Tandoor New Haven — Restaurant in New Haven

At the intersection of Chapel and Howe in New Haven, a culinary time warp awaits. Tandoor, housed in what was once a chrome-plated American diner, has hijacked the architectural equivalent of a cheeseburger and stuffed it with cardamom and cumin. The restaurant, now in its 25th year of this cultural identity theft, somehow makes this improbable marriage work.

The exterior maintains its stainless steel regalia and Eisenhower-era curved corners, complete with neon declaring "Tandoor: Fine Indian Cuisine" – a phrase that must have left many a passing trucker scratching their heads. What should be a design catastrophe instead plays like a charming cross-cultural blind date that, against all odds, ended in matrimony.

Inside, the diner DNA remains strong. Glossy green ceiling panels and polished chrome trim might have once witnessed late-night confessions over coffee and pie, but now they frame tandoori feasts. White tablecloths drape both booth and table seating like dignified attire on a retired greasy spoon. The former service counter, where waitresses might have once barked "Adam and Eve on a raft," now dispatches fragrant curries from a kitchen where chefs tend to the clay oven.

The menu offers a tour of North Indian standards, with special pride in its namesake tandoor specialties and an array of lamb dishes that would make shepherds nervous. While the popular lunch buffet offers an economy-class taste tour, dinner reveals the kitchen's more ambitious side.

The Lamb Bhunna ($21.95) arrives on a traditional metal plate with nearly a pound of tender meat chunks swimming in a sauce that betrays no hint of timidity. Each morsel yields obligingly to the fork, having spent quality time with a complex spice mixture that likely required its own shipping manifest. Julienned ginger and fresh herbs provide bright accents, like emeralds scattered atop the burnished feast.

The garlic naan ($4.95) emerges from the tandoor with the perfect char marks of a veteran grillmaster's trophy catch. Crisper than its pillowy cousins elsewhere, it offers a satisfying crackle before yielding to a garlic-studded interior. This bread flirts so dangerously with dessert territory that it might spike blood sugar – the culinary equivalent of a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Not everything ascends to such heights. The Fresh Soup of the Day ($5.95) offers all the excitement of a documentary about municipal water treatment. Such disappointments are easily forgotten, however, when the main attractions arrive with their aromatic fanfare.

Among competing Indian establishments, Tandoor distinguishes itself not just through its architectural split personality but through portion sizes that suggest the kitchen doesn't believe in leftovers. While dinner pricing sits in the upper-middle range for local Indian cuisine (entrees $16.95-$21.95), the quantity-quality equation balances favorably, like finding extra legroom in economy class.

The restaurant's dual existence – lunchtime bargain bazaar versus evening flavor expedition – offers distinct entry points for different appetites and budgets. After a quarter-century, Tandoor has achieved what many restaurants attempt but few accomplish: a genuine sense of place. It neither feels like a diner awkwardly attempting curry nor an Indian restaurant uncomfortable in its chromed cocoon.

Instead, it has evolved into its own category – a New Haven institution where East meets West in a cultural collision that produces neither casualties nor contrived fusion, but rather an authentic experience that could only exist in America. In this stainless steel cocoon on Chapel Street, tradition and innovation continue their unlikely dance, one plate of...

Me and my family Ordered 2 butter chicken and goat curry but only the goat curry arrived and had to reorder again. Even better- had a hair in my food and the staff refused to acknowledge it, making absurd comebacks like “no one else complained” even though it was in MY FAMILY’s food?? Told another staff worker and they ignored me and finally listened and told me that they’ll get another plate of food (they never did actually and just left me). They did ask for proof and when we showed them the hair we got a death glare even though we ate the food (pray for us) I didn’t ask for any refund or compensation, just wanted to let them know but for some reason they kept saying they will NOT refund or compensate at all. While telling them I just wanted to let them about the food having hair; they proceeded to give me a snarky look and death glare the entire time all the way until I left the restaurant like I was the one who picked it out of my scalp and put it there. The chicken in the butter chicken was way too tough and also tasted horrible? The curry wasn’t that bad and actually pretty good. the goat curry was also pretty good but the hair in it ruined the meal completely (had to finish it since they refused to compensate) they even have a sign saying “please finish your food” That’s all you need to know. the rice was clumpy and seemed old. Never even stepping a foot in this place again? Forgot to mention that the rice came in a butter tray, ( I’m still laughing about this) and the portion sizes were completely too small and most of us went hungry (we ordered 2 butter chickens and one goat curry with naan bread. The portions were about the size of your hand; quite litteraly the palm of your hand and in the end I was charged around $64; did tip anyways so around $70+I’ve never been to a restaurant with such bad food and equally bad service. $70+ dollars was NOT well spent and this place does not deserve the money it gains from such horrible food. even oatmeal tasted better than this mess. $70+ just for 3 TINY SIZED curry’s with rice and naan bread; are you insane? The hair might as well have added some taste or texture bc the curry that I said was good looked clumpy and oily; why do I even bother? ruined Mother’s Day completely. Made me regret waking up today because good lord this is insane. How is this place still running? They should have added a 0 star button just for this restaurant; had to make more food at home because of these horrible serving sizes, if eating out was like this everywhere the stores...

I agree with the reviews given by Minquan Wang, Sandeep Maddi, Natalia Prakash and others alike, who commented about their customer service. Inspite of reading the reviews about their customer service, I decided to visit this place and it was such an awful experience. I was here for a lunch buffet on a weekend. Firstly to start with, there was this guy who was standing right besides the counter and watching everyone’s plate. He then says to me that you can come back again ( that is why it’s called buffet FYI, we need not be told this) and need not stuff your plate at one go, when there was hardly one bowl and 2 small pieces of bread in it. I helped myself with a small second serving and as soon as I had the last dorsal, he hurried the check on the table. I had never called for the check and neither had I had desserts or any beverages till then. A few others had mentioned this in the previous reviews I read, but I still went ahead to try this place. We pay for our food and the service and expect, at the very least, some professionalism by the hosts. Although the food was average , customer service was pathetic. Never experienced anything even close to this before. Never going to this...