Highly anticipated. The food and service was very good but there was too much smaltz. The menu and special box goven to every table was filled with stories about the menu items and ingredients that are supposed to evoke special memories and experiences . A back story of the restaurant was also included. I find this to be pretentious and unwanted. A welcoming greeting was nice upon arrival but the dood and service should speak for itself read more

Super cute location, great drinks, wonderful food. The Bengali chicken was devoured by my 2.5 year old and that says a lot! The Raja was essentially a protein/meat plate. Nothing too fancy but great flavor. The Rani was the crowd favorite. Perfectly cooked, great mixture of flavors. The prawn was good, but the shrimp were a little smaller than I expected. But overall, great flavor. We also had the vegetable samosas, cabbage appetizer, and the garlic naan. The naan was the best I've probably ever had. Service was a little slow, but I think that is only because there was a mixup in who our server was supposed to be. No big deal! Definitely looking forward to going back. read more

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One word: incredible. I've tried most of the Indian restaurants in the RTP--this takes the cake. Our waitress was the daughter of the owner. She is great. Met the owner too--she really cares about making quality, home-cooked food. Could not recommend enough. Will be back soon. read more

Excellent service, flavorful food - great dinner with great friends. We will be back ASAP!!!

Cheeni is well located, charming, and the service is outstanding. But I didn't enjoy the food. Whenever someone writes a review and says, "I've never had Jamaican food but allow me to trash this Jamaican restaurant..." I get a little annoyed. I want to hear from reviewers who know the type of food they're reviewing. With that said, I've been cooking, shopping for, studying cookbooks on, and eating Indian food for decades. The samosa appetizer at Cheeni is $11. That's $5.50 per samosa. You can buy tender, delicious samosas from a few Indian markets around town for around $1.50. The samosas at Cheeni were the worst, and most expensive, I've ever had. The crust was thin, tasteless and chewy. It reminded me of cardboard. They were bad. No one at our table finished them. When you can't get samosas right, it doesn't bode well for the rest of the meal. I enjoyed the cabbage dish, but that was about it (and we ordered several apps and entrees). There are so many places that have opened in the last few years that are good to excellent (Lime and Lemon in Chapel Hill comes to mind), why bother with charming but disappointing? Finally, I'm hesitant to write negative reviews these days. Running a restaurant seems like a staggeringly difficult project and bad reviews don't help. But with the sky high cost of eating out, I think diners deserve fair warning on a subpar meal that arrives with a pretty high price tag. (For reference, Lime & Lemon charges $6.99 for two excellent samosas.) read more

Incredibly flavorful. We've been twice and have had the best Indian food of our lives both times. The first time we sat at the bar and got to watch the chefs make each of our meals from scratch and bring them to us hot and fresh. We probably got 5 apps and 3 large meals between four of us and there was a ton leftover. Our second meal was at a table and the service was great. The owner/chef was actively involved, said hello and talked to us about our meals both times. I happen to like the box system and really don't understand someone having a strong feeling about this either way. If you are looking for a bourbon bar, this isn't it. If you are looking for phenomenal, unique, authentic yet accessible Indian food, then I highly recommend. Durham is very lucky to have this place anchoring downtown. read more

Party of 4; we all enjoyed the dinner. I had Lamb vindaloo & thought it was spicy hot enough. For those who want hotter, I'm sure if you ask for it they'd hit it up a notch. It's a bit toward the higher end $$$ and since downtown is a drive for us we will likely only go for special occasions or paired with something like a DPAC show. Review was from early June 2024. read more

First a lovely woman greets you as you enter with warm welcoming smile and walks you through the menu. The atmosphere was inviting and cozy. Mix of tables and 1/2 booth. Big windows on corner of street but not cold. It is not traditional Indian food but more home cooking. We ordered 1/2 order of chole, chat bowl and dosa waffle with lentil soup. Amazing. Dosa waffle fluffy with a nice crunch and pairs well with soup and condiments. The chole was super special- chickpeas with warm spices and the bread was off the chart naan meets cloud bread. Don't miss out and go for lunch with friends so you can share. read more

Dinner was OK but way overpriced. Came in for a lunch and although it wasn't busy, service was terrible. Daughters were busy socializing with a friend and it took forever to place my order and food was tasteless. They should really skip lunch as it doesn't seem they care if you're there or not and they make no effort to provide a decent experience. read more

Positives: Great warm welcome, personal attention--though we had to track down service at certain points during the meal, and dishes took a very long time to clear and to be served. At one point we had to ask for flatware and clean dishes. Food: Overall less than okay--certainly not James Beard great, which was disappointing to us, considering the nominations and hype. We were so looking forward to a great new Indian restaurant in downtown Durham and so we invited my brother (we all grew up in India). First, no alcohol. Understandable since they are sorta new and still working on the liquor license but the cocktails posted online looked delicious, so we were disappointed. Second, the chicken pakora appetizer was fantastic. Fan. Tastic. I'd come just for that. Third, the samosas were average and flavorless except for the cumin seeds in the batter (great touch). Fourth, the goat curry was full of sinew, tough, with very little meat. My husband declared it inedible. Fifth, the daal. Sigh. It's a personal family thing and maybe that's the way the chef likes it. But we grew up in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, and we have visited many other parts of India, and we have never had daal that tasted so sour. We may give Cheeni another chance and would definitely order the chicken pakoras again but would give the daal and the goat curry a pass. We know you want to share your Indian family recipes and so maybe it's a case of quality control? Training? Not sure. The most confusing Indian restaurant we've ever been to because we see the accolades but our experience did not align with the expectations. read more

