*Speaking only from take-out experience* The best thing I found with Jolly's is that you definitely get your bang for your buck. We always have leftovers that last until the next day for a very reasonable price. The first time I got the butter chicken it definitely threw me off that it's way sweeter and tastes different than butter chicken I've had anywhere else. It's not my preference but I have gotten used to it and basically consider it its own dish. I've tried a bunch of other curry dishes, their pakoras, and their samosas by this point and overall I find the food quality to be mediocre to average at best. I do order from them quite a bit because it's just such a good deal in comparison to the other options for curry that are available, but Jolly's wouldn't be my first recommendation for food quality. read more

Love the food here. Jolly is an excellent chef. The butter chicken and naan is to die for! It's my go to dish. Never disappoints!

A cute little place located on W4th & Bayswater. I bought a Groupon voucher worth $40 and told them I had this when I made a reservation for 4 people. I didn't quite understand how the voucher worked as it had limited instructions. We learnt that each person had to order a main dish in order to qualify for the Groupon, so that about $20 per dish ($80 - discount; we paid $40). Anyhow apart from this confusion, the service was good and the food delicious. I suggested they made these more clearer on the voucher so people knew what to expect. Our server was really friendly and though the service was slow, it was understandable as they were quite busy especially with take out orders. We ordered 4 dishes, all of which came with naan, turmeric rice, salad and a slice of watermelon. Our main dishes were tofu with broccoli, butter chicken, lamb roganjash and cheese kofta. Our favourite was the lamb, it was medium spicy but tolerable. The tofu dish was on the sweet side so we didn't really enjoy that. The side of raita (yogurt) was quite delicious. Two things I didn't really like were their naan, it was way too thick and didn't feel very fresh. We ordered a dessert, which came cold, that was a surprise because we've had exactly the same thing that came in warm syrup (gulab jamun). It was a little disappointing and not too palatable. Don't expect too much of the decor. The lighting is quite nice and has a soothing feel but the floors had weird tiles that didn't look too clean; I'm sure it was but the colour seems a little odd. My husband went to the washroom and said it really needed cleaning. Apart from that, the girls who served us were awesome! read more

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we love Jollys so much. Hoping it will be able to open up again soon. We love especially the eggplant, and samosa, but so many of the dishes are lovely and well flavoured. read more

Butter chicken special Sun - Thurs $13, which I order occasionally. The butter chicken portion has decreased over the years, but inflation has increased and so has their special as it used to be $11. It comes with basmati rice, naan, small salad. It's a bit on the sweeter side but it's an indulgent meal, and it's nice to support small south Asian businesses who have managed to sustain over the past 3 years. They've been around for years as remember going for Diwali one of my first years living in Vancouver. It's consistent and highly recommend checking them out! read more

There is literally no Indian restaurant I've ever been to that can beat Jolly's in terms of customer service. My family discovered this restaurant around 4 years ago and it's one of our favorite go-to's in Vancouver! I'm pretty sure we've been here so many times that we've tried every single vegetarian dish on the menu. Our favorite dishes are still the kofta and balti paneer. He also occasionally changes up the menu so you never get bored. Apart from great food, this restaurant is a small, family-owned business and the head chef, Jolly, owns the place. He makes every dining experience here personalized and strives to interact with customers when he can. My sister and I were still teenagers the very first time my family went here, and Jolly gave us two free desserts straight from the kitchen! We now know him on a first-name basis and he often prepares special/new dishes for us. How many restaurants can you name in metro cities where the owner is so accommodating?! It's very rare to find Indian restaurants that offer both great food and great service - trust me, I'm from the Bay Area where every block is filled with Indian restaurants. My family and I will always keep coming back to Jolly's! read more

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Came here for dinner and we both ended up with the Thali (one vegetarian and one with meat). I really enjoyed the following: 1) mango lassi 2) samosas (their samosa is served with sauces and chickpeas) 3) eggplant - love the sauce 4) naan bread - love the texture 5) butter chicken - delish 6) ras malai - could have 2 rounds, so good! Service was pleasant and quick! read more

