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    Masala Cafe

    3.8 (75 reviews)
    ModerateIndian, Halal, Delis
    Open 11:00 am - 11:00 pm

    Order Masala Cafe Takeout or Delivery

    Masala Cafe Photos

    MASALA CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Outdoor seating
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Masala Cafe

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    Reviews With Photos

    Ghee roast
    Sakthi S.

    We came here for the dosas and absolutely loved them!! I will note that the inside is not the fanciest, but more of a hole in the wall vibe. There's one chef in the back, and since we came during a less busy time he did come out to speak with us, which was super nice. The sambar and tomato chutney were absolutely amazing and the dosas were cooked to perfection. Could not have been happier with our selection!

    Tofu Kadai
    Sarat D.

    This is one of those downtown spots you walk by and don't pay attention to unless you are an out of towner like me trying to get his grub on before a wu-tang/Nas concert. I came here solo on Tuesday evening and it was empty. I got great service and they made the food spicy to my liking. Idly was steamed and made perfectly. The tofu kadai (appreciative for the vegans)- hit the spot- excellent gravy and spices. I tried a taste of the veg biryani (lots of veggies and it just rice) and the mysore masala dosa (my takeout) still fresh today. Will visit you all next time I am in Brick city!!!!

    IDLY WITH SAMBA ()
    Danni E.

    Went there with my lovely lady today... We was craving Masala Dosa.. Never been to this place before.. Servers are nice, the meals were prepped very well. Food was delicious! I had Chicken 365 w/ plain Naan, 2 Masala Dosa, idly with the samba sauce.. Awesome! O and Chicken Samosa... Everything I ordered came out fresh and tasty.. Will go back again very soon with more people...

    Storefront
    James F.

    Unsanitary and rude. They have several operations going on in there and they're obviously stretched too thin. Also beware if you order online without checking if one of their operations are open since they close at will without informing customers or deliverers and not canceling your order.

    Paneer butter masala
    Sarat Chandra V.

    Its a decent Indian restaurant with nice North Indian food, slightly pricey and not so bad ambience. Its one of the places I frequent a lot because of the proximity to my work. They serve both North and South Indian food. Their North Indian food is pretty good, however heard pretty negative reviews about the South Indian food. They also have a lunch buffet every day for which you have to pay by weight and is a bit expensive than the a la carte options. I would recommend Malai Kofta, Kadai Paneer and Garlic Naan. The place is pretty vegetarian friendly and has friendly staff.

    I have never eaten such bad sezwan fried rice ever. I think Masala Cafe should just take it out of their menu. I ordered Paneer Chilly as well. Was not great either.

    The cockroach by the cashier.
    Leslie V.

    Good food in an unclean space. There were dead flies on the ground and a cockroach on the counter. If you can get past how unclean the place is, the food is really good.

    I highly recommended this place. Their Goat Biryani and Fish Curry  very Delicious ! Friendly & generous staff .
    Samera S.

    I highly recommended this place. Their Goat Biryani and Fish Curry very Delicious ! Friendly staff and very generous with their food portions.

    Gobi Manchurian

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    3 years ago

    Mediocre food and small portions. I ordered multiple dishes to try and there were barely any meat in some of the dishes.

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    3 years ago

    I got plain dosa for lunch, which was pretty good. I would rate it a 4, but man that place smelled like a dead rat with a hint of incense.

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    5 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Hometown hero's . Bringing the spice to the hood ... Thanks for bringing your food culture and hospitality to Newark.

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    7 years ago

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    7 years ago

    The food was ok, a bit off for Indian food for some reason and the samosas were soft and not fresh at all.

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - Masala Cafe

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    We were really excited to try all the different dishes since we kept seeing them on Instagram. But…read morewe're really disappointed when we tried everything. The taste was not authentic Indian flavors, we aren't sure if we came during later hours and the food didn't seem fresh except for the naan that they made fresh for the roll. The service was slow. Again, it was just us in the store. This location is shared jointly with a chicken shack. Unfortunately, we wouldn't be going back again.

