Natraj's Tandoori - Irvine

What a delight! This place is one of my top Indian places. Although I haven't been able to try too many, this is a great spot in Irvine. It's a great location in the Marketplace with plenty of parking and other shots around. I have been here a few times now and this spot always seems to have a line. The chicken Tikka masala is their most popular dish so I had to try that along with their garbanzo beans and rice. Get the chicken tikka masala sauce on your rice! I also got a side of samosas. These are my absolute favorite dish! Everything here has so much flavor. Each dish comes with a large piece of naan bread too. Their staff was very friendly and described all the dishes to help make our choice :

This review is specifically about the service. Food is generally ok and consistent. I went in to redeem my birthday reward of a free one item with a drink purchase. The Five Star machine wasn't working but instead of trying to be helpful, the clerk just denied it and told us next time. I told him it expires today and he LOOKED UP MY NUMBER on his side, saw it's there but told me he can't give it to me. Even though he could see it on his side of the register and I showed him the reward on my phone, it was as if he didn't want to give it to me. I know in the big scheme of things this is not a huge deal but to have bad service on your birthday is a bummer. We've been coming here for years but this experience makes me not want to come back and give them any more business.

Returning customer here from another location, seems like they've made some changes! Here are my thoughts on some of the dishes I tried:Saag Paneer: The Saag Paneer was a standout dish. The spinach was cooked to perfection, with just the right amount of spices, and the paneer was soft and creamy. The flavors were well balanced, and the dish had a wonderful texture. It was one of the best Saag Paneers I've ever had! Eaten together with their rice or naan, it's definitely one of their best!Chicken Tikka Masala: The chicken was tender and flavorful, and the tomato-based sauce was rich and creamy. This time around, I was able to taste a sort of yogurty flavor in the dish that was great! The dish had a perfect balance of spices, and it was served hot and fresh.Lamb Curry: The Lamb Curry was another highlight of my meal. The lamb was incredibly tender this time around and cooked to perfection in a flavorful curry sauce. The spices were well balanced, and the dish had a pleasant (and mild) heat that added to its depth of flavor. I was initially not as impressed with this dish at the other location, but glad I gave it another try now!Garlic Naan: The Garlic Naan was fresh and flavorful, and the garlic added a wonderful aroma but I do wish the taste was reflected more in the naan. The naan was fluffy and well cooked, and it was a great with any of the dishes I tried so far.Mango Lassi: I make it a point to try the mango lassi at any Indian type restaurant that has it. How can a mango yogurt drink be bad? It was smooth, creamy, and bursting with the sweet and tangy flavor of mango. The consistency was thicc, and the drink was a great dessert to end the meal.Overall, I had a fantastic experience at Natraj Tandoori. The food was outstanding, however I do wish that they still had the old to go boxes I saw in previous pictures on Yelp. I do like that the food before just looked like it was overflowing onto the rice/each other. I will definitely be back next time I'm in the mood for Indian cuisine!

This place used to be really good a year or two ago but it has really fell off compared to a few years ago and has become much more expensive than it should be while the food has become cheaper and lower quality. Chicken Tikka Masala tasted bland and had zero spice and a bowl of that and rice costed $16. I’d recommend going to an authentic Indian place for authentic food unless you want a very Americanized and very overpriced dish to consume. Only the garlic naan was good and they charge extra for that too.

Good Indian food at reasonable prices. Good tasteFood: 4/5