The atmosphere is amazing. The decor is beautiful. It wasn't busy either. The food is to die for. The brunch menu is new, but everything was good. I had the Chettinad-Style Chicken & Dosa Waffle, with a fried egg on the side. I don't think I've ever had anything as good. The waffle was crisp and fluffy. The chicken was seasoned and juicy, with the perfect amount of kick. The egg elevated what was already a magnificent meal. I couldn't ask for better. 10/10 would recommend. The breakfast sandwich and waffle and Sambhar were also great. The Aloo Chaat was also good, especially the tomato jam on top of it. I'd love a jar of just the tomato jam. I cannot sing high enough praises for this meal. read more

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We just stumbled into Cheeni after the sushi place across the street was all booked up. I can't properly explain how unthinkably good this place is. It's unreal. I love Indian food but now I feel like I'd never really had Indian food before. I told my daughter I felt like I needed to hug the chef and she told me she was thinking the exact same thing. So we did. We couldn't think of any other way to express our gratitude. read more

Best meal I've had in months. Hostess and servers were welcoming and friendly in an upscale but unstuffy setting. We sat at the bar on very comfortable stools (with backs) where we were able to watch Preeti Waas herself orchestrate her very smooth-working kitchen staff...completely dispelled the image of the domineering chef. She even cheerfully took a moment to answer my stupid question, happy to share her philosophy and her food gospel. The menu includes informative descriptions of the ingredients and regional origins of each item....really triggered our curiosity and appetites. Don't expect the same old same old menu found in many Indian eateries, so there is opportunity for culinary adventure. The small bites and main items we had were delicious and beautifully presented! I particularly enjoyed the vegetable entree (even though I'm not a vegetarian! Highly recommend Cheeni! read more

We had dinner here on Saturday. Amazing food in a lovely setting. Excellent flavor and beautifully presented. Staff were very attentive. Indian food with a touch of creativity. I will be back as often as I can! read more

Cheeni took me back to India. Flavorsome hearty cooking. Refreshing and bold variety of dishes all of which were delicious, particularly the chicken stew. Paired up with some cocktails with an Indian twist. Great ambience and service to compliment the culinary experience. read more

chettinad chicken waffle was disappointing! dry and not fresh! Filter Kappi was good but not piping hot and in a very small cup! Mimosa was in a tiny glass. Not impressed. Decent service and ambiance. read more

Stop here for a taste of home. Amazing Food, great atmosphere, and a family owned and operated business. Feels like eating in "mom's kitchen." Service was above and beyond! Great job. read more

Family-owned restaurant with fine dining quality at a moderate price. In a just world, this would be the most popular restaurant in downtown Durham because it blows all other contenders out of the water. And strictly in terms of Indian food, it's somehow better than it's competitors in Cary and Morrisville, traditionally the Triangle's Indian food hub. The menu samples a variety of regional specialties. Standouts include the Fish Moilee (barramundi coconut curry) and the grill plates (both meat-based and vegetarian). But it's impossible to go wrong here. Not content with competent versions of traditional dishes, the menu is genuinely creative - nothing else in the area is like it. The one and only time the kitchen made a mistake and served the whole fish slightly undercooked in the center, they cooked us an entirely new fish to make up for it. Easily top three restaurants in the Triangle and possibly's Durham's only restaurant that can compete with the best of Cary/Morrisville and Raleigh. read more

Cute interior and music and themed boxes/envelopes which I appreciated! Great, attentive service. Food and drink were good/fine and nothing to complain about but IMO overpriced for standard south Asian fare. We ordered the fish moilee, dreamgirl cocktail, kachumbar, and rice. The cocktails on their menu were not described much at all in terms of the ingredient profile, and what we got was just frooti and gin which I could have thrown together without needing to order that at a restaurant. Food came out very quickly and was good/no complaints but also I was not wowed - the curry was similar to what I easily make at home, and the dish needed more textural accents and brightness to come together. Will have to try the other items to compare. Also, was disappointed by the lack of any papad /pickled onions or other basics to start the meal. All in all a cute and solid option (especially if you are newer to Indian food) but I had higher expectations for the price/hype. read more

We visited Cheeni after I attended an event where the owner spoke about her restaurants. My family and I love Indian food so wanted to try it out after seeing good reviews for the Raleigh location. I love the design of the Durham restaurant! It feels like you're being welcomed into someone's home to gather around the table. It's comforting and elegant with the presentation of the box with menus and utensils inside. Very creative and fun. The food was good but nothing that makes me want to go rushing back. I had the South Indian Vegetable Kurma. It had plenty of food but had zero spice. The garlic naan was bland and a little too thick and hard. Overall food was just okay. Everyone at my table enjoyed their food but no one is rushing to return. The service was great. Our server was attentive and helpful in explaining everything. I would suggest making a reservation. We did not have one and we went right when they opened and they made it seem like they couldn't fit us in. Just be aware that you might have a long wait or not be able to be seated if you don't have one. read more