was a good night until the bill came. The waiter came up to us and said 29 beers later to which we all looked at each other and said there’s no way that we drank 29 coronas. My husband and brother-in-law counted the bottles 3 times and the total was 17!!!!! Where did 29 come from?!? The lady near the desk kept saying it was a different number and called my father-in-law a liar. My brother-in-law kept telling her to look at the bottles on the side table and count them but, she never did she kept giving him a blank stare. He kept repeating himself and she kept giving him a blank stare.

They finally went to count the bottles and the amount was correct … 17 coronas. They were sorry which is okay, everyone makes mistakes but, at least listen and look at the table where the evidence is pointed.

Overall I would rate my experience a 1/10. The food is good but the customer service...

Horrible horrible experience at Host India tonight.

My husband, my uncle, me, my friend and my toddler go there to eat. My toddler is in a yelling mood... great 🙃. Thankfully the resturant was empty so if he screamed no problem right? Wrong. From the moment we sat down there were rude judgey comments from the waitress... the first one was "oh let him run around no one's in the resturant" I simply say "no you have stairs I am not having him just run around...." then we order our food and a samosa appetizer. Every time my toddler screamed the staff hovered ... I hated that.... samosa comes I try and give some to my toddler and he doesn't want it. So I put some carrots in front of him on the table . (Keep in mind hes and toddler and a plate or napkin would end up on the floor). The waitress comes over and says "no food for baby just carrots?" I say "we ordered butter chicken were just waiting for our other person to arrive" (my friend was running late and we didn't want to eat without him). She then comments on how I didn't put a plate or napkin down and I should because 'table isn't clean' (umm what do u mean the table isn't clean?) Also since I am my childs mother I know for a fact a plate or napkin will end up on the floor. I tell her it's not a good idea the plate will go on the floor. She then brings a napkin -_- ... to which 5 seconds later ends up on the floor. At this point I'm feeling anxious and judged so we ask for our food to go. As im packing things up another waitress says "oh try giving baby some samosa" I siged and said "I did he didn't want it." As I leave I simply say to them both "next time a mother comes in with her child please keep your comments to yourself it it isn't nice and gives us anxiety, and I leave the resturant. My husband pays and tells them why we are leaving and how they upset me. They just say "sorry" and offer a free desert..... needless to say I'm not going back ever. So please if you see a fussy baby or toddler and a mom whose clearly doing her best know, she knows her child and your comments DONT HELP! Very upsetting because we loved this place and now I don't ever...