Solid Kerala Indian food located in Kirkland - a lot of Indian friends recommended me this place and I did not get a chance until lately as it is a bit of a ways out of the city center. Given that it is near the suburbs, parking is ample as there's a parking lot, but it could be tough regardless if the restaurant is busy. My friend and I went around 12:30pm on a Sunday and it was not super busy - we got seated immediately. We shared a masala dosa, a Kerala meen curry, and pistachio rosewater lassi. The masala dosa was sizable and has the right amount of spices, with the batter thin and just slightly crispy. It comes with the usual fixings like lentil soup, mint chutney, and tamarind chutney. This seems to be their signature dosa and it is good. The Kerala meen curry is also decent, and it comes with rice, but a bit too spicy that somewhat overpowers the underlying spices. The tilapia was pretty fresh, nonetheless. The pistachio rosewater lassi is sweet and cuts back the super spicy meen curry. Service is decent - a bits hands off but requests are fulfilled in a timely manner. I would overall recommend this place to check out, with consideration that this is not the American Indian restaurants that are fairly ubiquitous; rather, this takes you somewhat in a slightly different culinary journey. read more

Kathakali - Masala dosa, Kerala Meen Curry, rosewater pistachio lassi - IG @bougiefoodieboi - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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As an aspiring dosa connoisseur, I can confidently say this was some of the best dosa I've had. I had the gunpowder dosa(personal favorite) which was not as spicy as expected but had great flavor very good. Shortly after I enjoyed the Chaka thoran dosa (unique as it has jackfruit). Also the classic masala dosa (great) and the beetroot kurma which was also different for me and great. All the food was great and the people who worked there were super accommodating and friendly. Definitely some of the best dosa I've had and would happily come back. read more

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We came right when it opened, but noticed the business getting pretty busy as the night went on. We ordered two dosas, one Pepper Mushroom Dosa & one Plain. These were good. The Pepper Mushroom Dosa was the best item out of all the dishes, in my opinion. The Eggplant Garlic Kootan was so incredibly spicy that you couldn't taste anything else. The Chicken Tikka Masala was incredibly disappointing. The chicken was hard, overcooked little chunks and the flavor just tasted like they didn't balance the cream with the spices; it was honestly the worst Chicken Tikka Masala I've ever had. The Mutton Varattiyathu was good, but we were told this dish would be spicy; it didn't have much spice at all and was also incredibly oily, but it had a good taste. We had a couple orders of Garlic Naan and came out to be good, as I expected/hoped it would. The Pistachio Rosewater Lassi I ordered for my drink was very tart from the yogurt. It was good for cooling down the spicyness from the eggplant dish, but I wouldn't order it again based on just the taste itself. I also ordered the Chakka Ela Ada for dessert. It could be personal preference, as I've never had this before, but it wasn't a dessert I enjoyed. It was dry and didn't have enough sweetness for my tastebuds. Since service was overall good, I'm giving four stars, but just on food alone, it's more of a 3 - 3.5 rating for me. read more

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There are a few types of Indian restaurants: there are the second rate restaurants that give you a massive heap of extra-buttery curry that for some reason tastes vaguely of Chef Boyardee, but is delicious nonetheless (and who can complain about a trough of butter chicken for $15), and then there are the restaurants that make the real shit. I love them all, but I'm happy to report Kathakali is the second category of restaurants, they have a real respect for the ingredients and make the kind of food you can't find just anywhere. One of the best Indian spots in an area with a ton of them, everyone should go and appreciate one of the best parts about living in this city. read more

This place is different from your average Indian restaurant - a lot of the dishes contain coconut (even the sambhar) since that's common in Kerala. Dosas are fairly standard but they're a bit smaller than your average portion. I wasn't a fan of the pazhampori ice cream (fried plantain ice cream). While this sounds like you're getting fried banana ice cream, it's plantain so it's not sweet and a bit on the harder side cause it's raw. The coco paneer was alright but doesn't have much taste aside from the sauces they come with. Overall a decent place if you're looking for some unique menu items. read more

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Food overall was good, the service was just okay, not real attentive and the young man seemed to want to be somewhere else... Ambiance nonexistent... definitely don't go for the ambience, but do try the eggplant and the Tikka Masala , both of which were excellent! read more

A great place to try the Kerala Indian cuisine. For non-Indians, Kerala is a southern state in India, a cuisines of which revolves around lamb, fish and coconut primarily. We tried the dal vada, avial, malabar paratha, munnar mutton kurma and pistachio lassi. The dal vada was decent. The munnar mutton kurma and malabar paratha were really great. Avial was nice too but I am not a big fan of coconut curry prep. Pistachio lassi was not great. It should have been thicker with more pista flavour. All in all a great place to try the kerala specific foods. Do avoid anything that is non-kerala cuisine. And I wished the space was bigger because it felt too crammed up. Also, it felt a bit expensive for the quantity offered. read more

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An absolute nightmare where service is concerned. It took the guy 45 minutes to serve us our first dish. Then another 10 minutes to come with the second and then a wrong item was served. Which meant another five minutes or so. We were enraged and hungry. The dosa was OK but the paneer tikka was awful - just some plain paneer slightly sautéed with no marination at all. The audacity was when I was presented with the check - they gave us 20% discount while adding the wrong item to the check!!!! ALL IN ALL A NIGHTMARE OF AN EVENING AT KATHAKALI!! They won't see us anytime soon. read more

