Foods from Karara - The Indian Take Out
Comments
2015 Apr 17
Picked up a bargain-priced lunch combination at the Kanata location today, but again the only exemplary part was the large naan. For $6.95+tax you get naan, rice, undressed salad greens, and your choice from a list of meat and vegetarian dishes.
I opted for the "lamb curry" featuring a sauce that, while not as tasty as the best I've had elsewhere, was great scooped up with naan. The lamb itself was in generous portion but the pieces were alternately fatty, tough, or tender. I didn't much enjoy the game of "will this piece be great or gross?"
The lettuce was fresh tasting but rusty around the edges and the rice was more like the bland steamed white rice found at Canadian-Chinese takeout joints than the aromatic glistening basmati I've had at pretty much every other Indian restaurant. What gives?
Still, $6.95 for a satisfying hunk of good naan and some tasty gravy isn't bad at all. I'll have to go back and try the Dal Tadka instead of the lamb curry. That should be good. :-)
I opted for the "lamb curry" featuring a sauce that, while not as tasty as the best I've had elsewhere, was great scooped up with naan. The lamb itself was in generous portion but the pieces were alternately fatty, tough, or tender. I didn't much enjoy the game of "will this piece be great or gross?"
The lettuce was fresh tasting but rusty around the edges and the rice was more like the bland steamed white rice found at Canadian-Chinese takeout joints than the aromatic glistening basmati I've had at pretty much every other Indian restaurant. What gives?
Still, $6.95 for a satisfying hunk of good naan and some tasty gravy isn't bad at all. I'll have to go back and try the Dal Tadka instead of the lamb curry. That should be good. :-)
2013 Dec 15
Onion naan: Really good and the largest naan bread that I've ever had a restaurant for that price.
Shahi paneer: A bit odd for me. I love this dish no matter how spicey or tamatoey it is. This was tamatoey with generous large portions of paneer cheese, however, it was sweet as well. Not use to this dish being sweet. It also had a couple of other spices that i didn't enjoy. I don't know the name of the spices, only the taste. :( sorry.
Daal Makhani: Didn't like it all. Not enough salt in my opinion, which OK- happily added more. It was rather dry and the lentils weren't cooked fully.
Rice: Descent plain basmati rice that'll work with any stew.
Shahi paneer: A bit odd for me. I love this dish no matter how spicey or tamatoey it is. This was tamatoey with generous large portions of paneer cheese, however, it was sweet as well. Not use to this dish being sweet. It also had a couple of other spices that i didn't enjoy. I don't know the name of the spices, only the taste. :( sorry.
Daal Makhani: Didn't like it all. Not enough salt in my opinion, which OK- happily added more. It was rather dry and the lentils weren't cooked fully.
Rice: Descent plain basmati rice that'll work with any stew.
2013 Nov 16
We tried a few favourite Indian menu items from the Merivale location and were quite disappointed, especially given the rave reviews we've been hearing.
* Samosas - well priced, but heavy on potato, low on spices, and with a chewy rather than flaky shell.
* Butter Chicken - very tomato-ey, only slightly creamy, with mild heat (we asked for medium). The chicken was all white breast meat.
* Tandoori Chicken - dry and mushy, like it had been sitting under a heat lamp for half a day. Scant portion (see photo under that food item).
* Basmati Rice - very basic, no butter or seasoning. Reminded me of Chinese take-out rice.
* Naan - Generous size for the price, nice flavour when fresh.
I wanted to try the Jalebi but they had run out.
Given other people's experiences I can only guess that they must have consistency problems. Maybe sometimes the food is fresh and other times it has been sitting around for too long. Or maybe I just don't know what good food is. Haha!
* Samosas - well priced, but heavy on potato, low on spices, and with a chewy rather than flaky shell.
* Butter Chicken - very tomato-ey, only slightly creamy, with mild heat (we asked for medium). The chicken was all white breast meat.
* Tandoori Chicken - dry and mushy, like it had been sitting under a heat lamp for half a day. Scant portion (see photo under that food item).
* Basmati Rice - very basic, no butter or seasoning. Reminded me of Chinese take-out rice.
* Naan - Generous size for the price, nice flavour when fresh.
I wanted to try the Jalebi but they had run out.
Given other people's experiences I can only guess that they must have consistency problems. Maybe sometimes the food is fresh and other times it has been sitting around for too long. Or maybe I just don't know what good food is. Haha!
2013 Mar 11
Tried the Merivale location for the first time this past weekend (early Mar 2013).
Very enjoyable and will return.
Wait time for the order was about 20min. There were two people ahead of me and a steady stream of phone orders.
Had the onion bhajis - excellent version, very tasty with lots of crispy outside but still tender insider. 5 to an order, good size, not the little one-bite ones some places do.