Jolly's Indian Bistro - Samosa with chickpea and sauce - Indian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Very, very strange, and not good, butter chicken. The sauce it not creamy at all and sickly sweet. I ordered takeout and tried to eat it, but just way too sweet. The chicken was also very overcooked, with pieces with crusty burnt sides. Went in the garbage, waste of money. read more

If there's one restaurant in Kits that I pray survives through this Covid mess it's Jolly's! If ever there was a single remaining boutique Indian restaurant in the world I'd be happy to return to Jolly's over and over again. So much hard work goes into his dishes and the passion shines through. Yum yum in the tum Staff is always friendly. The food is spot-on and reliable every time we go. Kitsilano mainstay for many years to come Shukriya Jolly and staff, love it all!! read more

Great prices and food always turns out. The fish curry is my fav along with gobi. (I ask for no potatoes)

Possibly the best Indian food I have tried in a few months everything was authentic they have Thala style servings some catering to non south Asians looks like since salad served on every main dish also their naan is not made in a Tandoori but the food taste of their curries are top notch also and serving size is very nice not stingy with portions like other Indian restaurants they must have the owner making the food hope the quality remains Will come back if quality and serving portions continue 5/5 seen too many restaurants start like this and go Down hill time will tell read more

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I see Jolly's has some good reviews, and, of course, taste and food preferences are very subjective. I found the food mediocre at best. Indian food has always been my favourite and I have enjoyed it in many restaurants, in many cities, and my own home, now that I've spent years exploring the vast variety of recipes, spices and techniques. We ordered palak paneer and a strange kofta and mushroom concoction that had paneer in it as well, but mixed with other things in the koftas. First you receive a plate with a small serving of rice and a small salad. These are included with the entrees, and they should be, at $16 for a rather small vegetarian dish. Neither of the entrees was particularly tasty, and we didn't finish them because we started to feel full, and not in a good way. The spinach paneer dish had three cubes of paneer plopped onto the top of the spinach before serving. It had not been simmered in the sauce so it would soften and absorb the flavour, just white chunks sitting on the top. This was truly the most boring spinach paneer I've ever had, and I've had it many times, all over the world. It is usually my favourite dish, rich and very flavourful, but this was neither. And even though I'd asked for minimal heat, it was too spicy. The kofta dish was stranger still. A couple of hard koftas -- we couldn't even tell what was on the outside of the spiced paneer filling, it was just hard and needed to be cut with a knife. They had also just been dropped into the sauce, so had no chance to absorb the sauce or flavour. The masala chai was absolutely dreadful, the worst ever! How many days had it been sitting neglected on the stove? Way too strong, overloaded with ginger flavour (whether fresh or powdered, who knows, but it was extreme!) and not nearly enough hot milk. One taste of it was enough for me, as I declared "That's horrible!" and turned my face away. My friend visited the washroom and, when she returned, she said, "You won't come here again if you look in that kitchen: it's a mess!" I said, "There's no way I'm coming here again, so the kitchen is not something I'm going to worry about." There is no reason, however, for a disgustingly messy/dirty kitchen in a restaurant! The service was fine, it's just too bad they have to serve such lousy food. read more

Very surprised by tough Helpers here, this is a sure winner in Kits if you want Indian-fusion. Healthier than most: no msg and everything except the bread is gluten-free....though with advanced noticed, GF Naan is possible. Known for their lamb, and their $9.99 lunch special can't be beat. Nice decor, date worthy with table cloths and linen. Classy. When not too busy, owner will come out to greet you. Free parking everywhere. Amex good. read more

Jolly's Indian Bistro - tables and chairs in a restaurant - Indian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

