Tiffin Indian Cuisine Philadelphia — Restaurant in Philadelphia

We went to Tiffin in Northern Liberties. We had the worst restaurant experience imaginable. First, we ordered a soda and it came out in a glass that wasn’t washed. It was covered with food and stains. He also was holding the straw. It wasn’t wrapped and he kept doing other things and was holding the straw at the part that you would drink out of. When I informed the waiter (a young kid) instead of apologizing he examined the glass for a few minutes then said I can dump the soda in another glass. I thought this was a joke. I said no your not gonna do that but you can get me another soda in a clean glass. He brought me a bottle of coke and I asked for ice and was told they have no ice. My aunt asked for mango juice and tea. They have both on the menu but we were told they don’t carry them. When I asked why is it on the menu he gave me a smart remark and asked if we brought our own tea bag. I just had a feeling our experience was not gonna be pleasant. We ordered 2 appetizers and only one came out. The kid never took the order properly. As we were waiting on the samosas we decided to add another app the onion pakora. They came out first and were raw. The batter was half uncooked. When the samosas came out I could not believe the condition they were in. Long story short, not edible. At this point, I just wanted to leave. I asked to speak to the manager/owner again and was told he’s not here today. Funny thing is as we were waiting on the apps to come out originally we asked a very nice women if we can please speak to the manger. She said I will get the owner for you. We wanted to speak to him about catering a party. My aunt and I went there to try different things on the menu because we were interested in having a party catered. We met the owner, he gave us the catering menu and walked away. We never really got to discuss anything further. So we decided let’s taste the food first then we’ll ask to speak to him again. After the issue we had, we asked the young kid again who did not give us his name or have a name tag on to speak to the owner again. He told us there is no manager here today and he’s not the owner. So I asked why they would give us false information and I asked who the gentleman we spoke to was. I was told not to worry about who he was. Then the kid said he’s now the manager so we can deal with him. This kid was very unprofessional and between the attitude, the arrogance, and him putting his hands in my face I lost my patience with him. I told him to act professional, provide great customer service, and instead of being nasty to us he should apologize for the experience. Instead, he started laughing and there was only one other customer in there. He asked that customer “Sir are you listening and watching what’s going on here?” I said why are you involving another customer? Cheryl a very nice woman came over and tried to tell the kid to stop behaving the way he was. He still kept talking over us. Finally, she apologized to us for the whole dining experience and for her employees behavior. As the kid walked away, he told me a negative review would not affect him. I just could not believe his behavior and how he was speaking to us. This was our first and last time visiting this restaurant. We will not be catering from there. I hope they realize what they did and can correct there mistakes. When you offer anyone a bad experience you not only loose them as loyal customers but you also loose their friends and family from going there as well. The only positive thing I can say is that Cheryl and another woman were nothing but pleasant. They apologized several times and tried to accommodate us but we were very much disappointed at this point and just wanted to leave. We ended up going to Karma on 3rd and Market and not only did we enjoy our experience but the food...

Founded by a Wharton MBA graduate, Tiffin is primarily a delivery service. After all, a tiffin is a lunchbox in India, into which wives (or servants) diligently package freshly-prepared food to be delivered midday to their working spouses (or clients). Appropriately, Tiffin is just that–freshly prepared, delivered, home-cooked Punjabi-style cooking. Tiffin's major selling point is its sincere authenticity. It's not overspiced, or swimming in cream and oil like in much of the buffets' standard fare. Rather, each bite is delicately spiced and exudes lightness. One lunch or dinner tiffin will run you $7.50 to $8.50 and includes two vegetable dishes, a generous smattering of dal (lentils), a heap of rice, and a serving of accompanying chutney. Compared to the 12 or 13 dollars you'd have to shell out at one of those buffets, Tiffin is an amazing deal. Tiffin's cuisine suits all, vegetarians and meat-eaters alike, and we were amazed by their expansive but concentrated menu.

Our tiffin featured gobi manchurian, a delicious marriage of sautéed cauliflower and a zingy tomato sauce; aloo mutter (a simmered curry of potatoes and peas); and dal tadka, delicately cooked yellow lentils with a hint of cumin. Needless to say, each dish left us extremely impressed.

For the more adventurous, be sure to try their Indian pizza, which has become a very common dish in India. It consists of a bang-on combo of a western crust layered with paneer, curry sauce and various spiced toppings, combining the best of cream and spice into a familiar form factor. In this case, better ingredients really does mean better pizza–a veritable Papa Jain's, if you will.

Bottom line, Tiffin offers some of the best Indian food you can get in Philly, in our opinion. And it's convenient to boot! They also boast a collection of physical restaurants, which we're itching to try. And who says Wharton graduates don't go on to do great...

My friend and I got the livingsocial deal which was 3 courses including specialty naan for two people for $40. Given that most buffet places are $10-15, I thought paying the extra for a sit down place with 3 courses would be nice.

Appetizers: Aloo Chaat and Coconut Cauliflower. Aloo Chaat was your traditional chaat (tortilla like chip strips, garbanzo beans, and some sauces) which I enjoyed as an appetizer. Coconut cauliflower was drenched in coconut chutney AND coconut oil. The oil made me sick in a way and the overpowering coconut taste I didn't care for. Even when I took it home and tried to mix it with rice I couldn't finish it.

Entree-My friend ordered the lamb and I ordered the paneer something. My item was not oily and spicy! Just the way I like my Indian food! Next time I would go with someone vegetarian so I can try two curries, I generally like eating more than 1 with my food. Heard the lamb was delicious.

Naan-Garlic and Chili Naans were made tandoori style aka in an oven sans butter. This is good in the sense that the naan wasn't drenched in butter but it is definitely different. Crispy and not as soft. I guess I prefer mine on the stove softer.. The garlic got burned the way they cooked it.

Dessert-Rasmali Tiramusi. YUM!

Definitely would order here again for takeout/delivery. That seems to be their main revenue source as no one was in the restaurant. If you see this livingsocial deal, I would def snag it. Each entrée item is $12-15 so $20 for the whole thing is a steal.

For Indian food in the...