Tarka Indian Kitchen — Restaurant in Spring

Tarka has become one of our regular food joints. We love the flavors and spices. It's amazingly delicious fast food with a kick. It's contemporary Indian at its best.

The restaurant is a blend between fast food and sit down restaurant. Upon entering, you enter a queue that brings you to the cash register where you order. After ordering at the counter, they bring the food to your table. Service is fast. Portions are generous. There are self-service drinks available. And they have a small selection of wines and beers.

We usually start with with chicken pakora or vegetable samosas or both... LOL. We ordered 2 mains: shrimp mirch marsala and lamb korma hot. The mains come with basmati rice, but we also ordered an unbuttered naan. My wife loves naan!!!

The pakora is amazing and lightly coated in a slightly salty spice. Imagine Indian chicken fingers in a nearly non-existant coating. Finger licking goodness. The samosas are traditional potato samosas. They were crisp and light, with little oil and fresh flavors. Both were accompanied with mint chutney and cilantro. The mint chutney was slightly sweet and lacking coconut. Not like Mom used to make, but delicious.

The shrimp mirch marsala was beautifully spiced and textured. Mirch masala is less tomatoey than a tikka masala. The shrimp were perfectly cooked. The sauce was thick and meaty with onions and peppers blended together that complement the sweet shrimp. The veggies are subtly integrated in the sauce for a unique flavor. We chose to have it hot and spicey and it was amazing.

The lamb korma is thick and a little lighter color than mom used to make (mom's was more brown). The flavor was delicious with a blend of coconut and cashew flavors and scents. The lamb was cut into small pieces and was tender. The meat was spread throughout the thick sauce. If you order it mild or medium, it tends to be sweeter and nuttier. For us, hot...

We've eaten at this location several times int the past and have always had enjoyable experiences. On this occasion we made the decision to place our order online and pick it up. When I arrived, our order appeared to be ready and the experience was nothing unusual other than an employee noticing my hair color and using it as a segway to discuss a previous encounter with a woman in a fairly derogatory manner. This issue arised once we were home and we discovered we were missing half our order. I understand this happens, but after spending $40 dollars on a meal the least I expected was to be able to actually eat said meal. I tried to call the location I was answered with a recording stating the store was closed...it was only 7pm on a Tuesday. So my husband and I drove back up there to get the rest of our order. When we got there I explained what had happened and was told by the first 2 guys its wasnt their fault and one called for the closest person to manager, Brandon I believe...the same guy making the derogatory remarks upon my first visit. Instead of attempting to correct the issue he basically just tried to barter the situation by saying, "so like what do you want? Like a free appetizer or a refund or something? I mean I dont know what you want". I said I just want the food I paid for, I'm not expecting to receive anything for free I just expected my order to be correct in the first place. When he tossed me the rest of my order with an attitude I said maybe he should have been more concerned with doing his job instead of my hair he laughed and yelled at me as I was leaving it wasn't his fault and he didnt care. So yeah, that was a bummer because otherwise the food and service has been very good but we will NOT be returning after...

We 🍽 chicken biryani for my wife and lamb biryani for myself. Indian delicacies are our favorite: having tried out restaurants from Texas, eastern US, middle East, Asia (too many to specify), and all the way to the subcontinent itself. That being said, the biryani spice level is just the right kick for a mild or a medium and the flavor was almost authentic. Try their mint chutney and Raita, places serving thick sauces like these are getting fewer and fewer. Tarka has its own space for condiments and refreshments: tea, mango lemonade, and soda (Stubborn sodas, not pepsi/coke products). We signed up with the app and we were given a free appetizer for it, we picked the vegetable samosa - better than most other's. The place has good ambience (somehow reminds me of Chipotle even), ample parking, reasonable prices, and friendly staff. The serving size is smaller compared to others and I included my hand in the pics for size reference: I wish they'd keep in mind that it's just not the meat but rather the rice that makes...