Moghul, Not Your Typical Indian Restaurant

A Traditional Tandoor oven used to make bread and roast meat.


I may get a lot of heat from my Indian friends for this review but I can’t lie, I think Moghul is fantastic. The location is not ideal. Given the fact that it is located in University Plaza it has a kind of strip mall feel to the exterior. But once inside you are greeted with a very chic modern Indian décor. Moghul is definitely not your traditional cramped Indian restaurant. It is very airy and comfortable with a feeling of casual sophistication.

I have eaten at Moghul about 6 times since its opening and the food has just gotten better with time. The only complaint that I have with the restaurant is the service is slightly inconsistent. All of the Indian servers that have waited on me have been wonderful, knowledgeable and very pleasant. Unfortunately the American wait staff is not quite as good as their Indian counterparts. I will give you some examples... The worst waiter I had at Moghul was way too casual. He stood about 7 feet away from our table while taking our orders. It was if he was afraid we had some kind of contagious disease or something. We ordered chicken Tikka Masala (there most popular dish) and Palak Paneer with some homemade naan. Both were outstanding, especially the Tikka Masala which is basically a tomato and yogurt based Masala (curry) that is a British adaptation of a traditional Mughlai dish. It has a slightly sweet creamy texture that is balanced nicely with a little heat from the spices. But the oddest part of that meal was the fact that our waiter boxed our food tableside, right in front of us. It kind of broke up our conversation as he slowly transferred our rice and curries into plastic containers, literally between our line of vision.

Since then I have had a number of other dishes which have all been excellent. For a nice starter try the Keema Samosas. They are homemade and are textually wonderful. They come with a red and green chutney that are equally tasty. Their curried mussel appetizer is also surprisingly good. I have also had their Lamb Vindalo (spicy tomato curry usually made with potatoes), Lamb Korma (tree nut based curry) and chicken saag (spinach curry). I have no complaints about any of these dishes but if you are a first timer I would stick with the Tikka Masala. Don’t forget to order some garlic Naan. All Naan and bread at Moghul is made fresh to order in a traditional clay pot called a tandoor. It is awesome and well worth the extra $3. I highly recommend Moghul and give it 4.5 stars. Casual dress is fine and expects to pay between $15-$20 per person.

I will also try and compare Curries of India to Moghul soon within the next week.

Here is a link to Moghul’s web site: Moghul