This used to be one of our favorite South Indian eateries. Food was authentic (most dishes) others were a good blend of fusions. We had a family dinner during our last visit and everyone in our party (total of 8 people) ended up with food poisoning. Restaurant did not take any accountability of it. One year later, we revisited this place and the quality of food had changed. The lobster curry was just sweet, it lacked the flavor and luster that South Indian food is known for. We ordered couple different fried finger foods and both came with same dip. Kid friend Ample parking Not an environmental friendly restaurant ****Recommend with caution**** read more

Kathakali - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

I want to give Kathakali a five-star review so badly because of the unique menu. However, it is a four star review this time due to a few reasons. I've been here twice, and their dosas are my favorites! It's freshly made, and the the size is huge (photo of my arm for reference!). I ordered the Gunpowder dosa as appetizer, Nalla Molagu Chicken Curry with rice, the Malabar Parotta (the flaky buttery flat bread), and added the Meen Pollichathu later. Food came out so fast, and the dosas was yummy and fun to eat! Then came the chicken curry, and it was super spicy! Chicken pieces were chewy, not moist, and the parotta bread got harden and became rubbery quite fast. Not sure if they made the bread in house or bought it, but I was guessing the rubbery parotta was due to heating it in the microwave. Both the chicken curry and sea-bass dish were cooked with lots of spices and EXTREMELY SPICY. I couldn't eat a lot and had to to-go most of the fish. We dined in this time, and food came out pretty fast! There was another couple that dined two tables away from us and some occasional takeouts, but restaurant was clean and staff were nice! I'd love to try other things on their menu in a near future and update my review. For now, I would highly suggest everyone to go here if you've never tried South Indian food before! read more

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Awesome south-Indian Cusine the appams, stew , pullusery are my favs ... jackfruit Ella adda is awesome too

Oh, how I wished I lived next doors to this amazing Indian place, I saw some great reviews and reached early to avoid the wait, it's a small hole in the wall kinda place, we ordered the parotta, kappa, egg curry, karimeen pollichathu.. each one of the dishes was too good, kappa so mild but steamed to the right consistency, parotta in soft layers, the fish spicy and fresh, go try if you are in the neighborhood, I would read more

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Overrated food . All of the curries taste almost the same . This restaurant has no authenticity in its food preparation . Using substandard ingredients in thier dishes . Example I have been here three times and every time they serve substandard tilapia fish in thier sea bass dish and still charge the same . A rip off read more

While this restaurant serves classics like butter chicken, it specialises in cuisine unique to the Kerala region of India. It gets very busy on the weekends so make sure to arrive a bit earlier than you planned to eat to add your name to the list. While you wait, you can take a stroll through the Juanita Bay Park. My party also managed to place our order while we were on the waitlist so as soon as we were seated, we were served our food. We were really hungry at that point so everything tasted pretty good :D read more

Kathakali - Parippu Vadai (served with four patties) - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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Only place in Seattle to get close to authentic Kerala food. I am from Kerala and the appam , malabar porotta and fish polichathu here does not disappoint (atleast 90% of the time I have tried). Also tried mango pullissery and meen curry last time which were yummy. Chicken stew is decent. Other interesting dishes are kale cashew pakora, firecracker chicken and payyoli chicken. Chakka ada was nice too. Other non-veg dishes are decent but nothing wow. My friend liked her mushroom pepper masala as well. Nair Kada Chaya is also liked by tea lovers. read more

Kathakali - Fish Kerala Meen Curry, Mango Pulisery,Kerala Aappam,chicken stew, Pepper Mushroom Dosa - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

This is our go to restaurant to order when we are too tired of cooking at home. We love their veg biryani. It's full of Vegetables and better than any biryani that I have tried in this area. read more

