Nalan Indian Cuisine — Restaurant in Alpharetta

I am very disappointed to write this review since I have heard about this restaurant from multiple people and through multiple articles.

Sometimes your reputation precedes you so much that it becomes too good to be true and Nalan falls short under its towering reputation. I went there on a Tuesday and saw an immense crowd of people waiting for over 20 minutes to talk to someone at the reception

Here is the summary of my experience there:

Ambiance: 3/5 - The restaurant is a decent size but now they have extended it for more seating with a wall in between so sometimes it's difficult to gauge if they have enough seating

Service: (minus)-5/5 - I am very disappointed with the service. As I mentioned earlier, when I entered the restaurant, there was no one at the reception. I had to wait 10 min to meet someone at the reception which was 1 person who was juggling around with about 40 guests. All I wanted was to ask about my takeaway. After talking halfway, he vanished again and I could see about 10 people who waited to be seated for another 20 minutes or so since there was no one to attend them. There was so much chaos that at one time I said I would have my food here itself. The receptionist said there was no space available even though my fiance was already sitting at a table. When I told him we had found a place to sit, he made a horrible face, which was so disappointing.

The other servers were nice and at least asked us for water and made sure to look for our order.

Food Quality: 2/5: We ordered gobhi Manchurian on phone and they asked us to come in 30 min. Even after being there for 45 minutes, they made us wait another 15 minutes saying it was not ready yet. When it was served, it was ice cold and felt like it was made hours ago. We felt like he was trying to get rid of us.

The chicken biryani that we ordered does not have the option to reduce the spice level as we were strictly said - "we only have medium spice level as a minimum and cannot be customized below it". The chicken biryani is a little spicy for Indian tastebuds but not available to be tailored to American tastebuds at all.

Value for money: 3/5: I would have given it 4/5 since the prices are decent but because the gobhi Manchurian was served cold, I would rather go to a place with worse food taste but at least, they would serve it hot.

Overall, I was deeply disappointed because they owners need to increase staff if they want to have a continued reputation. My experience has been very bad and I would definitely stay away from this place for months before I have the courage to...

A very unusual South Indian (Tamil Nadu oriented) restaurant with a very unique menu in terms of having Appam, Idiyappam, Gobi65, Kal Dosa etc. You normally don’t find these items in most of South Indian based restaurants here in metro Atlanta.

We went there as a group and happened to order just one starter and went with mostly what we call as “Tiffin” items. It wasn’t that crowded at around 7 PM for a Saturday evening. Oh yes the main part of the restaurant was fully occupied and they have few tables behind a partition which actually doesn’t give Restaurant like vibes where we all sat down. The order was taken quickly. So here’s what we ordered and how they were.

Gobi65 - It was the DRY Gobi65 which you get in most restaurants in Chennai. It was crispy but felt it was more of batter and Kashmiri Chilli powder and not much of taste. With Mint chutney it tasted good.

Appam w/ Veg Kurma - There were 2 big pieces of Appam and was cooked well. Felt bit sweet and Veg Kurma was decent to me.

Kal Dosa w/ Sambar Chutney - The Kal dosa is the best thing with some onions sprinkled at the middle. The chutneys - Coconut and Kaara (Spicy chutney) were really good. The sambar was okay to me but my friends loved it. Go for it!

Idli w/ Sambar Chutney - The 3 pieces of idli’s were just good. They looked big thinking they might be bit hard upon first glance.

My friends had Vijayawada Boneless Chicken Biryani and they felt it was okay with normal spice and too much of Masala. Looking at the quantity I felt it was good for 2 people.

The ambience was great in the main restaurant but the other side of the partition it was just normal and always smelt of a sizzler and took time to settle down and blend in. The ambience could have been a lot better. Not sure if due to lack of staffs or something when we exited we saw a lot of people waiting in line either to pay their bills or to take their TOGO’s or waiting to be seated as they all are managed by a single cashier.

Had previous experience of waiting long for TO GO when I ordered just one plate of Gun Powder idli which was decent. Expect wait times for TO GO’s on weekends as well as for paying your bills.

BOTTOMLINE: A decent family restaurant for Tamil Nadu style/ Chettinad cuisine lovers with decent pricing.

MY PICKS FOR YOU: Kal Dosa with Sambar Chutney,...

I was looking for a new random Indian restaurant for a try out on weekend. Two things which blew me were 1. Waiting time to get to the table, to take the order and to get your first dish served, it takes at least half an hour on weekend. 2. They were missing their most popular items on weekend, can you believe? And they are expensive compared to other restaurants, but quality with consistency on weekends.

UPDATE 1: looks like they worked on their problems, now the service is really quick I was surprised. This is one of the authentic tastes I have tasted in USA. You should give it a try at least once if you like Indian food.

UPDATE 2: I went there on a weekday, it was not good as a weekend, so I will try not go here on weekdays.

Here is my order with their ratings

Achari Paneer Tikka - 9/10 - comes as sizzler, Cauliflower Majestic - 9/10, Nellai Chicken - 9/10, Kozhi Veppudu - 8/10, Chicken 65 - 8/10, Chilli Chicken - 9/10, Chicken Pepper Roast - 9/10, Vanjaram Fry - 9/10 - Authentic taste, but get ready for fish smell and thorns, Madurai Malli Chicken - 9/10 - a good appetizer if you want to try something new, Tandoori Chicken - 10/10 - comes as sizzler, Goat Pepper Fry - 9/10,

Veg Kothu Parotta - 8/10, Appam with Veg Kurma - 10/10, Malai Kofta - 9/10 - bit sweeter otherwise great dish, Nalan Special Chicken Curry - 7/10, Garlic Naan - 10/10, Bullet Naan - 10/10, Samosa Chat - 8/10, Ghee Dosa & Coconut Chutney - 9/10, Idli with Sambar, Chutney - 9/10, Sambar Vada - 8/10 - good but can be better, Kal Dosa with Sambar Chutney - 9/10, Appam Chicken Curry - 8/10, Idli with Goat Curry - 8/10, Mutton Vadi Biryani - 10/10, Ambur Chicken Biryani - 8/10, Thalappakatti Chicken Biryani - 8/10, Hyderabadi Goat Dum Biryani - 9/10, Bhai Kadai Mutton Biryani - 9/10, Chicken Kothu Parata - 8/10, Egg Kothu Parata - 8/10, Hyderabad Chicken Dum Biryani - 8/10 - not the best, Hyderabad Goat Dum Biryani - 8/10 - not the best,

Carrot Halwa with Icecream - 10/10 - it comes with kulfi, Filter...