Choolaah — Restaurant in Upper Merion Township

This is a unique concept that took way too long to arrive. But, I'm glad it's here. There's no doubt that Indian food is growing in popularity. But, 99.9% of Indian restaurants are sit-down. Why not some Indian fast food strategically located at trains stations (e.g., Cafe Spice at Grand Central Station), airports or other busy places where you can grab your fix for Indian food and be on your way?

If they can improve on their execution, this chain will grow, otherwise I think the entrepreneurs behind it will exit and the new buyers will run it into the ground. So what are some suggested improvements:

One of the items we ordered was the paneer (Indian cheese) wrap. They gave us their chicken wrap instead. If you order x and they give you y, usually it's no big deal -- you just let them know and they fix it. However, in our family, not eating meat is driven by religion. Also, about 75% of Indian families are vegetarian due to religious beliefs. To serve us meat is...really not kosher. They did exchange it, but this is not something that can fall through the cracks. CANNOT.

Another item we ordered was their cauliflower and chick-pea wrap. It was served colder than luke warm, but not cold. Many wraps are served cold. There are not too many Indian wraps (can't think of even one) that are served cold. But colder than luke warm? That's neither here nor there. Is this supposed to be served hot? Well, serve it hot then. Is it supposed to be cold? Well, serve it cold then!

The chutneys are hyped up too much. I like my food spicy -- really spicy. Their hottest chutney -- which has all kinds of warnings attached to it -- wasn't hot. I would recommend that the management of this restaurant make their way to California Tortilla -- they have 50 or sauces on their "sauce wall". Pick a few of their really hot sauces and taste them. Then, either increase the heat of your chutneys to match their description, or cut the hype. (Also: try Dave's Insanity Sauce [available online] to reach instant nirvana!)

Please pay more attention to what's happening on your floor and tweak. I would love for this restaurant to grow and prosper, but it definitely needs some changes to experience...

This place was such a let down. This place has a Chipotle-esq fast food vibe, but failed to deliver on it.

First, let's start with the food, for the price there is no value here. The portions are lackluster and the variety is non-existent. This maybe would be acceptable if the food was stellar, but it wasn't. The masala sauce was watery, protein was non-existent (because they forgot it on my order and I had to ask about it (mistakes happen)), and everything has a overpriced upcharge. Want veggies? Add $5. Want extra rice? Add $2, etc. That said, the variety was also non-existent, your options were protein or veggies. Add a spring mix (no different then the one you find bagged in grocery stores) and brown or white rice, then add a sauce. That's it. Expensive chicken and rice is basically what you're paying for, which in fact took way too long to get prepare. That all said, the staff was super friendly, but that's all positive I could really say.

I couldn't recommend this place. Hopefully they can diversify their menu and add some better value because at the moment, it is not worth visiting and with other similar restaurants popping up there are much better options. For reference, everything we ordered pictured cost about $50. 2 bowls (one of which they forgot chicken on and I had to ask for), 2 sodas, samosas and 1 extra naan.

Hard pass on this place, don't...

Food was delicious but the process of getting the order to me was ridiculous. Not only me but several people in the restaurant on Friday night at 5:00. I ordered online and went in when it was suppose to be ready. Nobody came to the front desk. There was a very aggrivated customer from inside the restaurant waiting a very long time for her food. Somebody came out to the front drinking a starbucks drink and not really helping anyone at all. The back of the area was total kaos with only one really good employee making the Nan bread. He was literally trying to do every job because the 4 other employees were absolutely useless. Either they could not read the orders or just did not care. They were throwing around the food in a bag, out of a bag, combining orders that were for different people, things falling on the floor and it goes on. I had to tell them just from looking at what they were doing that they were making mistakes with the orders and needed to separate them . No manager in sight and really just one stellar employee who took the time to correct all the other mistakes. He was working his head off. So, Friday night is kinda busy and I would suggest to have a manager on hand or people working there who can read and fill orders. There were at least 4 other customers who were angry about this service and at least 4 lined up in the front who were not...