I have had a love/hate relationship with this place. First I will admit that this is one of the top Indian restaurants in the area if not the very best. We come here at least once a week or get take out. They are usually busy in the evening and take out will be a 40-60 minute wait. This is good because you can plan accordingly. They menu is massive and some dishes are amazing and others they were stretching it. Some dishes like dasai are just to die for here, others like their tandori stuff is pretty average. They have some of the best vegetarian selections in any restaurant, but for me their quarma is too sweet. My favorite dishes here are the curries. The curry goat is by far my favorite and any curry (insert meat) is a recommendation from me. Being the most popular and having some of the best food, they also have some of the steepest prices. Over $20 per dish for their signatures. This is a bit much considering there are many Indian places in the area. However when you match that with the quality and taste I think it is worth it once in a while depending on your budget. I also like the crab appetizer here and their soups. There are also decent fish selections which is not common in other Indian places. This is a solid 4 star place with good service. On Friday and Saturday nights call ahead as there will be a wait. This is a good thing. read more

Terrible...just terrible...so bad that I downloaded yelp to write this review. First off, this is some of the worst service I've ever had at a restaurant. We waited about 40 minutes before the waiter even asked us if we wanted anything to drink, didn't even get water at that point. There was about a 30-40 minute wait before we received our appetizers and another 30-40 minutes for our actual food. We arrived around 7:30 and we're there until 10:30 and we at fast, if that gives any indication. The wait staff kept repeating our orders incorrectly when they read them back to us and then tried to act like we were wrong with what we wanted. Getting to the actual food, it was awful. We ordered a bunch of the lamb samosas (kheema samosa), which were meh, but the outside shell was covered with a visible layer of salt which greatly over powered the whole samosa. I personally ordered a samosa chatt and it was probably the best part of the experience, other than leaving. Even that chatt was standard at best. It wasn't as good as typical chatt, however, it had a spicy kick to it that got it some bonus points. Their mango lassie was also good, but nothing to write home about. The main course was the worst part. I got the chicken makhani and my two friends got the chicken tikka masala and the chicken ammwala. All three of us ordered our meals hot, spice-wise, and my friend with the masala asked for the 3 chili hot hot (on their menu). After our long wait for our meals, we got them and there was no spice to them whatsoever, in fact, they were actually very sweet. The only spicy one was the ammwala, which was ordered by my Indian friend (so some slight racism from this place as well). It was so grossly sweet that we could barely stomach it and ended up just taking doggie bags and sharing the ammwala. Their garlic and garlic chili naan were acceptable but nothing to write home about. To make the experience worse, everything is very overpriced compared to the quality and flavor you get at other restaurants. Overall, I would never eat here again, nor recommend it to another person. The food looks delicious but tastes terrible, the wait is long, it's pricy and they don't give you what you want. Save your money and go elsewhere. read more

I had to drop my original review 2 stars because of this latest experience at Karavalli. A horrible, and degrading, experience has led me to drop the rating. I recently went here and made a reservation. We told them we had a reservation and the name it was under. They said okay and walked away. For about 10 minutes they didn't tell us anything, so I walked up to the server to inquire. They mixed up our reservation with another group. The other group were Caucasian, and we are PoCs who look South Asian. They basically profiled. There was an English name and a group of Caucasians, so they assumed that was the reservation for that group, if that group made a reservation. We didn't have to wait too long after for a table, but just the fact they did that is ridiculous. When we were seated, they kept rushing us. We ordered soup and an appetizer. The appetizer came right after the soup came out. A few minutes after, one of the waiters asks us if we are ready for the main course. We just received our appetizer! We told him to wait. We had leftovers and asked to take it home. There was a Caucasian couple sitting next to us that received a very nice bag with handles. We received a brown paper bag. And, when I came home, I saw they rolled the naan up into a ball. That shows they really didn't care about our patronage. I have come here numerous times since my first review and have had pleasant experiences until now. The food is very good, but because of this recent experience, I am questioning if I should come back here. They seem to show favoritism towards certain customers, which is really sad for a restaurant that's supposed to be the best of its kind in the capital district. read more

Amazing menu of authentic specialties. They will guide you with selection and customization if needed. The only downside is that if you order takeout it will almost always take 10-15 mins longer than the time they quote you. Plan accordingly and grab a drink at the bar while you wait. It's worth it ! read more