A few weeks ago, I went to Jolly's on a warm Saturday evening. The restaurant was small, more of a cafe than a restaurant in size. When I got in, Immediately smelled the aromas of Indian spices. The restaurant was decorated with portraits, and drapes, but the ceiling wasn't covered enough to block out the ugly grey. The waitress was a hit and miss. We were seated quickly, and got our drinks ordered. After 10 minutes, we got our drinks, and started ordering. We ordered.. Vegetable Samosa Butter chicken Punjabi Bhoona Lamb Malabari Chicken Lamb Saag All curries come with basmati rice and naan, which is a bonus, because normally you need to pay extra for those. The wait time for the dishes were EXTREMELY long. Almost an hour. And no apology!? The food was mediocre. There was sufficient amount of meat, but it wasn't traditional. THEY QUOTED... "Inspired from traditional North to South Indian recipes, and enhanced by his culinary skills, Jolly's creations are rich in flavour and aroma, using fresh ground specially handpicked spices from India to ensure a traditional taste to every dish." They didn't TASTE traditional.... Well, here's the deal. Food: Mediocre Service: Mediocre Quality: Mediocre Wait time: TERRIBLE I don't recommend this restaurant Didn't leave Jolly read more

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Worst Indian cusine I've ever had. Honestly. I can't believe people dine here. We ordered the pakoras, samosa, butter chicken, malai kofta with rice and naan, as well as a pina colada and a bellini. The pakoras... Basically an onion and potatoes chopped in to a few huge pieces, breaded and fried, with a ton of mediocre sauce and chick peas. And a boat load of cilantro stems (not the leaves) dumped on top. The samosa was OK. Quite big, but you only get one and it's once again slathered in the same sauce as the pakoras, with chick peas and a ton of cilantro (this time we got the actual leaf) I've never seen such a small amount of chicken in a butter chicken dish. We shared it , and we each got 2.5 chunks of chicken. I've never seen that before. The flavor was OK but I'm pretty sure the junk Pataks you get at Save-On is better. Which says a lot. Oh, the malai kofta... One of my favorite Indian dishes. I've never seen it like this. We got 2 big dumplings, that we basically huge chunks of potato with a chunk of paneer coated in some seasoning and sauce with broccoli and carrots. It tasted unlike any malai kofta I've ever had. Such a disappointment. Anddd the rice. Oh my god. You get a small lump of saffron rice that was cold and soooo pungent I couldn't taste anything else. The meal comes with a bizarre green salad with a completely gross dressing on it. As well as garlic naan. The naan was Ok, but very crunchy and salty. If you want to scoop up your sauce with it, good luck to you because it's hard and doesn't bend. If you want a cocktail go for drinks elsewhere, Please. Our drinks were not blended with ice as per usual for these types of drinks, they were simply the liquid ingredients with a few ice cubes in them. No sangria in the bellini either. They might be cheap, but they're pathetic. As for the experience... We were told to pick whatever table the couple in front of us didn't choose. We waited 40 minutes in between appetizer and main, and we watched the kitchen turn out at least 5 to-go orders while we waited for our food. We also asked for no cilantro in our meals, and everything, including the naan had copious amounts of cilantro in it. I can't even believe we wasted $57 here last night. read more

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Tonight (Apr 10'17) we went to Jolly's and had a fabulous dinner! We ordered: - Paneer Pakoras $6 - Lamb Rogenjosh $18 - Chicken Mumbai $18 Each item was different in flavour and uniquely delicious. I would highly recommend each item. Also, our server was lovely. Kind and patient, taking the time to explain the different food items on their menu. So glad to have gone back after more than 6 years. Jolly's continues to serve up an affordable and tasty Indian meal. read more

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Really flavorful and impressive food! I get the vegetarian dishes and appetizers, all of them are great...it's tough to choose! These people are so warm and offer excellent customer service. read more

Quite surprised to see the range of reviews! In short: food and service were both great on the day we visited. We stopped in here on a whim, just passing by. Late lunch/early dinner sort of thing. They seated us even though they weren't quite open. We weren't really in a rush and enjoy eachother's company. I wasn't really watching the clock but didn't feel anything was overly slow. The check was quite reasonable. Food was quite tasty all around. Loved the kofta-- though different than I've tried elsewhere. Overall, everything was a hit, if a bit on the sweet side. PSA #1: the vegi thali was plenty for two to share. We added an order of the veggie kofta and a paneer dosa, ate to bursting, and took lots and lots of leftovers home. PSA #2: The naan was on the tiny side and the amount of rice included in the meals was fairly minimal. read more

I went to Jolly's with a friend on Tuesday as I had a Groupon. I found that the $20 Groupon was of little use to us when we purchased butter chicken and the lamb curry (both special items valued at $24), because specials are not included, so we were charged $18 per dish. Tuesday night is the special for all curries and butter chicken most other nights. I have to say the service and food were excellent however. read more

I love the Butter Chicken special. Always had good experiences here.