    Since this restaurant is close to the Rutgers-Newark campus, I frequent this establishment at least…read morea few times during the semester. For my prior visits, I would have given Sigri four stars, but a recent visit was quite disappointing and caused me to leave this three star review. For a recent lunch takeout, I ordered a platter that comes with rice, protein, sauce, salad, samosa, and naan. While placing the order, I had to repeat myself multiple times -- this in itself is not a bad thing, maybe the employee was hard of hearing or maybe I was speaking softer than usual that day. However, the issue was that the employee acknowledged that I requested a garlic naan, but when I opened my takeout order, there was nothing on the naan -- no garlic or butter -- and it was burnt in various places and crispy, rather than being soft and chewy. (I confirmed with an Indian friend that properly made naan is never burnt and crispy.) Although it is too soon to judge Sigri on this one negative experience compared to many positive experiences, I am now hesitant to return to Sigri for lunch. I will give it at least one more go and update with another review at that time. Until then, I can only offer a half-hearted recommendation of this restaurant.

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    Urban Tandoor - Enjoy Urban Tandoor's Executive Lunch Services Throughout The Week. With Specialty Dishes and Authentic Flavors, Indulge in Our Speciality

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    Been on the hunt for a great Indian spot since moving back to Essex County, because some places do…read moretoo much and it's just disappointing. Thankfully found Urban Tandoor today because now I am a fan! Ordered on Uber Eats: Chana Masala Vegan mild, samosa chat (vegan), schezwan noodles (vegan), samosas, lemon rice My notes: - everything came with rice, so you don't need to order a side of rice - everything was ON POINT and DELICIOUS - the noodles are spicy- very tasty but spicy - mild still has a kick (as should be reasonably expected, because it's Indian food), so have water and naan on hand Fresh and tasty, well packaged for delivery. Highly recommend!!

    Came to Urban Tandoor for a late lunch with a friend and was pleasantly surprised. The restaurant…read morehas an upscale, modern atmosphere for an Indian spot. I didn't have a drink, but they do have a full bar, a wine room, and beer on tap. The space was clean and well kept, and the service was professional, our waiter was dressed neatly in a white button-down and dress pants. The food was excellent. Portions were just right, not too big, not too small. We both ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala and garlic naan, and both were spot on. Overall, a great place for Indian food. I'd definitely visit again if I'm in the area.

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    Kamal Palace - Excellent Basmati Rice

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    Wanted to give 3.5 but can't…read more To start we asked for 2 glasses of water but was given 2 3 dollars bottle of water wish I knew would have said no. The Samosa was good but the breading was a little thick The shrimp was very tasty but they left the tales on and since it was fried could not see till I bit into it The lentils was delicious and the lamb was good we asked for spicy but was kind of mild. If they fix a few things i will go back and give it a better review

    My boyfriend and I met here for dinner on a Sunday night. The staff was cleaning up after a huge…read morebaby shower. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt because the only off thing about my whole experience was the cleanliness. They could've used an extra person sweeping up and cleaning tables but where we were seated was clean and tidy. Service is a little slow but hey, they get the job done. We looked over the menu for a while and decided to try their dinner combo for two. They have a vegetarian option but we went for the meat. It came with chicken tikka masala, chicken tandoori, sag paneer, rice, naan and samosas. A great deal for under 40 bucks. We ate and then still had some leftovers to pack up for another meal. The tikka masala was delicious, very flavorful. Their rice is perfect. I had never tried sag paneer but it was great too, huge hunks of cheese swimming in a spinach sauce. The garlic naan was also really good, super tasty. I enjoyed my mango lassi but would probably get it as a dessert next time, it's very rich and takes over a lot of flavors. Since I'm new to Indian cuisine I'll keep trying new places but this one will probably be in my regular take out rotation!

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    Masala Cafe - indpak - Updated May 2026

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