I've been to Karavalli twice for dinner and both times it was spectacular. Normally the Indian restaurants I've tried tend to be little dumpy holes in the wall with next to no clientele and poor service. Karavalli on the other hand is very nicely decorated and has a pleasant air about it. The service was fast and friendly as well. The prices are fair and they have a lunch buffet where you would be able to sample various dishes, too bad I'm never around for that. Now for the important part, the food! The food here is so good I can't get enough of it. I wish there was a place this good by where I live. It is probably the best Indian food I've had out of trying maybe ten restaurants in various cities. The chicken vindaloo is out of this world. The meat is tender and delicious, the spices taste fresh, and the whole meal seems very authentic. It is easy to tell that they use higher quality ingredients than most places. The korma dishes are lovely too if you are looking for something more mild. Their bread is great too. Another great feature is that they don't skimp on the rice and not only give you plenty, but offer more if you run out. I can't recommend this place enough! read more

The only positive thing that I can say about this place (and that's the reason for the 1 star) is that the food is decent. Everything from there on is downhill. I have been to this restaurant many times with my family and a few times with my colleagues, so I have a fair bit of experience with the restaurant's food and service. Their "hospitality" is really the pits, the absolute worst. They call themselves family friendly but they are anything but. I have tended to ignore this because things never came to a head until today at dinner with my family, which ended up as one of the most unpleasant experiences in my life. My wife and I went with our 2 little boys (one 7 year and 1 3 year old) for dinner. First, we had to wait for a table since we had not called for a reservation, which is as it should be. However, for 15-20 minutes of the waiting time, there was an empty table for someone who had called for a reservation. If the reservation party does not show up within 5 minutes and someone else is waiting, they should give it to people who are already there for 15 minutes hungry and waiting. But that is not my biggest complaint- I will let this one pass because what happened at the end of dinner was the worst, Towards the end of dinner, our 3 year old started getting sleepy and started crying. He has a little bit of a loud voice and my wife and I were alternately trying to do everything in our power to calm him down but he kept crying. And he was crying only for about 10 minutes or so. There were 3-4 families in the restaurant at that time and while I looked around to see if anyone was annoyed or disturbed, everyone seemed to be minding their own business chatting away just fine. And then this manager comes around and says that a crying kid *may* make the rest of the patrons uncomfortable and that I should take my son outside and calm him down. I found myself getting annoyed by this person but I decided to let that one go, since I wanted to first calm my son. So I took him outside and eventually got him to cool down. And after that our two sons were taking the after-dinner mouth fresheners in the outside part of the restaurant (which is separated by double doors from the interior seating area) and they were taking turns to eat the rock candy and the colored candy. And the little one was chasing the big one and vice versa, so they were just playing with each other in that area. They did not upset any of the containers nor did they make a mess in that area. This manager guy then comes to me saying that the kids are running around and they may create trouble. At this point I really lost it. I told him that I have been to several other non-Indian restaurants and that in all those places, when the kid is crying either the restaurant workers leave it to the parents to calm the kids down OR they kind of try to entertain the kid to help the parents. And that this is no way to treat a customer by questioning their parenting skills and that I will never return to his restaurant again. And later when my wife was paying the check this guy told her that they were trying to run a business, that they too had children but that they don't encourage their kids to scream. As if we were watching silently and even encouraging our kids to scream and disturb everyone. The guy does not even know what basic hospitality is and he is trying to teach us what we need to do as parents, as if we were not already doing it. I then called this restaurant later when I got back home, gave this manager guy a piece of my mind about how he needs to get the basics of customer treatment right to be in this business. This joker and his cohorts need to just visit an Olive Garden or Denny's to see how well customers are treated. I am going to make sure that this kind of ill-treatment of customers gets aired to the broader community so that people stop patronizing this business that has a devil-may-care attitude just because their food tastes good. I have purchased a domain name www.karavallilathamsucks.com and I am going to spend some quality time ensuring that people with similar or worse experiences can post on it so that the general public, Indian or otherwise, in the Capital area, stays away from this customer and family un-friendly restaurant. read more

