Clay Oven — Restaurant in Lexington

A year ago, this would have been a 5-star review, but a couple of things have changed recently. This place had been my favorite Indian restaurant in the area and it was a big step above the rest. So it's sad that I feel like I might have to stop going here. First, I am very intolerant to spicy food due to a digestive disorder. So I always ask for my dishes to be not just mild--but "extra" mild or as mild "as [they] can make it." And for the first few years, they always did a great job, giving me a deliciously creamy and mild dish. But the last two times I was there, despite really emphasizing the need for my food to be mild, it's been noticeably spicier to the point of causing stomach upset. The second to last time it wasn't too bad, but enough to bother me a bit. So the last time we were there, I harped even harder on the need for the dish to be mild. But it was even spicier this time, so much so I barely got through the dish and I had horrible heartburn and nausea later on, waking me up through the night. The first time they made it too spicy I could chalk it up to a one off or maybe I hadn't been clear enough, but the second time, it seems to be a pattern. In fact, since the dish is less creamy now and is lacking other ingredients it used to have, my partner and I suspect they are using more spice to mask or compensate for the lack of other things in the dish. Additionally, my partner and I, who are both vegetarian, always ask them to add a little paneer to the dish we order for extra protein. For years, they did this at no charge, which was really nice of them. But suddenly the second to last time we were there, they not only suddenly charged us, but it was $3 extra--which is just weird to not warn us about first when we ordered after never charging previously. The last time we were there my partner asked about the extra charge before ordering, they couldn't give us an exact estimate saying something like "about $2" but when we got the bill, it was still $3 again. Not to mention the dish usually comes with almonds and cashews and this last time around didn't have any nuts in it at all, which was disappointing because it's one of my favorite parts of the dish, and we also got much less rice than usual (which was also a different texture). So we're paying more for smaller portions, less ingredients, and for a meal that is too spicy for me to even eat without it making me sick later on. They also raised their prices, so even without the charge on paneer, we're paying a good $5 more per dish ($8 with the paneer included) than the same exact dish we get down the road that already has paneer in it and larger portions. I get that the pandemic hit restaurants hard and inflation is making food more expensive. But it still seems we're being way overcharged while being skimped on ingredients and portion size, and while the quality of the food has...

Clay oven offers a modern indian cuisine to serve Lexington downtown. I happened to stumble upon it. While visiting a friend in lexington. Parking: Ample parking is available next door at Panera bread. Dont fall in the trap of going to parking lot behind the restaurant. Servers and wait times: We visited restaurant at 6 pm. We were promptly shown our seats and their wasn't much of a wait time. Ambiance: Restaurant had a laid back mood, with low lighting and brownish theme going along the place. I expected a more hip and vibrant place considering, indian food has spices and a matched sparkle would be good.

Table seating: we visited in a family of 6 and we had sufficient space on the table for all our dishes

Food Menu was very well sorted and organized, items were clearly explained and made sense even to a person visiting the first time.

Unlimited chutney and Pappad was nice. Always ask for refill. One person in our party grew fond of their chutneys and kept eating it.

Mango mojito: First time tried it, it looked amazing and tasted really nice. 5/5

Paneer tikka: it was soft and delicious, well cooked. 5/5 Chicken satay: Surprisingly yumm. It is like a kebab on the stick 5/5

Chaat: it was delicious. Our server didnt inform us about avocado chat, that's their speciality it seems. You can find that in cold plate menu. 5/5

Mushroom cheese starter : it is a no go, Dont order it. Only mushroom starter. Their were so many ways this dish wasn't good. 3 pieces for a family wasn't sufficient but it became sufficient as nobody liked it. Cheese overpowered the mushroom, wont recommend it. 0/5

Chicken masala: It was sweet for the palate, I expect the masala to hit the tongue. It didnt do its job, not spicy at all. Server didnt ask about the spice level. It seems they pre made the gravy for all the masala and then they change it based on dish paneer or chicken. 2/5

Paneer masala: Same problem, too sweet for the palate 2/5

Bread basket: Definitely would recommend this, its assorted choice of breads and I loved the garlic naan. 5/5

Chicken biryani: Surprsingly good, the fried onions on top of biryani tasted really good. Chicken was tender and yumm. It was aromatic and impacted the sense of smell too. Full points for this. 5/5

Bar: Bartender was sleepy joe, not much traffic there, he was leaning to the wall, uninterested in the job , not so positive vibe

Overall dinner was fulfilling, just small things here and there can make the experience even...

A big shout out to Clay Oven!!! I wanted to host a small lunch party (about 21 people) for my husband's milestone birthday. Sorabh Kapoor helped me plan a delicious and interesting menu a few days in advance. On the day of the party the tables were set up in accordance with social distancing. Each place was set, with it's own little menu card- what a great touch. Every dish was unique and delicious. Mango avocado chaat and beet tikkis for appetizers- melt in your mouth, bursting with flavors...yummm. For the main courses we had a lychee paneer (who knew that these two went together so well), achari aloo or curried potatoes, pindi chole reminiscent of Old Delhi gullys and grilled salmon served with a crusty rice on a bed of salad. Delicious peas pulao and tandoori rotis, as well as a lovely Indian style salad to go with everything. For dessert, spongy gulab jamuns served in opulent silver bowls. Tea or coffee. The service was impeccable. Sorabh was overseeing everything and checking in with us to make sure that things went smoothly. Everyone had a great time, couldn't praise the food enough (these are tough guys to please, too!) and we had a memorable event. I cannot praise the food, ambiance and service enough. Highly recommended! Thank you Clay Oven, Sorabh...