The Oven — Restaurant in Lincoln

Superior Indian food at one the great restaurants of the Omaha/Lincoln area. Folks in the Omaha/Lincoln area flock to this location in the Haymarket District of Lincoln, NE for some of the best Indian food in the region. The restaurant sits on a prominent corner of the Haymarket District; this area if full of great restaurants, events, and parking options, so plan ahead, especially with the crowds that can form on weekends and around events at Memorial Stadium and the Pinnacle Bank Arena. Drive carefully in this area as there is heavy pedestrian traffic and some one-way streets. Reservations are HIGHLY recommended for this beloved restaurant. The host and wait staff and management are friendly, efficient, attentive, and knowledgeable. The décor/ambiance is comfortable with a mix of romantic and community among a variety of table configurations for families, groups of friends, and dates; the restaurant can be crowded and a bit loud at peak times. The Cellar is right below The Oven and is a great space for a romantic dinner or wine tasting with a group of friends. The wine list is extensive and impressive, as is the sommelier service. The menu is very comprehensive and should delight Indian food lovers; don’t be bashful about asking for spiciness levels of the offerings—there are levels for everyone. The bread menu is delightful and very reasonably priced—be sure to select at least a couple/few different kinds of bread for your party. The sauces among the entrées span a wide variety and are all spectacular; hint, you can order side sauces (Vindaloo, Korma, Tikka Korma, Saag, Palek, Madras, Makhani, Masala, Goa) in nice serving pots—you can even consider ordering a variety of sauces with a couple breads for a trip around The Oven’s flavors. The prices are reasonable; I rate The Oven as an overall great value for a mix of spectacular food, great service, wonderful atmosphere, and reasonable prices. Highly recommended for anyone who likes Indian food in the Omaha/Lincoln area; well worth the drive from Omaha to Lincoln for dinner; reservations highly...

Absolutely Awful — This Is NOT Indian Food

We went here for dinner with a group of 8 people, a diverse mix of Indian, Asian, and white friends, and every single one of us walked out extremely disappointed.

Let me start by saying: this place advertises itself as an Indian restaurant, but what they’re actually serving is Bhutanese food presented as Indian cuisine. I get it, Indian food is more mainstream and widely recognized, while Bhutanese cuisine isn’t as well known. So maybe calling it “Indian” makes it easier to attract customers. But for people who actually know Indian food, it’s misleading, this doesn’t represent the rich, flavorful cooking India is known for.

And even putting that aside, the food is just terrible. Absolutely flavorless, bland, uninspired. Indian food is supposed to be bold, rich, aromatic, full of life and spice. This was none of that. Imagine the opposite of what you expect from Indian food, and that’s what we got. We kept waiting for something to impress us, and dish after dish was just… bad. I’m Indian, yes, but this isn’t just my opinion. Every single person at our table, regardless of background, agreed: this food was awful.

The only good thing? The service. The staff was kind and attentive, but no level of service can make up for food this disappointing.

Please, people of Lincoln, don’t be fooled. This is not what Indian food tastes like. If this is your first experience with “Indian” cuisine, you’re being robbed of the real thing. Save your money and go...

It's been a while since my fiance and I have had a good Indian food so we were really looking forward to this dinner.

Reserved the table ahead of time and really love the vibe of the place. I had requested a corner table and that's what we got!

My fiancee ordered the Dirty Chai cocktail; I recommended it because the ingredients sounded amazing! Vanilla Vodka, Bailey's, espresso liqeur, allspice drum. It was really big flavor but we had to stop having it at one point because it didn't go too well with the food. That creamy coffee flavor with spicy food was not the best.

I got the Reshmi Kebab (chicken pieces marinated in ginger garlic paste and cooked in Tandoor). It looked good, but I was not a fan. The ginger garlic flavor was really too overpowering. It fell too sharp at the one point and I needed some plain food to balance out that taste. It was also not spicy enough so I had to ask her some chili powder to add some spice. I think the chicken was also quite overcooked.

My fiancee got the Chicken Tikka Makhani ( which would I guess be equivalent to a butter chicken?) And he loved it! I really really loved that as well. The chicken was cooked perfectly - soft and tender. And even that gravy was amazing! Proper spicy. Just what you would want.

He got a naan to go with, and really devoured that. I was hoping for something more of a soft thick naan, but this was more on the thinner crispier side.

Basically the verdict is get that Chicken...