Gotta go with the masses on this one. The food was excellent. I had the Chicken Chettinad which is chicken cooked in a black pepper and roasted coconut sauce. It was just like I remember it from India. My girlfriend has the Masala Dosa and it was better than the one at Royal India which itself was very good. Believe it or not, it tasted pretty much like dosa you get in India. We also got the Gajar (Carrot) Halwa for dessert which was surprisingly good. I expected it to be heavy on the butter and cloyingly sweet but it turned out to be only slightly sweet and not very buttery. It was made with cloves and cardamom which you could taste very slightly in the dish. Overall, it was very good. As with Royal India, this place is run by Keralites (from the South Indian state of Kerala) too! I lived for 7 years in Columbus and never came across even one restaurant with Kerala-style food. Anyway, the upshot of this bit of info is that you should try the dishes marked as a kerala speciality like the Fish Molee and various other fish dishes. I was a little short on cash and these were in the more expensive range so I passed for now. read more

We went there today 11/11/2018 after renovation. The food was ok, but price was way too high. The Naans and dosai that they served at the table were all burnt and delivered after a long time. Worst experience, will never go again. Jakes. read more

This is hands-down some of the best Indian/Pakistani food I have ever had. I was visiting my pregnant sister who lives in Albany, and we actually ended up here because my brother-in-law missed an exit on the freeway for the restaurant we meant to go to, so we figured we were already going towards Karavalli so we went there instead We ordered a masala dosai, channa masala, chicken tikka masala, and a lamb dish with okra that I can't remember the name of. The sauces were amazing. Well-balanced and well-spiced. For desert I had a paneer with sweetened milk dish. It was pretty good. I also had the chai masala to drink. This ended up being way too much food for 3 and more like food for 6. While the naan was only okay, things went really well with the basmati rice. I would recommend this place to anyone who likes indian food. As a plus, I think the Indian food made my sister's baby kick more than it normally would. :-) read more

Can't go wrong here or the one in Saratoga. One of our favorite places. Not much to say. The place hits all of the marks as far as I am concerned. Well done folks!!!! read more

Karavalli - Just right. - Indian Near Me - Latham, New York

The very best in the area. If you like to sample every damn thing, may I suggest their buffet lunch? $15 for all you can eat, & the array of appetizers, nibblies, chutneys, sauces, sides, meat and vegetarian entrees, desserts is mind boggling. I double-dare you to try everything. Last time I got all up in it, I had to go home & nap; straight to bed for 3 hours. Eating like that hit me like a freight train... a delectable freight train. read more

The best Indian in the area- and it's really not close- for not only the quality of the food but the variety. This isn't just a slather it in curry Americanized northern Indian place; they specialize in southern Indian cuisine. I can't recommend this enough- go there and experiment try something you've haven't before- it will be good. The brunch buffet is always a delicious treat. read more

I went with great expectations for the lunch buffet. It was such a disappointment. Not one decent dish for vegetarians. Tandoori vegetables was actually burnt vegetables. Terrible taste of preservatives in red coloured gobhi. Poori bhaji had soggy pooris mucking around in cold bhaji. Can't get that terrible taste out of my mouth. Would not recommend. Especially if you are looking for good Indian food (and not just non vegetarian Kerala food). read more

Karavalli - Burnt tandoori vegetables. Carcinogen. - Indian Near Me - Latham, New York