This place is great bang for buck with large portions practically for everything you order. Everything on the menu includes the naan & rice so unlike other places you aren't paying extra in that area. The food isn't particularly amazing but it is good enough to fulfill that craving for Indian food. read more

The first time I came here was with a group, and I wasn't planning on eating. But I couldn't resist some naam and then shared a dessert of the mango ice cream. Things smelled great, so I knew I needed to come back when I was hungry. On my next trip, it was just two of us. The place was pretty busy, and we waited for some time to even place our order. The water refills were very slow. The butter chicken was good and the rice was average. I believe that they have free wireless, but I don't see this being a place that I would really want to hang out at... read more

Jolly's Indian Bistro - Indian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Garbage! I never leave reviews when I am disappointed with food but this one just made me angry on a whole different level! I had never heard of this place so I what I thought was the harder thing to mess up for an Indian restaurant and ordered butter chicken via DoorDash. When the so called butter chicken cane I could not believe it. It looks and tasted like tandoori chicken pieces in some of bad tasted extremely sweet sauce.. never again. Don't waste your coins here read more

Jolly's Indian Bistro - Indian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

Good Indian. Great service. I don't know what anyone is talking about with the service, I thought it was great. The last time I went Jolly's it was years ago as more of a lunch spot at a different location, and at that point it was CHEAP. Not so much anymore as it has graduated to full restaurant status but it was still drawing a crowd. When we arrived (granted really early, around 5pm), we were the only ones there! Within 5 minutes, every single seat was filled!! Maybe the locals know the schedule. I heard many groups turned away politely when the hostess said "we just seated the whole room so noone is leaving for a while". During this rush, they also pumped out a ton of take-away. Every food item was top notch and flavourful, probably one of the better Indian places I've had recently. We had a lamb dish, fish appetizer, chick peas and some sort of potatoe thing. Prices were getting up there ($15 for a main w. naan and rice), and portions were smallish but neither seemed to diminish the experience. Lastly, despite it being in a newish condo sprawl building, the decor was pleasing and it was ice to see a night time destination in an otherwsie ghost-town section aside from Topanga. I wish there was a 3.5 stars! I really liked it but want to be careful not to give everything 4 when a 4 for Indian would be just 1 star below Vij's. read more

Jolly's, despite occasional lines out the door, is really just standard fare. We stopped in for an early dinner (as a way to avoid cooking before the insanity of Thanksgiving the following day). I was pleased that the rice, naan, and salad are all included in the meal. We ordered butter chicken and a kashmiri lamb rogenjosh, but the well-thought-out and unique menu also includes a handful of vegetarian options. Soon after ordering (and only half a glass into our pitcher of beer) the food arrived on two awkwardly large silver trays/platters: something similar to eating dinner from a hub cap. This had two downsides: the first is that is made sharing far more difficult, and the food cooled very quickly. While the kashmiri lamb was flavorful and rich, the butter chicken scored rather lifeless. We'd consider going back, but it's no new favorite. read more

Jolly's Indian Bistro - Indian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

The most important thing to know is that the flavor and quality of the food are unparalleled. Each meal feels as though it's been prepared just for you from the chef's home. This is an extremely well-priced establishment, especially for the quality and complementary side dishes included with the main courses. Jolly's is truly one of Vancouver's best-hidden gems and certainly one of the best Indian restaurants around. read more

Got my order wrong and food gave me a stomachache. I had to repeat my order (chicken curry and coconut shrimp) about 4x to 2 diff servers... doesn't seem like they talk to each other. When I got home I realized they gave me shrimp curry instead. This was annoying considering how many times I said my order. They made the coconut shrimp after, but it was inconvenient to go back and get it. Then, the coconut shrimp was NOTHING like the picture. No coconut and wasn't crispy, but sad and soggy. read more