We started with Chemeen Vada and Lemon-Mint-Rose spritzer. The Chemeen Vada was excellent! to an Indian, this is a Masala Vada stuffed with a medium size Shrimp. While the Shrimp was ok, the Masala Vada was just as it supposed to be with the right spices! The Lemon-Mint-Rose spritzer is Soda mixed with Rose sweet water. this was special! For the entree, we had the Nalla Molagu Chemeen Curry with Malabar Parotta. The parotta was amazing, this was closer to what we get back home. very good fluffiness! for each $5 plate of Parotta, you get 2 parotta! The Nalla Molagu Chemeen curry is a Tomato Pepper based curry which comes with a cup of basmati rice Lastly for desert we had Pazhampori with Coconut Ice-cream. It's ripe bananas covered with rice batter and deep fried and served with honey drizzle, coconut ice-cream. The bananas were not sweet and this was a sweet end to a beautiful dinner! would love to visit again and hopefully the wait times are less! read more

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Just moved to the neighborhood and Kathakali was within walking distance, so I gave it a shot. First time trying Indian food actually. I ordered the butter chicken and garlic naan. The chicken was creamy and tasty, with just the right amount of spice. The naan did not come with the meal, but I purchased some separately. Overall, the food was excellent. The naan was maybe a little pricey, but I had enough food to take a to-go home as well, so that was nice. Good portions. read more

Mallu food is soul food ! Definitely tastes closest to the food from Kerala ! The service was great. Wait time was definitely a little longer only because the food is pretty great ! The ambiance is pretty decent ! read more

Kathakali - Kerala Aappam , Mutton Varattiyathu , Nalla Molagu Chicken Curry , Meen Pollichathu , Kappa & Chili Chutney , Malabar Parotta - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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On a work trip to Seattle, while looking for unique dining experience, stumbled upon a name that clicked - Kathakali, actually a name of a classical dance form from Kerala. Looked up and was totally sold on the creative menu specializing in regional cuisine from God's own country, Kerala. **Organic Lavender infused with lime, lemonade, coconut water **Peanut Chundal with boiled peanuts, mustard, cumin, curry leaves, cilantro, dill, fresh grated coconut **Meen Pollichathu, whole marinated fried fish, tomato, onion, ginger, garlic, green chili, seafood spices, curry leaves, cooked in a banana leaf If you are visiting Seattle, I highly recommend this place! read more

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This place is BUSY!!! The parking kinda sucks but the food is sooo good. We were a pretty big group of about 8 people and they were able to accommodate all of us in about 30 mins (they don't take reservations). The food was piping hot and I think that just enhanced the flavor of all of the food. We called for the butter dosa which was gone in seconds. It was crispy and the dipping sauces were great. Their tilapia fish curry dish (don't remember the name) was tasty but a little too spicy for us. One I would skip the next time . I'm definitely going to go back again to this place. read more

By far my favorite indian restaurant in the Seattle metro area - I'd travel any distance to eat at Kathkali. I've been here on multiple occasions and it's consistently amazing. I have tried loads of dishes and I have my go-to's: Peanut Chundal: can't go wrong with roasted peanuts! yum! Iddaiyyam: this is fun to eat cause of the string like shape, but needs to be eaten with either the fish, mutton, or chicken curry Kerala Aappam: ditch the coconut milk it comes with and each the Nalla Molagu Chicken Curry with this! you won't be disappointed. Love the Aappam here. Gunpowder Dosa: this was good and is delicious, but isn't my go-to, Meen Pollichathu: loved the presentation in the banana leaf. beware this is a super spicy dish. Green Mango Fish Curry: This one was a little too pungent for my taste, but tasty otherwise Nalla Molagu Chicken Curry: this is by far my favorite thing to eat with the Kerala Aappam. Mutton Varattiyathu: i love love love this dish!! The mutton reminds me of what I'm use to eating in india. So flavorful and delicious. Overall, amazing meals time and time again. I'd definitely recommend you check out Kathkali as soon as possible! read more