Karavalli was one of my first experiences with Indian food when I first moved to the area. Since I started with the best, all Indian food I have tried since pales in comparison to Karavalli. Tucked away in a strip mall in Latham, Karavalli is certainly unassuming, but ask any person who claims to love Indian food where you can find the best in the Capital Region, and I'll wager that they'll tell you to head over to Karavalli. The dining room is fairly small, and reservations are recommended if you plan on eating on a Friday or Saturday night. This place is no secret, and it fills up quickly with everything from families with young children, to couples on dates, to Siena students. Each time I've eaten at Karavalli, I've been in awe over the large and impressive dosa (rice and lentil crepe) that I've seen being brought out to other diners. However, as my visits were usually just myself and one other, I had not ever ventured to order it, as it's enormous and clearly is meant for several people. However, last night I had the benefit of a bigger group of friends, so I finally got to try it. We ordered the masala dosai ($8) which has spiced potatoes hidden inside (I say hidden because they're tucked in the middle under the fold of the crepe -- we figured they had accidentally given us the plain dosa until we were halfway through), and is served with three dips (one was like a spicy masala, one was coconut based, and another tasted similar to a vegetable soup). The crispy crepe had a really nice flavor, and we all enjoyed sharing it. It is, indeed, massive, and I did kind of ruin my appetite by eating too much of it. However, definitely order this if you have a large group (or a bottomless stomach); it is worth the over-eating tummyache later! The times where we did not order the dosa, my favorite thing to get is the lamb samosas (kheema samosa, $5 for 3). They come with a tamarind dipping sauce that I just love -- sweet and tart and perfect to complement the mildly-spiced lamb. These little nuggets are one of my favorite bites in the area. Karavalli also has the best naan I have had by far -- crispy exterior and chewy interior, not at all dry, but also not greasy. It is a must order I've tried several dishes on the menu, though most of them chicken based. The chicken saag (chicken tikka with a mild spinach sauce), chicken tikka masala, chicken biryani, chicken korma, chicken amwaala. The only disappointment for me has been the chicken biryani. I enjoyed the usual fragrant flavors, but the complexity of flavors was just not there for me. The dish came with a tiny dish of pickled lemon on the side. Although the menu notes that the biryani is served with "pickle,' I did not realize that meant pickled lemon. I highly recommend you avoid this. I happen to love lemon, but this was one of the most rancidly-flavored and pungent things i have ever eaten. Just ask for no pickle if you order the Biryani. Trust me. My favorite, as boring as it may seem, is the chicken tikka masala. I ask for medium spice, and it is perfect. The chicken is cooked on a skewer and is always moist. The portion comes with a good amount of batsami rice, and I always have enough of my meal left for lunch the next day. The masala is so smooth and creamy and has the perfect balance of spices. If you are with someone who has never had Indian food before, or is a hesitant eater, recommend this dish for them. It'll convert just about anyone to be an Indian food lover. There are several vegetarian and vegan options, as well as many chicken and lamb dishes. I've taken friends here with a variety of dietary restrictions, and everyone has been able to order something great. The service has always been friendly, and there is always someone there to refill my water glass. Although I am not a fan of having to walk down that long, long hallway behind the curtain, past the kitchen, and behind the exit doors to use the restroom, what Karavalli lacks in ambiance, it makes up for in fantastic food. Karavalli is lovely, and if you haven't tried it yet, get yourself there. After you do, you'll realize that all Capital Region Indian food aspires to be Karavalli. read more

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Wow... this is one of the best restaurants on the whole entire planet... For serious. My boyfriend and I went thrice for dinner, and the food was excellent each time. Heck, we drove out 40 minutes one way. Their menu seems like a fusion of foods from different regions, 'cause some things are not typically on other menus... like the bagari jhinga, an appetizer that's not just good, but it's-okay-if-i-die-now delicious. Same goes for the staples: Paneer Masala, Malai Kofta, Vegetable Korma, Chicken Phal... The ambiance is really nice and the wait staff is friendly and inobtrusive. They also act like you're the only one they're serving, so I walked out of there feeling like a million bucks. Yeah, you get what you pay for... the prices kill you if you're on a student budget (like me), but dinner is well worth it. (I went for the buffet, and although it's cleaner that most, my expectations were too high from dinner, so it ruined it). read more

My favorite Indian in the capital district. Both locations are great, pretty fairly priced. The best time to go in my opinion is during the Saturday Lunch Buffet. A very generous variety, you sit down to water and warm naan. The only downfall to the lunch buffet; there's minimum seating and the wait varies, but worth it if you want true all you can eat for $18 before tip. read more

Great food, friendly service. Much more spacious than the Saratoga location. The paneer was phenomenal! Great meal, highly recommend!

Food excellent, service is mayhem. I ordered online and called to check the pick up time. They said 15 minutes. I arrived at that time to pick up and kept being told "5 minutes, 5 minutes." Well, it's been 45 minutes of standing awkwardly at the entryway. No customer service- no offer of a discount, a gift certificate, or even a glass of wine while we wait. And wait. And wait. Not even an apology. I have already paid or would be long gone. read more

This is hands-down the BEST Indian restaurant I have been to in all five of the states I've lived in in the past 10 years. The service is always excellent here. The staff is attentive and friendly. The food is so fresh and so delicious, I feel like I'm eating in my aunt's kitchen. All the dishes are prepared the traditional way - cooked with fresh and dried whole spices. The buffet features a variety of mild to spicy dishes as well as many vegetarian-friendly dishes. There have been many weekends where my family is the only non-Indian family present, a good sign to our way of thinking. This is the perfect place for a business lunch, a date, a quiet meal alone, or to bring your whole family. Tip: If you're not accustomed to eating real Indian foods, beware biting into a whole dried red chile or cardamom pod. Tip: Try the weekend lunch buffet, it is the largest and most decadent spread offered. read more

