Taste of India — Restaurant in Clinton

There was nothing at all impressive about this place. However, I have not had decent food in Clinton — well, ever. In fact, how often do you hear people say, “Oh! Let’s go to ABCD in Clinton!”? My favorite Indian restaurant is in Smyrna, but this was convenient to my mom’s place.

— Atmosphere: The restaurant was rather difficult to see at night. The dumpster is too close to the front door; you can smell it at the door. The inside is odd. There is something like a foyer area with a table against the street-facing wall that has menus, a short wall separating the dining area, and the register right behind a dining booth. While I did not take a peek because the lights were off, there was a load-bearing wall separating the venue side.

— Service: Upon walking in, there was no one at the front to serve me, so I waited a short while and looked over the menu, even though I already knew what I wanted, as I looked up the menu online.l to make sure they had Rogan Josh. The lady who assisted me was not kind — no smile, no warm greeting. I simply placed and paid for my order, and stood in the awkward entrance area until she said, “Ma’am you sit down,” which is when I sat at the booth that is in front of the register. It made me wonder where one would wait if there were patrons dining there.

After I placed my order, there was another young gentleman waiting for a DoorDash order. She was not “friendly” to him either. To be clear, she was just “nice” enough to the both of us so as not to be considered “rude”. She was, however, noticeably kinder to the two sets of patrons dining in: a family of four (or possibly a double date) and a couple. I will not mention their races, as I do not like to assume and would like to think that is NOT the reason for the difference in service, but I do notice in the other reviews who enjoyed the service and those who did not.

At any rate, she told me it would be 15 minutes, but it was twice as long. This did not bother me, as I was in no hurry and I figured my food would be hot and fresh.

While I was waiting, she did receive a phone call from someone desiring to place an order. It was 27 minutes until closing, but she told them, “Ma’am, it’s too late. We’re closed, ma’am.”

— Food: I ordered the Lamb Rogan Josh and Garlic Naan for takeout one Saturday night. As I stated above, it took about 30 minutes for me to receive my food. Recall, I was sitting at a dining booth while waiting. She almost sat it down on the opposite side of the booth, across from where I was sitting, as if she did not want to hand it to me directly — I saw the hesitation. She did put it just in front of me, forced a smile, and I thanked her. Upon arriving home, I could smell that my garlic naan was burnt, and when I opened it, I saw that it was. It was not warm, and it was tough. Also not as thick as naan I have had at other authentic Indian restaurants. The lamb in the Rogan Josh was tender. There could have been more rice. Again, it was just OK. I have had markedly better...

Mississippi may very well be the last place you would expect to find an Indian restaurant, but luck was mine a couple of years ago when I stumbled upon Taste of India in Clinton, which is about 15 minutes west of the state’s capital, Jackson. I frequently spend the night in Clinton as it is roughly the halfway point between my Amarillo and Orlando anchor points.

And a man’s gotta eat, right? It’s just that I figured I was in a food desert, at least when it comes to interesting ethnic cuisine. That said, Taste of India has never let me down. I always leave sated and feeling like I have experienced a little bit of culture, especially one that is far away from Mississippi.

As per usual on my most recent visit, I ordered the Aloo Gobi, a vegan curry dish with potatoes and cauliflower. I order a single Rote for my starch, also a vegan offering. Of course, they have plenty of options for my carnivorous friends, so no one leaves hungry. A side of Jasmine rice rounded out my meal.

As is typical of both Indian and Thai restaurants, customers are queried how much heat they wish to endure. I’ll just say that I am on a journey, and I am still good with 3 out of 5, which puts it squarely in Medium territory, enough to get the sinuses activated, and sometimes even a little perspiration and watery eyes, but not so hot as to render me helpless. In other words, if you can tolerate a little heat, “3” is a safe bet.

The serving size is always plentiful, and like I usually do, I packed up my leftovers in a takeaway box and ate them for breakfast the next morning at my hotel. Weird? Not at all. Good Indian food ages well overnight, kind of like last night’s pizza.

By all means, please seek out Taste of India. If you are like me and judge an ethnic place’s quality in part by the ethnicity of the other patrons, please note that I am nearly always the only white guy in the place. That tells me it is good, but I am telling you as well. Eat here. You won’t be...

I recently stopped by this restaurant while traveling from Texas to Alabama for lunch, and unfortunately, our experience was quite disappointing.

Service: From the start, there was no greeting, and the lady was not friendly at all. Instead of seating us, she just yelled and pointed to a table.Order Process: It took a long time for someone to take our order, and when we asked about the thali, she seemed uninterested in providing any helpful information.Attitude: When I politely asked for Mexican Coke, she responded in a rude tone, explaining that their chef is Punjabi, as if I had requested something completely out of place.Payment: After finishing our meal, we had to wait 15 minutes to pay the check, as the staff seemed more interested in chatting in the kitchen. Another customer was also waiting long before us.Unavailability: We wanted to order another chat, but by the time we were ready, the staff member had disappeared, and we couldn’t find her anywhere.

The food was decent, though the Tikki Chat was especially delicious. However, the poor service really...