Panj Tara Indian Kitchen & Bar — Restaurant in Frisco

Very expensive — two adults and two kids spent $120 on food (no drinks). Hidden charges: they add a $2 fee even for plain onions (not even a salad), and this isn’t disclosed (sort of cheating). Tandoori items came with cabbage instead of the expected onions — odd and unappetizing. Who wants tandoori served with cabbage? (they are trying to save a lot on onions)

It seems ownership or management has changed; prices have risen across the board and quality has dropped. I’ve visited Panj Tara 2–3 times before, but this visit was disappointing. NEVER AGAIN.

P.S. The chicken tikka arrived smothered in gravy and tasted like a generic delivery chain (big cube shaped chicken)— not a proper tandoor-prepared, tender tikka, overall food quality has deteriorated.

I am editing my review to respond to the owners response:

Appreciate the lengthy “clarification,” but let’s be honest — this is less about facts and more about creative storytelling.

“Same Ownership” — Sure, if you say so Funny how every time I’ve visited, the people, attitude, and even food philosophy seem completely different. Calling it “staff rotation” is a nice PR twist — most guests would call it new management energy (and not in a good way).

Tikka Trouble — The Elephant in the Room You completely sidestepped the actual point: the chicken tikka. For reference, tikka is supposed to be tender, smoky, and straight from the tandoor. What we got were factory-grade cubes swimming in generic gravy. So yes, the “premium-quality” claim might sound good in a brochure, but it didn’t show up on the plate.

Charging for Onions — Bold Move Charging $2 for plain raw onions (and calling it “clearly listed”) is a new one — congratulations on the innovation! In every Indian restaurant I’ve ever been to, onions come with the dish, not as an “optional luxury add-on.” Maybe you should start charging for napkins next?

Cabbage Garnish — Creative but Tragic Tandoori with cabbage and trace amounts of onion — that’s not “balancing flavor,” that’s balancing your food costs. No amount of “culinary choice” spin changes that.

The Imaginary Refund The “cash refund” happened only after I questioned it

Buffet Prices — Irrelevant and Misleading We didn’t come for your buffet, so throwing in buffet prices here feels like a classic distraction move. You could’ve just said, “we overcharged and underdelivered,” and saved everyone the read.

If your goal was to turn honest criticism into a lecture about how customers “don’t understand authenticity,” you nailed it. Sadly, what Panj Tara used to be and what it is now are two very different stories — and no amount of “leadership” branding...

Overpriced, Declining Quality — and an Owner Who Can’t Handle Honest Feedback

Posting this because my husband recently left an honest review about our disappointing dinner — and the owner’s long, defensive “clarification” deserves a response.

Ownership “Rotation” — Sure, if you say so The owner claims “same family leadership” and calls everything else “staff rotation.” Cute way to dodge the truth. The faces, food, and vibe have all changed — if that’s not new management, it’s certainly new priorities.

The Chicken Tikka Cover-Up Notice how their long reply conveniently ignored the main issue: the chicken tikka. Big, dry cubes smothered in gravy — not tandoor-cooked, not tender, not tikka. Real Punjabi food lovers will instantly see through that “premium-quality” talk.

$2 for Raw Onions — The Innovation Nobody Asked For They charged $2 for plain onions. Not a salad, not a side — just raw onions. Never mentioned upfront, not on the menu, and when we asked, no one said there’d be a charge. Every Indian restaurant includes onions with tandoori — except, apparently, this one trying to redefine “fine dining.” They refunded only after being questioned, not as a “courtesy.”

Cabbage with Tandoori — A Cost-Cutting “Culinary Choice” Tandoori dishes came piled on cabbage with maybe two onion strands. Their excuse that it “balances flavor” is almost funny. No one comes to eat tandoori cabbage.

Buffet Talk — Classic Distraction Move We went for à la carte dinner, not buffet. Bringing up buffet pricing in their reply is just to confuse readers and make the complaint seem exaggerated.

Hidden Menu Riders Their menu is only viewable online, and not all charges are visible upfront. Perfect for burying small “extras” like that onion fee — clever, but not exactly honest.

My husband’s review was factual and calm. Instead of taking it constructively, the owner wrote an essay full of excuses, half-truths, and deflection.

This place used to be good; now it’s overpriced, defensive, and cutting corners. $120 for two adults and two kids (no drinks) — and we left disappointed.

If you enjoy being lectured for noticing poor food and charged for onions, by all means, go ahead. Everyone else — there are plenty of better, more genuine Indian...

Definitely one of the most disappointing dinner experiences I’ve ever had.

Our server took our order on his handheld POS system, then just completely forgot about us and what we ordered. We got one of our drinks after 10 minutes. Then we got the other drink we ordered about 30 minutes later after we flagged down the bartender, Nathan, who was the only person on the floor who seemed to be looking out for guest needs.

Our server dropped off our appetizer and one of our orders about 40 minutes after we ordered. We gave it another 20 minutes and finally had to flag down our server and ask when we’d get the rest of our order. He told us there must have been an internet connection issue and our order never got completed. No apology. No follow up. We saw this guy when he sat us, took our order, then dropped incomplete drinks/food orders at our table. He never asked us if we were ok, never checked on us, we had to find him.

So sad because the food was pretty good, but the lack of service was so irredeemable, we will never be go back. We spent +$60 for 2 drinks, an appetizer, and 1 “dinner dish” and zero service. This establishment should be ashamed to charge so much for such poor service.

Also, I say “dinner dish” because they show you a picture of an “entré” with a side of rice, but they’re just kidding, the rice is extra so you have to ask for it and pay more.

I reiterate, our server never asked us how we were, how our food was, nothing. Zero care. He verbally acknowledged our order, drinks and all, then left it up to his computer and never followed up on anything. This is such a poor manner of service, and it was honestly baffling at how little he cared.

I’ve never tipped under 18%, even in bad experiences, but this was such an exception, I barely tipped. $60+ for zero service and incomplete orders was already ridiculous to me.

Sad for a place that could be so much. We will never return. I have a feeling this place is getting a lot of false reviews from family and friends.

By the way, there were 2 other people inside the restaurant while we were there….in no means was the poor service due to...