The Yellow Chilli Tustin — Restaurant in Tustin

Latest from Jan 2025: No wait time. We had made the reservation Very polite hostess Moved to different table upon request as originally suggested table was next to restrooms, even though it was almost empty. Food tasted really good including both veg and non-veg. We were celebrating my Son's birthday and they offered special dessert with candle and HBD writings. Nice gesture. owner/manager also came and checked with us twice. Kulfi tasted very good.

Some areas of improvement. Shahi tukda did not taste that good. Rabri part was good, but the bread part was not fried and soaked in syrup, may be some other form of bread/crisp.

Now the special service: While we were not even half way into the appetizers probably 3-4 minutes after delivery, hostess came to ask if they can get main course. Though it was too quick but we agreed. She was quickly trying to take away the appetizers. I don't understand the urgency to take away appetizers while we just started working on it and more than half of the food is still in the serving plate. We explained we are still working on it. Then another dude came, and now this person got really annoying. While we were eating appetizers he started adjusting our table. He was not even trying to create space for plates, but trying to get things in "right place" per his opinion. Like adjust orientation of phone :). He moved the small plate by more than 10 inches while we were eating from those plates. I mean how rude can he get. He took our forks from small plates and placed them next to knife. We were still eating our appetizers and this is within 5 minutes of appetizer delivery. I feel if I had food in mouth he would have pulled food from my mouth. He kept getting rude in adjusting location of every personal item also on the table. Then he came back with dinner plates and now he wanted to place them in specific location and in that attempt he almost spilled one of the small plate with appetizers in it. Now funny thing is even after all the urgency and made it so uncomfortable the food took another ~20 minutes to arrive.

This was from visit in July 2022:

Appearance- among the best for Indian restaurant. Kind of place where you can host someone. Seats were available right away. tables were close enough that staff passing by kept bumping on our head/back almost every other time. I got bumped in my head 7 times. Good collection of alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks. Basics of hosting were missing. Drinks were served 1 by 1 with 3-5 min per drink. Appetizers had good taste for both veg and non-veg. Same issue with the delivery on the order and very late. all delivered 1 by 1 and more than 5-10 min in between. Main course was too delayed. It took more than 1 hr 30 min for the food to arrive. Our server did not both even to come to us to say that food is getting delayed or just to say it is coming soon. We tried to reach out to her but she kept running away. Non-veg dish had good taste. Veg dish did not have good taste, almost burnt taste. We only tried two desserts and clearly none of those was impressive. Especially the GJ was not made well. could not even finish it with 4 people it was that bad. Overall I am not sure if I 'll ever...

My recent visit to The Yellow Chilli restaurant left me with a profoundly unsettling experience that I feel compelled to share. This incident was not only unfortunate but also raised serious concerns about safety and customer care at the establishment.

As my family and I settled at a table, we encountered an issue that, in hindsight, could have been easily avoided. The tables were quite small, leaving very little space to accommodate both our food and the fire candle that was placed on each table was moved my side of the corner. This spatial constraint created a hazardous situation that I never anticipated.

As I was in the process of getting up from my seat, In a terrifying turn of events, the flame from the candle caught onto my hair, instantly engulfing it. Shockingly, not a single staff member or fellow diner came to my aid or even made an effort to address the unfolding emergency. I had to rely on my own instincts and, with great urgency, extinguished the fire with my hands. Thankfully, the situation did not escalate further, and I am relieved that the fire did not reach my scalp. However, the incident resulted in a significant loss of my hair.

What was most disheartening about this experience was the complete lack of response from everyone present in the restaurant, including the staff. It was as if they were mere spectators, passively observing the distressing situation unfolding right in front of them. Their indifference to my predicament was truly disconcerting.

After the incident, I left the restaurant silently and in shock. It was only later, outside the establishment, that a staff member finally approached me and asked if I was okay. Even then, it was only after I raised my concerns that I received a simple apology, which seemed inadequate given the gravity of the situation.

In light of this harrowing experience, I strongly urge The Yellow Chilli Tustin restaurant to immediately implement safety measures when using any form of open flame or candles, such as battery-operated candles or long glass coverings with real fire. Furthermore, it is evident that the restaurant's already sufficient lighting negates the need for candles on the tables.

Above all else, I implore the management to prioritize the safety and well-being of their customers. This incident has left me deeply shaken, and I hope that this review serves as a catalyst for change and ensures that no one else has to endure such a frightening and avoidable ordeal...

I'm often very careful about leaving a review on my first visit. After all, a single point in time isn't a good reflection of an experience. There are some exceptions, however.

As expected, we were seated after an open table reservation toward their outdoor section. It was a beautiful 60°f winter evening and the heaters did a great job at keeping us warm. The clock went past 25 minutes, as we sat there wondering, will there be someone who will notice us? As the host was sitting at another table down, she checked on us and asked if someone was helping us. She then called upon someone. Stuff happens, all good.

After ordering, and enjoying the table conversation, we started to wonder when will our food come out. It took the kitchen nearly 40 minutes to get our first appetizer out. No exaggeration. The presentation was good, but the food was cold; room temperature at best.

Slowly all our appetizers started to trickle out. Not a single appetizer was warm let alone hot.

We let the server know about the temperature. He responded by saying they'll check and came back with no response.

Getting it right wasn't on the menu!

There was a 20 minutes delay until our main course came out. The presentation was good yet again, to our utter disappointment, everything was at room temperature at best.

The taste nor freshness was acceptable. The biryani looked old and had rice that had dried from overheating! The naan were soggy and cold. The eggplant was runny, uncooked, and cold. The paneer was hard and cold. Disappointed all the way!

Yellow Chili Restaurant is a brand owned by celebrity chef, Sanjeev Kapoor. He's known to create a fine dining experience using thousands of spices and flavors, never compromising on the quality, texture, taste or experience. Our experience was anything but that.

From the service, to the food and everything in between, our experience here was not what you'd expect from eating out let alone a celebrity chef restaurant.

I truly hope things change as it's a real shame to the name and what's expected from a cuisine that precedes its name...