Kothur Indian Cuisine — Restaurant in Toronto

On November 8, we visited friends of ours and on their recommendation, placed an order for delivery from Kothur. We were told that our order would take an hour to arrive. 10 minutes after that hour passed, we called and were told that it would arrive in 10-15 minutes. It was finally delivered nearly 2 hours after we initially placed the order.

I might have added one more star in my review, had the staff at Kothur actually apologised and taken responsibility for the fact that they obviously forgot our order and then scrambled to get it out the door. Instead, each time we called in frustration, we were treated to a litany of excuses - it would be there soon (the same thing we were told at 70 and 90 minutes), traffic (in Etobicoke at 7 p.m. on a Saturday night? give me a break), even insinuating that we had mistakenly called our order in to the Yonge location (our cellphone records don't lie). Due to this mess, we asked for a discount on our order, and were told that someone would speak to the driver and that one would be offered when he arrived. This too was a lie - no one from the restaurant had contacted him, and we actually ended up having to haggle over a reasonable discount.

The food was reasonably well prepared, but it was obvious that the order was rushed. We ordered the tandoori fish, and I know that tandoor dishes take some time to prepare. The salmon simply tasted like mildly spiced salmon - there was no sign that the dish had spent any amount of time being marinated or properly cooked in a tandoor oven.

So, rather than sitting down to an enjoyable dinner with our friends, we were left frustrated, hungry and rushed through our meal (they have young children and the delay also disrupted their usual sleeping patterns). The abysmal customer service is inexcusable - there could have been so many small and simple gestures made to salvage the experience, but instead we were made to feel as if we were the ones being impatient and even that we had somehow contributed to the problem. This restaurant would do well to learn to take responsibility, apologise and fairly compensate when it makes such an obvious mistake. As such, we won't be providing Kothur with any further business, and certainly won't recommend this restaurant to...

I recently had one of my worst experiences at an Indian restaurant in Canada. My spouse and I went out for dinner, excited to have some dine-in experience. We ordered Masala Dosa and Gobi Manchurian, but unfortunately, the atmosphere was so off-putting that I wanted to leave as soon as possible. As a foodie, I was quite hungry, yet I felt completely uninterested in eating. 😞

Service: The service was incredibly disappointing. There was only one other table occupied during our visit, and the server seemed oblivious to our presence. After we seated ourselves, the only staff member visible was a girl at the bar, who was busy cleaning glasses and completely ignored us. 🤷‍♀️

When our food finally arrived, it was delivered on a robotic machine, but only one plate was sent for two people! This felt very strange, especially since the server didn’t come to our table at all. I had to raise my voice to get her attention and request a second plate, to which she responded with a nonchalant "Okay." 🙄

When I inquired about drinks, specifically if they had Masala Soda or lemon soda, I was shocked by her response: "We have Masala Chai." It was 35 degrees outside! 😳

Atmosphere: The atmosphere was dull and uninviting. Our table had only a fork, and I had to get up and grab another one from another table because the hostess was too preoccupied to notice us. 😒

I also visited the washroom, which was dark and had a somewhat eerie vibe. Both my spouse and I felt uncomfortable during our visits, even though we went at different times.

Overall Impression:

The server did not check on us once during our meal, and we felt completely neglected.

The Good: The food was average, nothing exceptional. 🍽️

Cons: The service was the worst I have experienced. ❌ The atmosphere felt lifeless and unwelcoming. 😔 The washroom experience was reminiscent of a horror movie.

Prices were too high for the below-average food and service. We spent $40 for two people, and I would gladly pay more for a better experience. 💸

I hope this review helps others make an informed decision and helps restaurant owners to listen to customers and make some improvements.

(No.. I did not click photos because I was completely uninterested...

Last Night (Oct 16th, 2017 at 9pm) I had the worst experience ever while placing an order over the phone at your establishment. I have never experienced this as I have been ordering food and been visiting your businesses (Kothur & Everest Hakka) for more than 5yrs. The lady (Manvi) who spoke to me was the rudest person I have come across at your establishment. The first time when I called to place the order I was asked for my mobile no and she knew that I have been a customer as she could find my details in your system. I placed an order for a dish that is sold at Everest Hakka and was told in a rude manner that this is Kothur and not Everest Hakka. I told her that's fine and after discussing it with my guests decided to cal back.

She answered the call again and I told her it's me and the response from her was very very cold. There was no greeting and she came across as not interested in taking my order. I asked her if she has any issues to take down my order as I am a customer who is paying for the food and wants to place an order and her behaviour is coming across as very very rude. The response that i get from her is that "If you feel I am rude it's your problem". I couldn't believe the attitude and the response that i was hearing. I reminded her that the first time that I called I felt she was rude as well so the response I get from her is that they were busy(I was placed on hold by her for 2 mins). These are no grounds to be rude to your customers who pay for their food. Manvi has no etiquette regarding customer service. How difficult is it to take an order over the phone? I know Santosh who runs Everest Hakka and how good he and his employees have been to me whenever I have visited them or have placed an order over the call. This is so disappointing as I have been referring my friends to your restaurants. Thanks to her my day and my guests had the worst conversation over dinner. Note to Owner: Please take care of this situation as this is hurting your business.

Update: The owner of the business was professional & courteous enough to call up. Changing the rating. Thank You...