The place looks decent and the atmosphere is clean I guess. Food is actually good, but nothing makes a restaurant experience worse then the service. Two girls who first of all did not speak much English (not Indian which would have made it authentic I guess in a stupid way), so asking some questions about the dishes was so frustrating that I wanted to bash my head onto the table, then the service is best described like your 6 year old daughter bringing you breakfast in the morning...no idea on how to serve or what to do...at one point they asked me to remove my own plate...really? The whole experience was frustrating and thats not what I want to spend money on... read more

We went to Jolly's on a Tuesday night in chilly November and it was just what we wanted. We got there shortly after the place opened (about 5:15) and had our choice of tables. The place is quite small and was almost full by 6:30. Service was excellent and our food was really good. We had a Groupon and found out that some of the specials don't apply because of that but we thought the value was still really good. There was one table with a small child and another group of 6, but I wouldn't really recommend groups of more than about 8 without giving prior notice. Plenty of street parking is available, free for 2 hrs. I would give this place 5 stars except that I found the inside a bit cold! Since the room is small every time the door opens a cold draft blows in and you could really feel it. The atmosphere and decor is very warm and cozy though. They don't have a separate take-out menu but you can phone in and pick up an order to go. One last tip is that Jolly's does not offer coffee or regular tea. They make a very nice chai however, and there is a Starbucks 2 doors down. read more

Jolly's Indian Bistro - Inside Jolly's Indian Bistro - Indian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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Had an amazing butter chicken and the best pakoras I've ever tasted! Would 100% come back.

Great atmosphere- but disappointing service. The garlic butter on our naan was sour (and butter should never be sour). Told our waitress and she said that it's because there is garlic in the butter- doesn't even offer to run it through the kitchen. After paying I told her again to check with kitchen as they shouldn't serve it to other customers. Despite that she didn't apologize, not the best service overall. read more

Not worth your time or your money. I don't think I have ever had such bizarre service before. I only came here because a friend was in town and insisted I get the Groupon so we could go, as we are both fans of Indian food. She had ordered from here before and said the food was good. Well, the food is okay-ish. The service... I don't even know... They don't take reservations on weekends, so we arrived half an hour before we planned to meet with the rest of our group and put our names in for a table. The staff was supremely confused that we wanted a table for 5 in half an hour. The restaurant was full, and as Rich mentioned, there is no waiting area, so we said we'd be back in half an hour, and hoped they would have a table then. I don't know why this was so confusing, but they eventually got it after I explained it a few times. When we came back they still didn't have space, so we had to wait outside. And wait and wait. Even though we could see our table was empty and cleared. Eventually we were seated and brought menus. We wanted to order some drinks and appies to start. After two of us asked for a red wine we were told they didn't have any. Like, none. Of the 4 varieties listed on their menu they had no red wine for a Saturday night. So we ordered some white instead and two ordered bellinis. When the drinks came my friends were told they only had enough for 1 bellini. So one friend got that one and the other got a different drink. WTF. My man friend got his coke, but not until the waitress spilled a bunch while trying to pour it into a glass from the can. Which we were charged $3.50 for. Wow. As for food... The pakoras are okay, but certainly not great. They come with a chick pea curry and this causes the veg pakoras to get kinda soggy. The paneer pakoras are small and meh, and not worth the extra price. The chick peas were actually good, though not really the focus of the appy. The mains were hit, miss and meh. Of the four I tried, the eggplant curry dish was the best. I was confused at first because it looked like 3 whole mini eggplants, but they were actually sliced, it just made it a bit difficult for sharing and serving. The dish was actually very flavourful and good. The gobi was bland, however, so that dish was meh. The butter chicken was a miss. The sauce bland, the chicken meh, the whole thing kinda sucked. And the saag paneer was just weird. They pureed the crap out of it so it looked like pea soup, or baby food, and just was not appealing to look at. The flavour was good, but the texture was not. The paneer was okay, but not great. The rice was odd and the naan was very dense. The flavour of the naan was okay, but again, wrong texture. After dinner we were told they did have some red wine and were asked if we wanted to order some for after our meal. No thanks. And where did this red wine magically appear from? When the bill came we were then informed that, ooops, the debit and credit machine weren't working, and they had forgot to tell us, so would we mind paying in cash? Oh, and the closest bank machine was one that charged across the street. No banks in close proximity. I had enough to cover my friends, so just loaned them some cash instead of having to go pay fees at a generic ATM. If the service had been good they may have got a 2.5 star out of me. Only 2 if your don't count the eggplant dish. It was really the only truly good dish. But with the bizarre service, cramped seating and overpriced pop, they drop to a 1-1.5 stars. read more

