04/30/09

Pretty place, slightly above average food

by Missy821

We went on a Wednesday night when the place was virtually empty, so perhaps this explains why our experience with the staff was different than the previous reviewers' experiences, but I have to say, service at Tiffin was outstanding, among the best I've ever experienced in an Indian restaurant. I don't think our water glasses ever dipped below half empty.

The ambiance was spot-on. Dark wood, dim lights, white tablecloths--it's actually almost romantic in atmosphere. We definitely didn't have an issue with the decor.

The food was decent. Papadum was decent and the naan was amazing--so puffy, in a good way. The rice was the usual plain, boring stuff everyone charges extra for these days. For entrees, I got the chicken makahni and my boyfriend got the chicken tikka masala. I didn't love the makahni--the chicken was excellently cooked, very moist, but the sauce was way too thin. It barely stayed on the spoon for serving. In terms of flavors and spices, I asked for medium, but what I got was actually quite bland. Heat aside, the flavors were good. My boyfriend liked the tikka masala, but had the same sauce consistency issue as I did.

The portions weren't huge, which was disappointing, since we usually have half our entrees left over for lunch the next day, and at Tiffin, my boyfriend only had sauce left and I had maybe a quarter of the dish left--and we weren't outrageously hungry that night or anything.

Overall, I'd give this place another shot, definitely.

• Pros: Fabulously puffy thick naan
• Cons: Small portions

10/06/08

Outstanding food, great ambiance

by Ksey

This was a fantastic restaurant. The service was amazing, the food exceptional, the entire atmosphere was calm and sophisticated. I look forward to going back

• Pros: Food, service, price
• Cons: Parking

03/16/08

DON'T GO HERE

by ajay1999

This is the worst Indian Restaurant I ever dined in. My friend?s girl friend's purse was stolen by an employee or patron and the owners kept on insisting that she did not bring her purse with while the surveillance proved otherwise. Bad food, worst experience and servers who do not speak English. DON?T dine here. FYI Udipi Restaurant is owned by the owners of Tiffin.

• Pros: None
• Cons: The whole dining experience

07/08/07

great food and ambiance, but poor air conditioning.

by ywirasin

Achar Chicken, Rohan Josh Lamb are excellent choices. Just watch out for the poor air-conditioning. Very spicy, but I love it that way. Just ask for very mild if you need it to be. Enjoy!

03/22/07

Great Indian Food on Devon!

by colinsilveira

The restaurant is one of the best on Devon serving Indian food. The restaurant a nice ambience, the staff are friendly and accommodating and the food is excellent. I highly recommend the lamb chops and the chicken/lamb curries. As with most North Indian restaurants, where fish is not a staple, and being Goan (south India) I keep away from the seafood. I have been burned every time I venture into seafood. I recommend this place from all the restaurants on Devon as a must try.

11/23/06

Good Setting But Worst Food And Service

by obeallen

I have been to Tiffin about three times. Tiffin has a great decor and fancy look to it. If you are entering Tiffin for the first time you will be very impress with the whole setup. One word comes to mind which is "very nice" Generally speaking its prompt seating if you have made reservations. I will not recommend you to go there specially on weekend without calling ahead. I will give the over all setting and decor a rating of 9 out of 10. Few things that I look for in a restaurant other than setting is the service and food. I have been eating Indian food for over ten years. I have even been to India multiple times to have tried authentic Indian food in India. Unfortunately at Tiffin the food is far from best. One way to put is over priced low quality Indian food. I was very disappointed with their meat dishes specially their chicken and lamb dishes were far from perfect. The only thing that is some what ok is their seafood products. I will give food quality a rating of 3 out of 10. Another turnoff at Tiffin is the level of service provided. There is always a long wait time before a server will take your order and equally long wait time by the time the food is served on your table. On my last visit wit my girlfriend i had to wait over an hour for our food to be served. On top of that their servers lacks personal skills. I will give service 1 out of 10 in rating. Over all i will not go to Tiffin any more and will not recommend it if you are looking for good food with great service.

• Pros: Ambience and overall setting
• Cons: bad food and service

09/04/06

9.5 ???? You have got to be kidding

by ananka

This is one of the worst Indian restaurants I have ever been to. I have been eating and cooking Indian food for over 30 years and have spent lots of time in India as well as eating at the homes of my Indian friends. I have eaten at great Indian restaurants in many states as well as several in Great Britain and in the Middle East. Never in any of these places have I been served dishes of Rogan Josh and Chicken Tikka laden with more bones floating in the sauce than meat.

The service was non existent and we had to constantly ask for the waiter to come to our table to order additional entrees. In additon, one of the persons in our party was disabled and instead of seating us near the buffet (which some of us had) they seated us far away near the door.

I expected so much more from the reviews. As others have said save your money and maybe drive out to Oak Park and go to Khyber Pass. Now there is a buffet worthy of spending a few more bucks along with abundant entrees without floating bones.

05/17/06

9.5 rating??? Please save your money

by edevadoss

Looked clean & seated, got the menu, water and papads right away. WAITED 20 MIN NOBODY CAME OVER. tables next to us (mose people were non-indians) being helped & we were just waiting & waiting. I was ready to walk out but didn't want to make any scene.

5 min after that waiter came & said ready to take your order. Got Non Veggie Thalli which was lamb rogan josh, chicken tandoor, veggie, raita AND Lamb vindaloo w/ Aloo Paratha.

NEVER HAD WORST LAMB VINDALOO IN MY LIFE. IT WASN'T LAMB MEAT atall IT WAS GOAT meat. I HAVE HAD ENOUGH LAMB & GOAT toKNOW THE DIFFERENCE.

ALOO PARATHA WAS SAPATHI. Must have Clients coming in don't even know the difference. Lamb Rogan wasn't any better.

didn't expect authentic indian food but serve you something & pass it on as somethingelse. Try to be upscale indian but just a fake.

• Pros: Romantic & quiet, samosa&chicken tandoo, clean
• Cons: slow service, food

10/25/05

Great Indian Food!

by andre324

Tiffin is by far one of the best Indian restaurants in Chicago, mostly known for its lunch buffet! The tandoori chicken, the vegetarian dishes,"naan," and the authentic Indian desserts, make this a great restaurant to try-out exceptional Indian food. The dishes are quite light, not too hearty or oily for that matter, and the desserts themselves are very delicious. It is quite a nice atmosphere, not too noisy, appropriate more for a casual lunch or a nice dinner. Some may find it on the pricey side, although I do not entirely agree, but it is by far worth the value.

• Pros: Food, Service, Ambience
• Cons: None

03/10/05

Most formal spot on Devon

by peterbehle_citysearch

Of the multitude of Indian/Pakistani places on this stretch of Devon, Tiffin is the most upscale. But it's still casual enough for kids. The food here is a step above much of the competition, but so are the prices. Wander to the back and check the open kitchen.