Moon Indian Restaurant — Restaurant in Hayward

Sometimes during our endless pursuit of culinary happiness we find hidden gems that surprise even us. This was NOT one of those occasions. The reviews were quite deceiving compared to what we experienced. Located in a 'less desirable part of Hayward, on what is now a dead end street (chain link fences block the road now) tucked behind commercial businesses and next to residential, they do have a very small parking area next to the restaurant. Inside is a 'sweets counter' and a handful of tables along each wall. There was one family at one of the tables. We asked to sit outside in their relatively new enclosed outdoor patio area. You access this by exiting the restaurant door, and immediately opening the patio door. Odd, but I get the logistics. Our server was nice if not practically silent. On to the food: Palak Paneer - not bad, but very bland. We have had much better elsewhere Chili Chicken - We requested their "extra spicy" for this dish. It was just ok Lamb Vindaloo - For this we requested "spicy" yet it was clearly mild. BIG issue for me was that they served us goat meat, not lamb... I know the difference. VERY unhappy with this issue. What was missing from the two meat dishes (goat meat aside) was any depth in flavor. Just adding heat to a dish does not create depth. It just makes it hot. Something was missing from each of them that would bring the flavors out. Each dish included either naan or rice, so with three dishes we had 2 rice sides and one naan side. The naan was plain and tough (think a grilled tortilla). Scratch this one off our list as there are so many other incredible Indian...

I could just write yummy about 20 times and that could be my food review of this restaurant. The food there is consistently good. The service is consistently friendly and gracious. The food is economically priced for the Bay Area, but the daily lunch time specials make it even more so.

I have been to Moon Indian Cuisine several times, have ordered takeout and have ordered delivery through a third party food delivery service.

My favorite meal is the okra masala with naan. It is a slightly spicy mixture of okra and onions. For those who shy away from okra, trust me on this. The okra is cut and cooked properly, so it is not slimy. The naan, a flat bread which I believe is cooked in a tandoori oven, has a crispy side and a soft side. Tear off a piece of naan, put some okra masala on it and prepare your tastebuds for a delight. This meal is great with a mango lassi, similar to a mango smoothie. I rarely order lassi because it is filling and I want to save space for plenty of okra masala and naan.

The restaurant is wheelchair accessible, but not necessarily wheelchair friendly. The tables and booths are a very tight fit. When I go to Moon, I sit at the first row of booths and fold my manual chair so wait staff and patrons have a clear pathway. Power chair users might find the right space at Moon to be challenging. I have not seen...

EDIT 1 YEAR LATER: Two stars now.

This place MAY have been good before. However, they have suffered during quarantine. We ordered two tandoori mixed grill, one medium one spicy. They came unseasoned. They also changed the desert on us and didn't tell us. Maybe they just hoped we wouldn't notice? Rasmalai and Kheer look nothing alike though. You can't just throw in some rice pudding and pretend like you filled the order. The Dal Mahkni was overly salty and had no other seasoning like the mixed grill (despite being medium). They insist on using DoorDash and so a $40 tab became $60 with all the extra fees that Door Dash tacks on. Only $5 of those extra $20 went to the driver BTW. DoorDash is roasting people on fees.

This place has WAYYYY downhill in the past year. Impressively bad. Still, TECHNICALLY edible if you like unseasoned or over-salted food that isn't even what you ordered.

OLD REVIEW: I really like this place. If you like Indian food you should definitely try it. Good prices, quick service, and close to the highway.

I've been here twice now and it is even better than the first time. They make great lamb...