I came here on a weekend to visit my dad. I live in Manhattan and see lots of great restaurants. Karavalli was equivalent to best I've had. The food was delicately spiced and not the standard over some Indian food in suburbia. My dish thoughts - crispy okra was one of the most unique and best dishes I have ever had. You have to try this. - the kebabs were fantastic. All the chicken ones were incredible. - the curries and masalas were all good - butter chicken great too read more

Food was out of this world! So delicious, authentic Indian cuisine that is so rich and soulful that all the spices dance in your mouth. Worth every penny! I am from NYC, and have very high standards and this surpassed my expectations. read more

Hands down my favorite Indian restaurant in the area. Highlights: Saturday and Sunday brunch buffet. While their normal weekday buffet beats any other Indian buffet in the area, the weekend buffet is something to not be missed. They really pull out all of the stops - tons of appetizer options, Lots of meat choices. My veggie friends are happy with it but vegans, might not be completely up your alley. I normally don't put out those extra veggie or vegan options at a restaurant - but that's one reason I love this place so much. It's really easy to bring a mixed group of people and have everyone leave happy. There are separate vegetarian & vegan areas on the menu available to really call out the different dishes. They also have one of the most delicious dishes that's a must try. Yes, this dish is on the vegan menu, but don't be scared. The Lassoni Gobi is a fried cauliflower dish with notes of garlic, onion, and ginger. It's like a sweet and sour type sauce, but one of the most delicious sweet and sour sauces I've ever tasted. The first time I ordered it I was dining with a vegan, and we immediately thought we had to send it back because the consistency of the battered cauliflower - we thought maybe they had made a mistake and accidentally put meat in our dish. Nope, this dish is just one of those tricky ones that really showcase how great a bowl of cauliflower can really be presented. There are some things I tend to avoid, but that's more because my personal flavor profile and not that they don't do a great job. I love their chutneys and especially the mint sauce they have (and I'm not a big fan of mint). All of their classic dishes are solid as well. Easily one of my go-to places in the area especially if I'm taking friends from out of town. read more

Karavalli in Latham is simply where flavor lives. Unlike the other Indian places in the area they serve a number of Southern Indian style coconut curry and seafood dishes. I also believe this may be the only place in the area that has Phaal (super spicy curry) on the menu. I have had the Chicken Phaal from Brick Lane in NYC which btw was no where near as hot as advertised, but Karavalli's version although tame by comparison still bring the pain. The lunch buffet or weekend brunch is where its at! The standard buffet favorites are always present and they constantly rotate the other dishes for a nice variety. The only downside to Karavalli is price and the fact that it is often jam packed during the weekend brunch. The brunch buffet is around $15 and the weekday is $10. The servers are polite but it can take a while to get your check when the place is packed. Bottom line: The best Indian food in the capital district. read more

I went to this restaurant based on the reviews. True to the reviews, this is really the best in this area. Their Malabar Goat Curry and Goat Biriyani are really good. The buffet on weekends is also good, but is pricey compared to restaurant in Texas. I would definitely recommend this restaurant if you are in the Albany Capital region. read more

Yummy! Great ambience! I got the chicken tandoori and my boyfriend got lamb masala. The lamb masala was really tasty. The food came in large portions and tasted very fresh and high quality. When we got here, it was quiet but after awhile more people came into the restaurant and the chatter grew louder but in a comforting way. Glad to know so many people enjoy this place. The service was kind of awkward at times because it was a bit difficult to call for their attention but it wasn't a huge problem. The waiter was constantly filling people's drinks which was nice. They were also quick to give us our bill so we didn't have to wait around for too long. I recommend this place for the ambience and good food! read more

Love the food, this review is after my 2nd time to Karavalli. Actually when It came up in the search for Indian restaurants in Albany I didn't recognize it was a Malayalee restaurant. Anyways both times, my husband and I enjoyed the food very much. read more

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Best Indian place by far in the capital region. Variety in the menu and their buffet is worth the line waiting for. Highly recommended for a nice dining experience read more

Wow this is a great place for amazing Indian healthy food. Great people and setting. Highly recommen