Recommended by several friends we decided to try this place out on our way back from winter hiking. Since it was chilly and we were soaked by the rain we ordered the hot masala chai. This was very nice ans glad it does not come in cutting chai quantity. We needed some warmth badly. Disappointed that this place does not serve filter coffee would have loved if they did serve it too along with chai. We then ordered appetizers - kale onion pakoras and these were delicious crispy fresh well seasoned and the quantity was easily shareable for the table. We also tried the banana leaf fish fry and this was outstanding but people be aware of the spice levels it can get a tad too spicy for non-spice lovers. Personally I enjoyed this fish fry steamed in banana leaf it was delicious tasty and one worth an extra star on yelp. The masala dosas both - gun powder and white truffle oil ones were too good. We then ordered the shrimp curry and avial which was served with rice and malabar parota. The shrimp curry was good and went well with the rice than the parota. The avial was also enjoyed by all. The malabar parota is also nice wish we had tried a different gravy suitable for the parota. We would have loved to try their jackfruit or coconut ice cream desserts but at this point we were stuffed and couldnt indulge any more hence had to skip desserts. Service was very nice and quick. Ample parking but can get pretty full during dinner hours. We were seated promptly cos we arrived well ahead of dinner hours and could see a long wait time while we continued to enjoy our meal here. All in all really a nice authentic south indian cuisine restaurant in Kirkland. Will i drive from downtown to dine here again - maybe for the fish fry I definately will someday but rest of the food was good nothing mind blowing. Should try if in the area. read more

Kathakali - Kale and Onion Pakodas - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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Mallus should come here for the food that reminds you of home, or the closest there is to it in the greater Seattle area. Got the Kappa and Chili chutney, Kerala Appam, Gunpowder dosa, Meen pollichathu, Munnar mutton kurma. All the dishes were great, came out quickly and freshly prepared. Staff was good and attentive. read more

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Value for $$ - 5/5 Taste - 5/5 Quality - 5/5 Ambience - 5/5 Service - 5/5 Tip - Call for reservation and be in time. read more

Kathakali - Digital Menu - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

I have been wanting to try this place for a while since it came highly recommended by my coworker. And it definitely lived up to my high expectations. We got chai, pakoras, and masala dosa and truffle masala dosa. Everything was great! The only thing that I didn't love was the potatoes in the masala dosas - they were a bit too spicy for my taste but my husband really liked them! We especially loved the coconut chutneys that came with the dosas and the pakoras! Oh and in addition to the great food, the service was also great! They don't take reservations on a Sunday so we had to wait 20 mins for a table for 2 people at 1pm on a Sunday but the host was very friendly and gave an accurate expected wait time. He also offered us that we can put in our order and that way we would get the food shortly after we were seated. And to our surprise that is really how it went down! I would 100% recommend Kathakali for anyone craving great South Indian cuisine with great service as well! :) read more

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3.5 stars is the right rating. Good food, authentic Kerala cuisine. A little heavy on the wallet. The appams with coconut juice was fantastic. Reminded me of my grandmoms cooking! Chai was another standout. Other items were good as well, could have been more spicy. Though the green mango curry said mackerel as the fish, we were served it with tilapia. Which I think was a big disappointment. I think we should have been told while ordering about the substitution. Expect to wait atleast 30mins for weekend dinner. Overall highly recommended to try this very peculiar Indian cuisine. read more

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This is a place you must visit if you're a Kerala food addict like me. It doesn't disappoint at all. We ordered their malabar parotta and kadala curry, chakka ellada, appam and dosa. The jackfruit ellada and appam are so so good that you'll end up wanting more. However, the kadala curry felt really strong in spices and I couldn't taste anything but cinnamon in it. It was a bit overwhelming. Overall, a nice place and they have good chai as well. read more