Veggie Samosa - possibly the best i've had in the city, these were two monster-sized samosas. The pastry was tasty, not too thick. The filling was like something i'd expect an Indian grandmother to make and i mean that in the best way possible. Seriously these were a treat.
Mango chutney and tamarind sauce included without having to ask.
For the main event we dared to deviate from our standard butter chicken or a vindaloo and tried the ginger chicken, which was a nice surprise. Just the right level of ginger, tasty sauce, good amount of white meat cubes. As an aside, the menu proudly states they only use white chicken - i appreciate that.
Okra were chopped into smal moresels with a generous mix of onions and some tomato and excellent seasoning. Terrific version of this dish.
A 'mustard leaves/rapini' dish had an interesting buttery/sour taste i wasn't quite sure of initially but enjoyed. Not certain i would order it again but just finding a veg dish i hadn't seen before on an Indian menu, i was pleased to try it.
Rice palau was standard and tasty.
Naan (plain) was HUGE and tasted just out of the oven.
All that was $45. Portions were ample, easily had dinner for two with lunches the next day.
Will be back, will send others.
Very enjoyable and will return.
Wait time for the order was about 20min. There were two people ahead of me and a steady stream of phone orders.
Had the onion bhajis - excellent version, very tasty with lots of crispy outside but still tender insider. 5 to an order, good size, not the little one-bite ones some places do.
Veggie Samosa - possibly the best i've had in the city, these were two monster-sized samosas. The pastry was tasty, not too thick. The filling was like something i'd expect an Indian grandmother to make and i mean that in the best way possible. Seriously these were a treat.
Mango chutney and tamarind sauce included without having to ask.
For the main event we dared to deviate from our standard butter chicken or a vindaloo and tried the ginger chicken, which was a nice surprise. Just the right level of ginger, tasty sauce, good amount of white meat cubes. As an aside, the menu proudly states they only use white chicken - i appreciate that.
Okra were chopped into smal moresels with a generous mix of onions and some tomato and excellent seasoning. Terrific version of this dish.
A 'mustard leaves/rapini' dish had an interesting buttery/sour taste i wasn't quite sure of initially but enjoyed. Not certain i would order it again but just finding a veg dish i hadn't seen before on an Indian menu, i was pleased to try it.
Rice palau was standard and tasty.
Naan (plain) was HUGE and tasted just out of the oven.
All that was $45. Portions were ample, easily had dinner for two with lunches the next day.
Will be back, will send others.
2013 Feb 28
I have had killer food from Karara, but I have also had not so killer food from karara. A note on the saltiness. Indian food is 90% stew. If it is overly salty, it's an indication that it has been sitting and reducing all day.
You got old food that night folks. Indian food without a high turnover is often greasy and salty.
Try coconut Lagoon on St. Laurent for killer, fresh South Indian Food. Karara is north indian.
You got old food that night folks. Indian food without a high turnover is often greasy and salty.
Try coconut Lagoon on St. Laurent for killer, fresh South Indian Food. Karara is north indian.
2013 Feb 28
Zegerman - We ordered from the Merivale location a couple of weeks ago and had the exact same issue w/ way too much salt being used and I have a very high tolerance for salt. We ended up consuming less than half the food ordered and actually throwing out the leftovers as we did not feel very well after our initial consumption.
2013 Feb 27
I have tried the Barrhaven location twice in the last couple of months.
Online ordering is very easy and convenient.
Saag Beef
Lamb Korma
Baingan Bhartha
Lamb Vindaloo
I found all the dishes I tried a little bit too salty and I do like my salt. I would say their food is decent but I have had much better.
Online ordering is very easy and convenient.
Saag Beef
Lamb Korma
Baingan Bhartha
Lamb Vindaloo
I found all the dishes I tried a little bit too salty and I do like my salt. I would say their food is decent but I have had much better.
2012 Sep 25
Good lunch - 2 curry lunch for $7.95 includes salad and rice. Get a fresh full sized naan bread for an extra $1. I find their food a bit too salty for my taste, but not big deal.
PS: 2 freshly fried samosas for $1.50 including sauce (didn't have this for lunch, but I hope Shaan will see this)
PS: 2 freshly fried samosas for $1.50 including sauce (didn't have this for lunch, but I hope Shaan will see this)
Older
2013 Nov 16
This is the "Half Tandoori Chicken" we received for $13. Honestly, I've never seen such a tiny chicken, and the poor thing was missing its wing. There were four tiny pieces: thigh, drumstick, and the breast cut in half. The meat was dry and mushy like it had been sitting around, and the seasoning was muted.
The salad with coriander sauce was a nice touch, but it didn't make up for the disappointing chicken.
The salad with coriander sauce was a nice touch, but it didn't make up for the disappointing chicken.
FoodDemon