Cumin N Eat — Restaurant in Secaucus

We had been to their Allentown, PA branch and got to know they have one in Jersey too. It was 40 mins drive from Parsippany. It is located in a really nice complex. A couple of hotels (Holiday Inn, Hyatt & Marriott) and many good restaurants (Red Lobsters-Tokyo Hibachi-Chillis, etc..) are in this area near this restaurant.

Okay, I am losing track here, coming to this one-

it is at the back of the complex (took some time to find out this)

As I mentioned I found their Allentown branch top-notch, so expectations were the same. We got the table and settled ourselves. There were a couple of servers taking care of all the tables, so service was on the slower side.

We ordered like tons of items as we wanted to try most of them.

Fish Apollo – We had already tried Fish Marina at Allentown (if you did not try it, go ahead, try it. Fish pieces marinated with their 'specialty' masala, deep fried in oil). Apollo is the opposite of that – Fish pieces in semi-gravy – 4/5

Paneer Apollo – not sure why my friend tried that, I wanted him to have paneer chili so that we can have one extra preparation on the table (all non-veg folks are like me only? :P ) – crunchy coated small panner cube-shaped pieces with apollo gravy– 4/5

Chicken Lollypop- they deep fried that, it should be not that fried, instead of golden brown, it was black. Still, it was good. Comes with schezwan sauce and onions – 3.5/5

Papdi chaat – (Imposter Alert!!) – you might ask why Papdi chat among all those great dishes. Seems my veg friend did not find the menu options good enough for him and ‘cursed’ us to bring him here. As per him “This is a non-veg restaurant” .. lol ... Dosa and all – nope not his things. hahaha (Bw Papdi chat was good, but it had no potatoes) – 3.5/5

Mutton Biryani – well, being a big-time biryani lover, I could easily rate it as 8.5-9 out of 10. If you know better biryani than these, pls pls message me on Yelp. I would like to try. Biryani lovers- let’s help each other : )

Chicken Hakka Noodles – surprisingly, it was good. I had some prenotion that south Indian restaurant - will it be good? But it was more than good. Go for it…!

Chicken Chilli Garlic Noodles - equally good.

And hey did I mention their Madras coffee? one of the best coffee I had in recent times. -5/5.

Few Pointers:

Their spicy is “real spicy” not like white folk's spicy, so be careful.

Portion – it’s big. Like the ‘2 girls can eat one biryani’ type.

Price - $17 for biryani, amidst inflation- it’s reasonable.

Ambiance- Spacious, nice décor, cute painting on the wall…

The only thing I did not like was -their cutlery. Melamine plates and plastic glass – I Understand, normal plates tend to break if not managed properly but we are in a dine-in restaurant, not a fast-food place. I have given the feedback on the spot. Hope they change that.

The food was like 8.5/10 for me for sure, and for that, I can definitely recommend it. It could have one of the best Indian foods you can have...

Indian Restaurant Review

About the Indian Restaurant: Located in a strip mall in Secaucus, NJ, this Indian restaurant offers a tidy and clean dining environment. During our visit, the restaurant was relatively empty, which was unsurprising for a Monday afternoon. Nonetheless, the staff proved to be kind and helpful, contributing to a positive dining atmosphere.

About the Dining Experience: Upon arriving at the restaurant to pick up our order, we found the place to be well-kept and organized. The staff were courteous and assisted us promptly.

For our meal, we opted for several Chinese dishes from the menu. While the Chicken Schezwan Garlic Noodles stood out as a favorite, with its flavorful and well-prepared noodles, the other dishes failed to leave a lasting impression. The Chicken Chilli and Chicken Manchurian leaned towards the sweeter side, lacking the perfect balance of flavors expected from these dishes. Similarly, the Chicken Schezwan Rice, while enjoyable, was somewhat overpowered by black pepper, detracting from its overall appeal.

However, the Chicken Schezwan Noodles were a notable exception, delivering on expectations with their perfectly executed preparation. If we had solely ordered this dish, our dining experience may have warranted a higher rating.

Summary: In summary, while this Indian restaurant offers a tidy environment and friendly service, the overall dining experience was somewhat underwhelming. While certain dishes impressed, others fell short of expectations, leading to a mixed review. Hence, it receives a...

After a long day of being at an event, my friends and I were very turned off to the food options in the area EXCEPT this one. Whoever has been taking photos of Cumin N Eat's food cannot do them justice enough. I was initially not really interested in going because of the pictures alone but the reviews were amazing so I figured there had to be something I missed. The spot is very hidden away tucked in the corners of the plaza and it's very easy to miss, but once you walk in, it's actually a symphony of aromas that just tucks itself between your palette and your nose. The staff was extremely lovely despite us coming in a bit later to close and they are so humble. I ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala with garlic naan, which is something I always try at Indian cuisines first to establish whether or not I'll like the place and to my surprise, I was floored! It is quite literally the best Tikka Masala I've ever had by leagues. The spice levels are specifically catered to you and you can tell from the flavors and textures that every plate was made with love and care. My friends are I couldn't stop raving about it even as we were eating. I HAD to take some home. Surprisingly enough it was just as delicious the next day after letting the flavours marinate a bit. Thank you to the wonderful staff here, so hospitable and genuinely great people. I'd go back to Jersey just for...