It's Masala Time — Restaurant in Elkton

Went for lunch. The place was empty and no one to greet us. The food we ordered was fair but the rice portion is very small. Butter chicken was leftover check-in slices soaked in butter sauce. It appeared like the meat quality was more like thighs versus using white meat breast chicken.

When we were asked if it was our first time and if we liked it I shared my feedback about the rice portion. The owner started defending the portion size stating that rice is expensive and his dad thinks he should not give rice at all with the meal but that Indian restaurants always give rice so he gives a small portion.

Then we went to pay and had a certificate we bought online from clipp. It was for $20 off our meal. The owner became aggravated and stated it was supposed to be off $50 and we had only spent $40. I showed him the terms which stated it was anything above $20. He argued that it should have been off $50. We actually had to pay for this certificate so him wanting us to spend more was irritating. He did end up honoring but we had two we had purchased and he stated he would not honor the second certificate in the future unless we spent $50. We confirmed with Clipp that the certificate only needs to be used on orders of $20 of more.

Overall, the atmosphere is not great. The owner was watching cricket and ignored us saying we were ready for our check. We will not be back. Too many other hard off establishments to support one with poor management. Don’t ask for feedback if you don’t want to hear it. And don’t offer deals to bait and switch...

We were in for dinner and it was early in the dinner hour on Thursday, so no other diners while we ate. Therefore I can't comment on how loud it could get given the smooth surfaces inside. The music was at a nice, low level and we had no trouble hearing each other.

We ordered our meals, letting the waiter know we needed to avoid dairy products. He understood easily and let us know when we mentioned a menu item, if it contained milk or butter -- very helpful.

It took a little bit, maybe 15 minutes, maybe slightly longer, before our food could be ssrved because so much is obviously cooked once it's ordered. Trust me, it will be worth the wait!

I had Vindaloo with Chana at medium -- perfect level of heat, given that vindaloo itself IS hot. The chana were cooked to perfect texture: good density yet soft with creamy density. The rich sauce was amazing with complexity as good Indian cuisine needs to have. The accompanying rice? Again, perfect texture and temperature. My husband ordered Biryani with Tofu cubes that had absorbed the delicious flavors of the biryani spices that they cooked in. He had a side of tandoori roti, charred nicely and coated with a light layer of oil. I had an order of papadum and they were crispy and fun, came with two chutneys to accompany them, mint cilantro, and tamarind.

Overall wonderful meal, and to have good Indian food in a tiny town is a true delight...

Although I'm definitely not a foodie and tend to stick to burgers & fries, when family came to visit we decided to impress them with a more unique dining experience than the standard chain restaurants. Our party thoroughly enjoyed our dining experience at 'It's Masala Time' The restaurant, from the warm decor to the lovely china is clean, classy and inviting. The owner, Ravi is a gracious host. If you're concerned about dishes being too spicy (like me), he'll be sure to 'Americanize' the dish to suit. I have never had Chicken Tikka Masala but oh, my goodness was it DELICIOUS and the portion was generous... Also I can't forget about that Butter Naan, so pillowy and tasty! Our group also shared a variety of desserts. Each of them was a unique explosion of flavor from the sweet aromatic, Gulab Jamun, to the Kheer and the Rasmalai... I LOVE a satisfying dessert and each of these offerings were divine. I'm so pleased we decided to be adventurous about trying new food. Our guests...