Kathakali - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

5 stars for the food 3 stars for the covid protocol The food is about as good as it gets for South Indian food in the Puget Sound. To be honest, the only other comparison is Chilis, which is also pretty good. COVID protocols seem more theatric both on the worker and customer side (read: chin diapers). However, there's no way a virus particle is going to survive the level & quality of spice when you start eating so it's a fair trade off for me. To those who can't handle spice - like some previous reviewers - this is probably not the restaurant or cuisine type for you. On weekends, there's going to be a bit of a wait. Plan accordingly. read more

Went here for the first time today and I was really impressed. I got multiple dishes to try them out - butter chicken, chicken curry, garlic naan, bullet naan. I normally always just get butter chicken but Yelp reviews convinced me to step out of my comfort zone and try something new. The chicken curry is great, spicy but not too spicy. Good portion sizes too. The butter chicken was good but wasn't anything special or different than you could get elsewhere. Loved the naan but the 2 tasted pretty much the same to me. While it is a bit more expensive than others in the area I think the flavors and quality makes up for it! I'll definitely be back. read more

I was craving Indian and had seen large groups of Indian families waiting outside to be seated so I was expecting some amazing food. I ordered the chicken biryani to go to eat at the beach a couple minutes away and was unhappy with my order to the point of throwing it into the trash after a few bites. The chicken was overcooked and gray, almost rock-like and leathery like jerky. The yoghurt that comes with it was unable to save the dish but it did help a little. I see most of the good reviews saying they are particularly adept at making dosas so I will give that a try next. read more

Authentic Kerala flavors. Right blend of spices, good quality meats. If things get spicy, order a sweet coconut milk to soothe. read more

Kathakali - #authenticKeralacuisine. Munnar Mutton Korma: spicy & tender goat cubes. Combined with Appams with sweet coconut milk. - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

The food was okay. I wish there were more vegan options, and was hoping for some chana masala, but perhaps it is more of a southern Indian cuisine? My partner usually likes southern Indian food more though, and didn't seem to find anything that sounded great. Service seemed to take a while, but everyone was still nice. They have an adequate amount of parking for the amount of seats they have. It is a small restaurant, but they did manage to fit in a good amount of seats. The atmosphere and the menus could use a little bit of improvement. read more

Food tastes good. I love the mango pulichery and avial. But service is below average with the waiters kicking us out immediately after dinner and ambience is very poor. Requires an upgrade. read more

Lovely little Indian eatery serving delicious Kerala food. We have visited this restaurant multiple times and the food is consistently good. This time we ordered the Basil Spinach Dosa & Chira Chola Masiyal along with some Kerala Appam and Malobar Parotta. Basil Spinach dosa was crispy and served with assortment of chutneys & sambar. The coconut mint chutney was tasty while the coconut chilli chutney lacked punch. Chira Chola Masiyal was served piping hot and was very flavorful. The sweetness of the corn complimented the spicy spinach gravy. Kerala Appam did not particularly standout as the texture was not as crispy as we expected and was particularly soft. Sweet coconut milk served with the Kerala Appam was refreshing. We enjoyed Malobar Parotta a lot and was perfectly made with lots of delicate layers and finesse. read more

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Really good Indian restaurant with top-notch food and excellent service. We came to this place on a weekday night and the place was packed. We had a 2o min wait time before getting seated. The place was so full that they were turning back customers who came after 8 pm and reverting only to delivery or pick-up orders. The restaurant is small with limited seating. I bet they will either open a new location or expand to a bigger place within a year. The menu is based on dishes from Kerala and they do a really good job with the authenticity and the taste. The best dish was the Malabar parotta along with the milagu chicken curry. The truffle masala dosa was also really good with excellent chutney and sambar. I would definitely visit this place again to try the karimeen pollichathu. I need to mention the super fast and friendly service as they accommodated our large group with kids. read more

Awesome food. Great service. Food is excellent by far the best Kerala food u can get around Seattle . Appams are a must to order but order some sambar too with it Parotas are fluffy n moist Excellent overall read more