I've been wanting to try Jolly's for a long time and based on my experience I was surprised to see so many poor reviews. Seems like lower star reviews were related to service and wait time. I went on a Thursday night at 6ish- we were seated right away, but buy the time we left around 8:30pm the place was packed with people waiting (that should say something about the place). I found the dishes very flavourful and I was impressed by the extra touches to everything. For example the samosa was nicely plated on a sauce with chickpeas and a delicious mango puree drizzled on top. The large piece of naan (made with fresh herbs) was a perfect balance of warm doughy inside with slightly crisp exterior, the basmati rice wasn't just plain rice, it nicely seasoned with spices, even the salad had mango puree on it! I had the grilled prawns in coconut sauce (MMMmmm) and my friend had the meat platter which was an awesome deal! I would go back again...still perplexed by the bad reviews. read more

I've been going to Jolly's for years. I usually have three or four favorites that I always order. I am never disappointed! This isn't a big family run place, but the owner/chef has a huge heart and puts love into all his meals. I don't like reviews because they give people, who've had a bad day, a way to vent but reviews also give them opportunities to share their appreciation or delight too. So either way, go and find out for yourselves. I know I'll be back! read more

When you're waiting outside a restaurant for 35 minutes, you start to notice some interesting things. Like how cold it is in Vancouver in February. Like how not one single table has any food on it at 7:45pm on a Saturday night. Like how a restaurant that doesn't take reservations and has no dedicated host or hostess manages to keep a lineup going by writing names down on a post-it note (it doesn't). The food here was decent, but not the best Indian food I've ever had. It was... not as flavourful (I think that's the best way to put it). The fact that we had to wait outside for an interminable amount of time, all the while fending off other couples who almost got seated before us, made the experience that much less enjoyable. HOWEVER: we had the meat thali, which is a 3-course meal (samosas and chick peas for appetizer, then three different curries + rice, salad and naan, then a coconut-based dessert) and a glass of beer, and it was only $19.95 (plus tax and tip). This is an incredible bargain. So if you're willing to go through the ordeal of getting seated, and you enjoy good-but-not-out-of-this-world Indian food, and you have a big appetite and you appreciate a bargain, then this is the place for you. read more

Avoid their Groupon at all costs because it is a scam! I've been to Jolly's a few times in the past but will never go back again. First, let me add that the food quality is mediocre at best and the price is extremely marked-up probably because of their frequent promotion on Groupon. It also took forever to get our food. My bf bought their "$23 for $40 for four people" Groupon, which was advertised as being 45% off. However, this was all just a trick to get people to come in to their restaurant so that they can rip you off. When we tried to redeem our Groupon, the staff did not honour the deal, saying that the Groupon had to be used for exactly four people. Because we went as a couple, they were unwilling to give us the deal. The fine print did not mention anything about requiring 4 people to be present. This, to me is a clear scam. If you look at their menu, every entree is close to $20, so it is impossible to get $40 worth of food to feed 4 people. All my previous experiences with Groupons is that the restaurant would honour the VALUE of the Groupon (ie. you get $40 value for the $23 you paid) regardless of how many people present. Our bill came up to $47, and they would only let us redeem $20 instead of $40 value, even after we had already purchased a $23 Groupon!! We were then given a voucher which lets us redeem $20 off our next visit, but who would go back after being treated so poorly?!? After doing the math, we paid $43 for $47 worth of food! What a terrible deal!! This to me is very poor business practice as the owners have no regard for the restaurant's reputation. They would rather make the extra few dollars by tricking the customers rather than trying to create a loyal customer base. read more

