Urban Turban Indian Grill and Bar — Restaurant in Durham

Never judge a book by its cover! While taking a lunch break in the area, I decided to stop by this place to check out the menu and grab some garlic naan to go. My wife was told by a co-worker that the food was delicious. And since Indian cuisine is one of my all-time favorite foods to eat, I thought this was a perfect time to try it out. Indian cuisine varieties seem endless and theres never a lack of flavor in most of their dishes... To the naked eye, I look like a city or a sanitation worker whenever I walk into any establishment for lunch, and Im ok with that, or should I say Im used to that.. however, Im always able to pick up on the subtle "blow off" feel that I get when I walk in some eateries, I often wonder if they even realize what they're doing.. Anyway, what they don't know is that Im a well traveled restaurant/food critic. By trade Im an Arch/Mech draftsman who designed and set up my fair share of restaurants, from your mom and pop places to your Parizades and beyond. My footprint extends well beyond the reaches of NC. By nature, whenever I walk into any restaurant, Im rating you from the moment I walk into the door, until I leave. The first thing I look for is your santitation grade. If you've just opened your doors your grade should be very good, if it isn't you likely have issue's in your kitchen or bathrooms. Once I deem its safe to eat, I interact to see if this a one and done or will I be returning with my family on a regular basis.. Now on to the review. The person who greeted me was professional and courteous, he welcomed me and asked If I was dining in or ordering to go, I told him I was ordering to go and he lead me to the bar where I could sit and place my order. The person who took my order was less than cordial and not very helpful, maybe I looked out of place to him, I asked questions about the menu and was really looking for something quick and needed his guidance, I could tell he was slightly bothered and brushed me off. I picked up on that quickly and settled in, forgetting he was standing there while I searched the menu, I found the butter chicken tacos and ordered those with a side of garlic naan, the place wasnt terribly busy, this was around 2:30 only 3 tables being served, several people walked in to pick up/ place order's, my order came out last while the gentleman was handling another transaction he was ringing up, somehow he mixed up the pick up order and had to separate the order checks, I managed to get his attention to my order, his attitude changed abruptly which really bothered me. I sat outside and decided to eat one of the tacos and take the rest home. The taco was good but not as flavorful as I had hoped. The naan was delicious. My purpose for this long review is to let the folks that run this place know, never judge a book...

I'm relatively new to trying different Indian cuisines, but I found the food to be quite good. When my partner and I arrived, we were greeted by a lovely and helpful waiter (whose name I can't remember). He assisted us in deciding what to order and explained the menu very well.

Shortly after we received our meals, another waiter named Charlie approached us. He inquired about our food and began sharing details about his favorite dish that wasn’t on the menu. We found it a bit odd that a new waiter checked on us, but we assumed this was normal since many staff members were friendly.

After Charlie talked about his favorite dish, he asked if we wanted to "try" it. We agreed primarily because we were still learning about Indian cuisine and thought he was being friendly. Ten minutes later, Charlie returned with a full plate of his favorite dish for us to "try." My partner and I were confused because we expected a sample, not a whole plate of food in addition to the entrees we had already ordered. Since we had been seated for a while and were enjoying our meals, we could barely eat anything else.

After serving us the dish, Charlie came back with a sample of a dip and two mango lassi drinks. We thanked him for his kindness, but we were still puzzled about why we were being offered to "try" these different items.

When we asked for the check, Charlie informed us that our total was $99. While this wasn't an outrageous amount compared to what we usually spend at a restaurant, it still felt pricey for two entrees, one drink, and a bottle of still water. I asked Charlie for clarification on the charges, and he mentioned the dish he encouraged us to "try."

Perhaps I’m still young and unsure about the expectations or etiquette around "trying" a dish, but I felt manipulated. When I asked Charlie to explain why we were being charged for the additional dish, he responded, "Well, I thought you wanted more food." We had never asked for additional food; we only agreed to try the dish after it was offered.

After expressing my frustration, Charlie offered a "discount" of $5. I appreciated the gesture, but it didn’t alleviate my feeling of being manipulated into "trying" his favorite dish only to be charged for it later.

While my partner and I enjoyed the restaurant overall, after this experience, I am unsure if I want to return. Don’t get me wrong—Charlie was great, but I did not appreciate feeling misled by his overly friendly approach and the unexpected charges for the dish we were...

Absolutely incredible Indian restaurant! My sister and I were in the area and hungry this evening and figured we'd give it a try, even though we already had a "preferred" Indian restaurant elsewhere in Durham and weren't particularly craving it today.

Upon walking in, I immediately noticed the most amazing smells coming from the kitchen, as well as the beautiful decor and layout. We were warmly welcomed and seated at a very comfortable table.

At our usual place, we always know what to order--and it's pretty much always the same 2-3 dishes. We saw quite a few dishes on Urban Turban's menu that we didn't recognize from previous visits to other local Indian places, but our server was extremely helpful in answering questions and explaining dishes. We decided to ask for recommendations based on our likes and dislikes, and WOW, our server certainly delivered!

We had a short wait before our food came out, and everything looked and smelled absolutely spectacular! We initially thought the portions looked a bit smaller than expected, but as soon as we started spooning from the serving dishes to our individual plates, we quickly realized that they were simply thicker than we were used to and with more meat, and both the chicken and the lamb were incredibly tender. The garlic naan was easily the best I've ever had, much less chewy and more light and fluffy with a crispy bottom. Each and every bite was heavenly!

On top of the exceptional flavors, the service we received was top-notch. Our water glasses never went empty, and we were checked in enough to feel appropriately taken care of and that we were highly valued as customers, but without being ever bothered or feeling like we were being watched or stood over. We genuinely thought our server must have been the owner with how invested he was in ensuring we had an excellent experience, but upon asking him before we left, he pointed out his boss!

Long review short, this place is absolutely the best Indian restaurant I've ever been to, with unbeatable service and even better food. We can't wait...