Karavalli is still my go to Indian restaurant in the Cap Region. I've tried all the others and although some get close they don't quite surpass this place. Of course, you can get better Indian food in NYC (try out Drunken Monkey or Dhaba) but this place does a pretty solid job for us upstaters. My favorites on the menu are their samosa chaat, garlic naan, chicken tikka masala and lamb roganjosh. They also have dosas on the menu which many restaurants in the area do not. Although I'm not a big fan of dosas I suggest ordering one at least once as they are visually impressive. I would definitely recommend making a reservation for this place especially if you are planning to dine in the evening hours on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday. It gets very busy! Also, expect to be asked how your meal is and if you need anything multiple times by at least four different waiters. Service is definitely not lacking at this place. read more

I agree with all the compliments above - and the brunch is fabulous! The Onion Naan is irresistable - especially with raiita. I just wish they used less salt- especially in that raiita read more

This restaurant doesn't need any more good reviews, but Ill share my experience anyway :) We arrived at 5:30 which is a short time after their opening time for dinner, and it was super quiet. But it wasn't long before more customers came and by the time we left there was even a wait for tables. We had the "Tamarind Eggplant" appetizer, which was incredible! Never tasted anything like it. I highly recommend it. The menu has separate Vegan and Vegetarian entree sections. I had the (vegan) Chana Masala and my boyfriend had the Chicken Kashmiri. We had Paneer Naan and Garlic Naan with our entrees, although the portion was generous and I wish we shared an order. Everything was incredible. It just tastes so FRESH! My Chana was not the least bit oily, and had fresh ginger matchsticks which was unique and refreshing. The chickpeas were creamy and the tomato sauce full of flavor. The Kashmiri sauce for the chicken was my favorite part - it was seriously the best cream sauce I've ever had. I have had the same "cashew/almond" sauce from other Indian restaurants and nothing compares. The naans were both fluffy and flavorful. No terrible stomach-ache after either like I usually get with take-out. My only complaint is that I ordered the Chana Masala "medium spice" and it didn't have any spice at all. Maybe they just forgot to add my extra spice that time. Can't wait to bring people here! read more

Delicious Indian food, order takeout from here all the time, the naan bread is amazing, definitely try it

Every time I go here I always enjoy what I get. Literally haven't had anything bad served here yet. If you go you have to get the nut and raisin nan it's absolutely amazing especially when dipped in the vegetable masala. My boyfriend got this dish that had a mango sauce and that was also amazing. The service is awesome and they even give you a warm towel at the end to freshen up. read more

I have been always a fan of Karavalli, ever since my first visit. Of course I won't go and write a review for any restaurant that I have only gone to once. For the many times I have dined here, I tried out multiple different dishes. I think it is quite fair to say this is very well be one of the best in the area, in terms of the consistency and the deliciousness, I am still on my way trying out new places. They have very friendly and polite staffs, who are more than happy to explain all the questions you have for the dishes. I believe it is also damn authentic, according to my Indian friends that I have brought here to dine with, and the discussion I have with my Indian friends who have been there. One main reason I love this place is that they always put a good balance between the amount of sauces with meats in their dishes. I know that Indian style cooking consists of many spices in each dish, yet they don't overwhelm you with the spices. You will still taste the spices, but ultimately the spices are in a the right combination to enhance the favor of the meats. They also grind their spices in a refined micro size, so you won't run into bitting a chunk of the very concentrated flavor and ruin your appetite, which had happened to me elsewhere. They really put more emphasis on making the harmonizations between the meat and the sauce as one entity, instead of bringing separately the meat and the sauce together. read more

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First time at Karvalli but I will definitely be going back. I'm so glad I reserved a table as the place was packed at 6:00 pm on Saturday. The menu is enormous and I settled on the Palak with Potatoes. Absolutely delicious and I'm excited that I will be having some leftovers later today. My friend got the Eggplant Marsala and what was interesting is that they brought out dinner dishes for each and each of our meals (along with rice) was brought out in separate bowls. This is perfect if you want to sample from each other's meals. We also ordered naan for a side. Everything was extremely cheap for a delicious meal, the service was excellent and our dinner was brought out quickly. Definitely going back. read more

Karavalli - Indian Near Me - Latham, New York

What can I say, I was heart broken when they re-did the restaurant, I loved all the blues and the art. But the new place looks great too! And most importantly, the food is still, and always - Delicious! Im not very adventurous, Chicken masala, samosa and naan - 90% of the time. But the Sunday buffets are really good and allow you to branch out. Either way, you can't go wrong. Proper dining has gone by the wayside, but I love the old school restaurant feel with linens on the table and properly dressed wait staff. It makes for a great date night. read more

