Spice Bazaar - Modern Indian Dining — Restaurant in Westfield

A Memorable Evening at Spice Bazaar – Live Music, Great Food, and Excellent Service

I've been to Spice Bazaar a few times before and have always relished the food. This time was a bit different, as my friend invited me to join him for a live concert happening at the restaurant. Excited by the prospect, three of us made a reservation, securing the last available slot in the dining room, as all earlier timings at 7 PM were listed as ‘sidewalk seating.’ Interestingly, I didn’t notice any sidewalk seating available—especially on a chilly evening in the upper 40s.

Upon arrival, it was great to see that our table was ready and well-set with three plates and cutlery. Our waiter, Ankit, was super helpful, assisting us in opening our wine bottle and taking our appetizer order. We started with Khel Chaat and Dahi Puri—both were flavorful, but the Dahi Puri became a bit soggy within a couple of minutes. The first one was delicious, but by the time I reached the second, it was a bit of a mess. Khel Chaat, on the other hand, was outstanding—crispy, flavorful, and a must-try!

The live music added a magical touch to the evening. I thoroughly enjoyed the old Hindi songs, though the singer modified the tunes slightly—perhaps as a fusion twist. Regardless, it was enjoyable. A few guests got up and danced between tables, which added to the lively atmosphere. A particular six or seven-year-old girl stole the show with her graceful, heartwarming dance—it was pure joy to watch!

One downside was the repeated interruptions from the waiter asking for our entrée order. Within a span of just ten minutes, he came four times, which was quite annoying. We eventually placed the order to avoid further distractions and focus on the music.

For the main course, we ordered:

Pista Malai Kofta Veg Pulav Tandoori Roti Garlic Naan The appetizer portions were small, but the entrée portions were decent. The Roti and Naan were excellent—perfectly cooked and flavorful.

At one point, I wanted to order a Coke, but with the music being a bit loud, I simply raised my hand. Palak, one of the waiters, immediately noticed and literally ran over to take the order, bringing the drink in no time. That level of attentiveness really impressed me.

Later, when we ordered Kasoori Paneer Tikka, my appetizer plate had already been taken away. Siddhanth, another waiter, politely assured me, “Absolutely nothing to worry about, we will get you fresh plates.” The warmth and professionalism of the service staff were top-notch!

To end the meal, we decided to try a dessert—Dalaut Ki Chaat. We admittedly didn't read the description carefully, but the experience was underwhelming. It tasted like breathing flavored air—there was nothing to feel on the tongue. For $14, it was a huge disappointment.

Overall Verdict ✅ Amazing food (with Khel Chaat being a highlight!) ✅ Friendly and attentive service (special mention to Ankit, Palak, and Siddhanth) ✅ Lovely ambiance with live music ❌ Annoying frequency of order-taking interruptions ❌ A bit pricey – with a mandatory 18% gratuity and an approx. 3.1% credit card charge ❌ Dalaut Ki Chaat dessert was a letdown

It was a memorable evening filled with delicious food, lively entertainment, and exceptional service. Would I return? Absolutely! But I’d definitely skip the...

Having visited Spice Bazaar for the first time, my friend and I had quite an interesting experience to say the least. It started off very well with us being pleasantly surprised with the fine decor, polite & attentive waiter and great appetizers and main course. The trouble started when we were debating on whether we should get the Shahi Tukda dessert. We were completely stuffed but it looked delectable on their Instagram page (which they encouraged customers to visit by having a QR code on the menu to help visualize the food). After a lot of thought we decided to go for it and placed the order. When we took a bite of the dish, it left us quite confused. By definition, Shahi tukda is a rich, royal Mughlai dessert of fried sugar syrup coated bread topped and soaked with fragrant creamy sweet thickened milk or rabri. What we had gotten instead was a hard toasted bread cut into 4 triangles and coated with rabri. The whole essence of deep frying the bread and soaking it in syrup was missing. It was literally just rabri on raw bread! Having given the restaurant benefit of doubt, we brought it to the owner's attention and that's when our experience took a more disappointing turn. She took the dish to the kitchen and returned with the waiter by her side and told us this was their interpretation of the dish. She said the pictures on Instagram were a glorified version of the dish and so if we were expecting something else then we didn't have to pay for it. Firstly, it was not about the money. Since we ordered the dish, obviously we could afford to pay for it. Secondly, being a food connoisseur by heart and having been to countless fine dining restaurants, of course I knew the outwardly presentation of a dish is often different from photos which is completely fine, but having her insult my intelligence by stating that this toasted bread was what a Shahi Tukda should be, really left us feeling quite flabbergasted. Additionally, the owner's manner of speaking was quite hostile and rude. It seemed like she wasn't concerned with the mistake and made no move to take accountability. I have been in the service industry myself, and so I know how an apology goes a long way. If she had dealt with our issue with an apology and swapped it with the correct version of the dish, our overall experience would have been quite different. To sum it all up, I'd rate this restaurant 3/5 on food (points deducted for the dessert), 4/5 on ambience and 1/5 on service. Hailing from NYC, we are planning to return to the quaint neighborhood of Westfield, NJ to explore the shops and restaurants but we will definitely not to returning to this particular restaurant. No, thank you! For reference, I've attached the pictures of the dessert from that day showing the pieces of raw toasted bread under the rabri. I have also attached the dessert's image from their Instagram page where atleast they seemed to have gotten the...

Far too pretentious. They took longer than expected to seat us, much after our reservation time. The menu was very unspecific and catered towards those who do not understand Indian cuisine. There were no listings of quantities or portions, likely in an effort to appear minimalistic or modern. Many of the names for common items like paneer as “malai cottage cheese”. Furthermore, the prices were absolutely ridiculous. Sparkling water was listed for seven dollars. The food, however, did not reflect its outrageous price. The food was average at best when compared to other Indian restaurants in the area. The paneer tikka masala was too sweet and too small of a portion. Portion sizes for appetizers were also meager. Service was difficult as well. Upon request of regular Coke, I was given Diet. While not a major issue, it displays the carelessness of the staff. Furthermore, my group ordered and was charged for the Crispy Cauliflower, although we never received it. The only redeemable qualities of the dining experience was the biggest naan, although even then it was at an unjustifiably high price. The ambiance was jarring as well. There were constantly flashing lights, as if we were being photographed like paparazzi, and the lights were periodically dimmed or brightened for no apparent reason. It seems as though this restaurant is focusing their efforts in the wrong areas, and should first think about the food they make before trying to increase the wow-factor of the dining experience. Do not dine here if you like money and an enjoyable...