Tadka Indian Cuisine is a great Indian restaurant in Honolulu. Excellent food and kind service. Family friendly, BYOB, and free parking! Come for the papadum, curries, housemade naan, and range of biryani dishes. Also great for takeout.
In the 80s and 90s there were only a few Indian restaurants in Honolulu. But in the last couple of years some really good ones opened all across the city.
This is exciting news, delicious news! It seems like lots of people are happy about this because the restaurants are often packed and busy. I'll do a detailed post on each of these restaurants. Today we'll start at Tadka Indian Cuisine ^_^
Location
Tadka Indian Cuisine is located on the ground floor of McCully Shopping Center. This a popular two-story center that has mainly restaurants, cafes, and services.
It's just a couple minutes from both Ala Moana and Waikiki, so this center is a popular eating area for both locals and visitors.
Other well known food places located at McCully Shopping Center is Fook Yuen Seafood for Chinese food - it's ideal for larger gatherings/groups, and everyone loves Chinese banquet-style dinners. There's also a great Japanese izakaya called Bozu Japanese Restaurant. Cucina Moon is a newer Italian spot that I keep meaning to check out...maybe next week ^_^
What To Order
I usually go with a friend or two, and this is how we order:
Pani Puri
First an appetizer! It's usually pani puri (pictured above). Sometimes we also get the samosas if we're really hungry, but pani puri is first priority when we are here, especially because many Indian restaurants here do not have this on the menu.
Other friends say the samosa chaat is tasty but I haven't tried it yet. It's a big menu so I'll need to come back many times ^_^
There are five pieces pani puri to an order, and the hollowed shells are filled with a mix of potatoes, red onions, and chickpeas. The sweet and sour chutney is served on the side. Squeeze the chutney into the shells and eat the whole thing in one bite. So good!
Bread
Next we decide on the bread. We start with one bread, and then add more or a different kind, depending how we feel. The garlic naan is a reliable favorite. I also love garlic and cheese naan...lots of melty cheese! Very good but you have to eat with someone who always wants cheese-y bread heheh.
There's also onion naan and naan with potato and peas. And plain and butter naan which you can never go wrong with. They also make paratha and roti!
Vegetarian Curry
We order one curry per person, so when it's just two of us we get one each of a vegetarian and and a meat curry. My vote is always for saag paneer! A forever favorite since I was a kid.
Meat Curry
I always switch up the meat curries, and we most recently ordered the chicken vindaloo. It is delicious but also crazy spicy so make sure to order a lassi and mentally prepare yourself in advance.
For less spicy curries, I'm a fan of the "traditional curry" and lamb tikka masala. For some of the meat curries, you can select the meat: chicken, lamb, or shrimp.
Biryani
Tadka is well known for their biryani dishes, so definitely make sure to order one! There's lots of fresh mint and saffron and the mix of spices are wonderful. The portions are generous and leftovers somehow taste even better the next day.
All biryani comes with a side of raita (you can also order extra). Select chicken, shrimp, lamb, or vegetable biryani. We had lamb in the photo above. The more biryani I eat, the more I crave!
Lassi
Mango lassi! Topped with pistachios. Always good because 1) it's delicious, and 2) helps with the really spicy dishes. You can also get sweet, salty, or plain lassi.
When To Go
They don't take reservations. If you come at peak lunch or dinner time, there will be a wait (and sometimes a long wait!)
For lunch, I like to go right when they open.
For dinner, I go early around 5pm. People in Hawaii generally eat dinner early, so by 5:30pm the restaurant is nearly full.
Another perk of going early is that parking is much easier. McCully Shopping Center has a free parking lot but it fills up fast.
Insider Tips
The restaurant is BYOB! No corkage charge at the time of our visit.
If the upstairs/street level parking lot if full, there is also parking downstairs! Enter on Pumehana Street. The downstairs lot is a little tight so upstairs parking is ideal, but it's better than no parking.
They do a brisk takeout service! The orders are well packed and always ready pretty fast. Always a good option to have available.
Tadka Indian Cuisine: Info
- Instagram: @tadkaindiancuisine808
- Address: McCully Shopping Center, 1st floor, 1960 Kapiolani Blvd #109, Honolulu, HI 96826
- Phone: (808) 941-0414
- Prices: Dinner for two averages $30-40 per person on my past visits.
Mahalo for Reading!