I'm a little taken back by the negative reviews so far here. Having just come back from three months in India, I must emphasize that the menu selection is about as authentic as it gets for a good cross section of Rajasthan, Punjab, UP, and West Bengal. If you're coming with just a few people, build up a good appetite and try the Vegetarian Thali. This is exactly what you can order all over India, and Jolly (the chef) does a damn good job of it. If you're out with the a group, the Chickpea Currie, Aloo Gobi, and Palak Paneer are all musts. The service is definitely a friendly neighborhood feel. Ask for more rice and naan as you need, and they'll be sure to accommodate. My major disappointment is with the quality of Chai and Lassis; definitely head to East is East a few blocks down on Broadway for better choices here. read more

My wife and I got a coupon for Jolly's. But I honestly don't think I'd go back even if I had another coupon. My first impression was the waiting area.... or the lack thereof. This place was tiny, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. But considering there was no people waiting ahead of us, I was put off right away that we had to stand outside and wait. Thankfully it wasn't raining. The decor inside has some promise with one exception. The incredibly tacky sheets hanging from the ceiling. I understand they were trying to hide the ugly cement ceiling, but these towels were ghastly. Now that we were finally seated, it was time to see how the service was. I was warned that this places is known to be a bit slow, but this was crazy. We sat for nearly 10 minutes before a waitress even came to the table and offered us drinks. I can sympathize with the hectic wait-persons, but the fact that each waitress only had 3 tables to manage was ridiculous. I tried to keep an open mind and had hopes that the food would save my experience thus far. But when the waitress explained to me that the Jalfrezi dish was simply the butter chicken sauce which some other veggies in it, I just shook my had in disbelief. If it's the same, then how can you give it a different name? Although the food was not the worst thing I have ever eaten, it was far from impressive. We decided to try the Paneer Jalfrezi (mostly out of curiosity) but regretted the choice. The 'cheese' in this dish was enough to turn my wife's stomach. The highlight to the meal was the beer. Fortunately it's pretty difficult to screw up a draft. So if you've got several hours you can spare and you're craving some below average Indian cuisine, then Jolly's may be the place for you. And even then I'd still reconsider. read more

Delightful find in the Kit's flats. We were hungry at about 4pm but based on word of mouth from the barista at the green coffee shop on the corner we waited for the 5pm opening time at Jolly's. So glad we did! We eat Indian quite often and have found other gems around the lower mainland but this has a unique taste unto itself. I understand this is because the menu is from the north. We had the butter chicken and lamb roganjosh and both were spectacular. It came with garlic butter covered nan at no extra charge. Don't let my comments about good value make you think that my review is price biased... it is not. The food stands on it's own against some big players in town. Fresh ingredients are apparent and well balanced. We dined on a Thursday and didn't realize until the just over $30 bill arrived that the butter chicken is a deal from Monday to Thursday. This included a chi that came in a teapot big enough to share. Will definitely repeat going there to try the rest of the menu. Tastefully decorated but far from a five star decor. The great service with a caring and pleasant staff makes you feel like they could easily come from a five star restaurant. In the end I give them five stars for food, service and the value... the decor is 3.5 but is clean and comfortable. In my books that is a five star experience... I just don't want to elevate expectations for those looking for that 3 hour romantic dining experience. read more

the food is amazing. AMAAAZING. the service is a bit on the slow side, but to be fair, there were only two of them working their assess off - just two waitresses bustling around; no one to bus tables or hostess. the chai tea is tasty and each order comes with its own pot. the curries are all so delicious, from the chickpea curry to the butter chicken to the lamb curry (the exact name of the dishes aren't coming to my mind right now, but essentially, that's what they all were). each order comes with naan and rice as well, which is a bonus because a lot of indian places you have to pay extra for those things. read more