Outstanding southern Indian food in another unassuming strip mall. Ambience/Service: There is seating for about 35 people, intimate but not tiny. Service was speedy for the most part. There was a period of time where 10 people were waiting for seats because it was full and service remained decent. Everyone was also very friendly and polite. Food: we came for Sunday "brunch" and a very full buffett was out. Tons of beautiful chutneys, spices, breads, and about 8-9 vegetarian dishes were available. Sambhar, vegetable biryani, a deep fried cauliflower dish, and a potato and eggplant dish were just a few. There were also a number of Indian desserts and fresh fruit. The best part was dosas and naan that was brought to the table. All of the spices and heat was perfect. Great great flavor a. My meat-eating friends liked the goat curry but thought the vegetarian dishes were better. Everyone really enjoyed the meal. Overall: I will almost certainly request another visit when we come back to town. Definitely stop by. read more

With all the great reviews here, I thought I'd give them a try. Overall, my impression is positive, but it was a bit of a let down. The hype from Yelpers drove up the expectation too much. The place is small, located in what seems to be a mainly a medical plaza. We ordered a plain dosa, bhel poori, Melagu Chicken Chittenadu, Cochin Snapper, and a shrimp biryani. I figured this would be a good cross section to judge the restaurant. Their menu selection is huge and has a wide variety of dishes from different regions of India, though the dosa on the menu hints at their primary regional expertise. Karavalli is the only place I know of in the area that serves dosa (or "dosai" on their menu). It is a regional specialty of southern India, like a crepe but made from rice flour and lentils. Karavalli serves three kinds of them, plain, potato-filled ("masala"), and made from semolina flour ("rava"). We ordered a plain one, which came out as a huge roll (about 18" long), with accompaniment for dipping: two types of chutneys and a sambar (a veggie stew, to be spooned or dipped). Don't be intimidated--you just tear a piece, dip and eat. I really enjoyed it. It's different. Then we ordered a bhel poori. I never tried it before, but it sounded good. What came out is basically rice puffs (think "rice krispies") mixed with a sweet tamarind sauce. We were not impressed. As for the main dishes: the melagu chicken, despite the two pepper signs, was not really all that spicy. The sauce was relatively bland, and the chicken was a bit chewy. The cochin snapper is a specialty dish, and comes with veggie biryani and garlic naan. The presentation is impressive! But I've never been a big fan of Indian fish dishes... something about all those powerful spices drowning out the delicate flavor of fish. The dish was decent, but fairly average in taste. The shrimp biryani is by far one of the better ones I've had (the old Tandoor Palace on Lark/Madison had my favorite, but now closed). WARNING! This dish is spicy! I love spicy food and I rarely flinch at anything claiming to be super-hot, but this dish kicked my ass... it is still burning in my stomach as I write this review. I don't think there were pepper signs on the menu, so be careful! The little bit of raita that comes with it did nothing to tone down the spice. You were warned! The beverage menu is very good for an Indian restaurant, with wines (why anyone would drink wine with Indian food is beyond me... match with a sweet, fruity wine, if you must), and a wide variety of domestic and international beers, including the usual Indian labels like Kingfisher and Taj Mahal. I had the latter, but in general, most Indian beers are so-so. Drink them for the novelty. All in all, definitely an above average Indian restaurant, with good food, great selection. Does it justify the exceptionally high prices? Well, not to me, but keep in mind that their portions are larger than your typical Indian restaurant, so if you can adjust for that mentally, it's okay. My bill for the above including tip was $92, but we took home half of almost everything. You be the judge. read more

Karavalli is really good! I consider myself reasonably knowledgeable, since I live in New Jersey and we eat a lot of Indian food. I was very impressed with the food at Karavalli. The menu is fascinating and diverse, with food from many regions of India. I highly recommend it. One thing - dinner portions are enormous. Unless you're really hungry, you might consider sharing a dish. The map on my Droid (Google Map) led me to the wrong place, about 1 1/2 miles away. After searching around, I called the restaurant and they guided me to the correct address. read more

Amazing authentic food. This is by far the best Indian food in the capital region. There food and atmosphere is unbeatable and the staff is incredible. There are longer waiting periods in-between dishes which is what I prefer as it gives guests time to enjoy their company and there is no pressure to rush through a meal. I can't say enough good things about this place. read more