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Highly rated restaurant by Indian cuisine lover. Will always find people waiting outside. Decent ambiance. No fancy decoration. Rose mint spritzer was flop for me. It was too sour for me. Also didn't find much of mint aroma or flavor. 2 star. Dosa was good. Crispy on top but soft inside. Potato stuffing was also tasty. 4.5 star Kerala chicken was good too. Although we were told that it's spicy, like 5/5, but it was ok for me. But still be cautious. 4.5 star Garlic naan was amazing. It was full of flavor. Lot of butter and garlic on the bread. 5 star. Would like to try again read more

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BEST SOUTHERN INDIAN FOOD I have ever tried. We have been coming here many times for their excellent food. Always there's a wait here, so make sure to make a reservation or come around their opening time. It also takes very long wait for the food so this might bother some people. Tip: ask the waiters for recommendations, they don't like! Their veggie dishes are a bit better than meat dishes in my opinion. The spicy fish wrapped in banana leave ( in photo) was my favorite so far. I don't remember the name tho. read more

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The Nalla Curry is definitely pretty spicy. It is a spice that comes from the black peppers so the inside of my body was on fire. I was not a big fan of the Green Mango Prawn Curry. The texture was very strange and I was not really enjoying it as much as the Nalla Curry. The garlic naan is my top favorite but the onion kulcha was good too. Very busy on a Saturday night and waited about 30 minutes to be seated. There is no online waitlist but you can do a walk in and place your name on the list. Friendly staffs but very small restaurant. Parking lot is a bit small as well. read more

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Food was ok. Customer service was terrible. The server and manager were rude, slow to take orders, not accommodating of our child, didn't know if ingredients met allergy needs of the family ... and worst of all terrible human beings. read more

Being a big fan of Kerala food, I've been wanting to check this place out for a while now. We ordered Parippu vada, coco paneer, Malabar parotta, aapam, aviyal, vegetable stew, and Chaya (tea). The vada was good, the coco paneer an innovative dish that dint disappoint. The aapam and parotta were amazing, but the stew could've used a tad bit more seasoning. The star of the day was malabar aviyal that was so delicious with the perfect combination of veggies. read more

Kathakali - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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This is a great little restaurant. The staff is friendly. The food is good. The price is right. I have been here multiple times and have never been disappointed with their food or service. read more

Food is fine, but they charge $2 for two slices of onions - it was bizarre. Nothing great about this place, but if you are craving for Indian (south-Indian specifically) food then you can give it a try! read more

Kathakali - Basil Spinach Dosa - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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I'm rarely ever disappointed by Indian food as they are rich in flavor. This is one I will never return to. The curry I had here was one of the most watery curry we have ever had. If I was to come here, I would not come here for curry. We ordered paneer butter masala and chicken tikka masala as our main. They were both watery and had almost no taste. Specifically Chicken Tikka Masala had a strong tomato paste taste and had maybe 2 piece of chicken. It felt as if they purposely added additional water to increase portions as there were a lot of customers at 825pm. We thought the garlic naan would have saved the dinner, but it was also ridiculously chewy and did not have the usual flaky and soft inners. For a $50 dinner (or dinner in general), I could not have been more disappointed by the taste and the texture. read more

I drove out of my way for this place and I would do it again. This place is absolutely phenomenal for South Indian cuisine and has amazing, crisp dosas. I tried their chicken biriyani last time and tried their chicken curry and did not disappoint. The dosa and lassi are a must every time and I look forward to my next visit. read more

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Solid Indian place in Kirkland. Came here on a Friday early evening. It was packed by the time we left around 7pm. The Gunpowder Dosa was definitely the highlight of our meal. The Garlic Naan and Butter Chicken were solid. We also tried a beet curry dish, it wasn't bad but probably not something we'd order again. read more

We went on a Friday night and this place was busy busy. Regardless, it has some great fish! read more

Kathakali - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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