India Palace — Restaurant in Alameda

Food: tasty, hot, fresh. Pricing: fair for sides, overpriced for main dish. Portions: same as pricing, fair for sides but too little for main dish.

Order: Chicken tikka masala (12.50), rice (3.49), naan (1.99), and roti (1.99). Tikka masala came in a small plastic cylindrical container w/lid. Rice came in a Chinese food takeout style box. Naan and roti came wrapped in foil. It came with two small cup containers of sauces, one green and one brown. No napkins or plastic utensils. The entire order was contained in a brown paper bag with twisted cardboard handles.

This was my first time ordering from India Palace. I ordered takeout over the phone. The call was not professional, but it was still pleasant. I just had to ask if I was speaking to someone at India Palace and whether they were accepting orders. Of course, I was and they were. The person taking my order was warm despite being unprofessional, and didnt give me my total before the call ended. I didn't care, I was going to pay whatever they charged anyway.

Order was ready in 20 minutes.

The box of rice had a good amount of rice packed into it. Enough to be large portions for a couple of plates (for me). It was fluffy, hot, and delicious. The tikka masala contained a lot of the sauce, but about 6 pieces of 1-cubic-inch-large chicken. That's enough for one plate for me, maybe two or three plates for someone who only wants a couple of bites of chicken. For perspective, there was enough rice for me to fill 3 plates; enough chicken for just 1. The sauce is thin and watery, but fragrant and delicious. I'm satisfied with the taste of the chicken and the sauce, but not at all with the portion size for the price of 12.50 dollars. The naan was great. Not a ton of flavor on its own, but it's bread. Two pieces of bread, each about 8 inches to foot long, in the shape of half-circles. The roti was thinner and much more bland than the naan. I didn't enjoy it at all and decided to simply save it for a sandwich later to salvage it. It was about the same size as the naan, but again, considerably thinner than the naan.

Ultimately, I am disappointed in this experience. I doubt I will return, but I won't be avoiding this spot in the future. Three of the four items were delicious, but the price is simply too high for the small amount of chicken I recieved. If the chicken tikka masala simply came with more actual chicken or the price was cut in half, this would have been a great overall experience. Not to mention, the tikka masala did NOT come with rice. Since that's not the case, it was disappointing. Not atrocious, not great. Like studying all week for a test and scoring a C+. I wish i could give more than 3 out of 5 stars, but less than 4. I reccomend this spot if you're in the mood for good Indian food and the price doesn't...

This is the 5th time I've been to this restaurant, and I've witnessed a steady decline in both service and quality of food offered.

When we started going here last year the food was GREAT and the service matched it. Really good portions for the price (more protein than rice, decent size plates and sides)... You also got an experience like, actual times out service rather than feeling like you're an inconvenience for eating inside the restaurant rather than ordering to go (they have a nice space that you'd want to eat in so it's not like it screams "take out place").

Tonight I ordered lamb biryani which previously was a decent amount of lamb and rice (like 60/40 lamb to rice ratio) and I could eat half and have enough to eat lunch the next day... Tonight it was 5 small cubes of lamb and enough rice for me to go to Safeway and pick up chicken to cook to use the rice for sides at lunch for 5 days... An Absolutely hilarious amount of rice... Which isn't exactly what I wanted in a restaurant experience. My husband got Palak Paneer which tasted worse than the microwave packets you can get at the supermarket.

We waited 10 mins for anyone to bring us a menu after we were pointed to a table, everything we ordered came out within 3 mins of each other (drinks to entrees)... They were not busy in the restaurant itself but apparently they do my mostly take out now.

They should just switch to a take out model and not bother with the rent since the decline in quality I've seen will likely lead to them...

Kulbir at India Palace catered all the food for our daughter’s 160-guest all-day Indian wedding ceremony which included the pre-Baraat appetizers, the post-wedding appetizers, and the buffet-style dinner reception events. In a nutshell, the food was delicious and perfect for both the American and Indian palates. Aside from the food that was cooked to perfection, Kulbir and his staff were incredible and professional on every front -- simply fabulous to work with. I appreciated his attention to detail, his advice on the various menu items, his diligence, and his behind-the-scenes coordination with the staff at the DoubleTree (by Hilton) in Berkeley. These traits, taken together, highlighted Kulbir’s exemplary work ethic and broad expertise in the realm of catering for large events. All in all, the entire day’s activities were a tremendous success. In summary, Kulbir’s and India Palace’s mastery and understanding of the sensory experience when it comes to rich flavorful food can be a very valuable addition to any event. Very impressive, Kulbir. Thank you for the wonderful job, and we wish you continued success in all your endeavors.” --- Ramesh & Patricia Ramchandani,...