This is my favorite Indian restaurant in the Seattle area. I love their gunpowder dosa and kerala egg curry, but everything on the menu is a hit. I normally don't like rose water, but their pistachio rose water lassi is delicious. You really can't go wrong with anything on their menu, and all their breads are so tender and soft - never fry. When you walk in it feels authentic and no frills, and the waiter is all business, but it's worth it. This is the best!! read more

Kathakali - Lamb kofta - yummy! - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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Visited with family for dinner. The place is usually full and always has waiting time. We had to wait about 30 mins and it was worth the wait. They request you to pre-order which was a nice idea and made sure we did not wait too long for the food to arrive after we were seated. We ordered Kappa for appetizers. It was good and reminded me of the ones we get back in Kerala. It comes with a green chili based side, which is hot. We ordered Butter Dosa, Appam, Malabar Parotta and Fish Moilee. The butter dosa was good and crispy as we expected. Great for kids. Appam was perfectly cooked and spongy. It goes very well with the Fish Moilee. It also comes with cold sweetened coconut milk, which could have been slightly less sugary. Malabar Parotta was flaky and tasty. The Fish Moilee was something we liked the most. Not spicy and very flavorful with just the right amount of fish pieces (Tilapia). Overall great food and worth the wait time. Will definitely visit again. read more

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Service is fairly efficient. Food: kale cashew pakora- this had a lot of chickpea batter around each item, drier. Not spicy at all, comes the coconut dip. 3.5/5 pancharatna adai- nice crispy layer on outside, rest is quite thick since it's a lentil batter. 3/5 vegetable ishtoo- this is a white curry, and somehow quite spicy. Good mixture of vegetables like cauliflower carrot green beans and potatoes. 4/5 Hibiscus mint tea- this strangely didn't come with ice so it was luke warm. Otherwise, the flavor is pretty nice with a good amount of hibiscus flavor. When we left around 7:30pm was when long lines started to form outside the restaurant, with many cars turning into the parking lot. read more

Kathakali - Kale Onion Cashew Pakora, Vegetable Ishtoo - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

I recently came from India, I can definitely say it was the delicious food I had here in Seattle. The taste was up to the mark especially the meen pollichattu and malabar Paratha, chicken istoo. I also recommend trying their appam with coconut milk it was pretty good. Service was also good. read more

Kathakali - Meen Pollichathu - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

The service is good, but the place is small. However, the dosas are pretty good. I especially love their gunpowder dosa and sambhar. We also tried their Parippu Vadai which was delicious, and the sambar vadai was great as well. The curries were average but overall, a solid spot for dosa lovers. read more

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First time and wanted to have some good kerala food . First of all the parking is so disorganized! It's so tough to get a parking . And then the wait time ! Had to wait for an hour almost . When we went in , it was almost the time for last order ! Ok .. after all this wait , we were waiting for good food .. Took them 20-30 mins to bring all. Veggie options were very less . Had to buy some beetroot curry which was ok . They recommended some chicken chilli but it was like wings but with Indian spice . Not my taste ! It was more for gora visitors .. aapam was good . Parotta too was good . Goat curry was the best . Atlast we tasted something keralite .. service could be better . Pretty slow.. they serve beers .. price wasn't too cheap . .. overall an average experience! read more

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The last visit was flop. Kadal curry and Butter chicken were flavorless. It was too bland. I expect spicy aroma in the Indian food. That failed. The service was very slow. They did not deliver one of what we ordered. We were not charged for it. But did not get what we wanted. read more

Kathakali - Kadal curry. - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

I ordered Goat Biryanis today from this place for the first time in 5 years. The food was ready to picked up on time and the gentleman who was helping with handing the food orders was very friendly. Now regarding the Biryanis, the food was delicious with generous portion including tons of meat which tasted good too. The only issue was with the way they packaged the order. They included that side of yogurt container which is cold inside the hot biryanis container mixed among the rice which was disgusting. It's a known fact that you don't put small plastic containers inside the food. First of all we know thus container was touched many times Friday n the stage of manufacturing to the stage of using it. These containers should stay separate and not inside the hot rice ????? I have mentioned this issue to them years ago but they refuse to correct the process. This is a health hazard so please stop doing that. Look at the picture. The Naan bread was ok. It was a good meal over all. I would have giving them 4 stars if it was not for having a plastics container inside my rice. I will go back again if they stop putting plastic in the middle of a very hot rice dish. read more

Kathakali - Goat Biryanis. Look at the plastic container inside the hot biryanis container - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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OMG!! *instantly starts drooling* This place has been open and while and based on the lines and anything new being packed so we stayed away, gave it space to breath and then kinda forgot it was there (oopsie) well the other day we decided to try it We were blown away Everything was so freakin' goooood This was (both times) pick ups so we haven't been inside the restaurant for a sit down but let's talk food Nalla molagu chicken curry - what the actual what, ugh this thing is sooooo good, spicy and slaps you in the face with flavor YOU MUST ALWAYS ORDER THIS Chicken tikka - I don't understand how you grill small pieces of chicken and they remain perfectly juicy on the inside and a yummy char on the outside Prawn pakoras - OOOHHHH MAAAAAAN I could eat 3 orders of these and still want more, nice kick to it and perfectly cooked prawns Gunpowder dosa - love the flavor of this dosa, yummy spiced potatoes on the inside with three accompanying sauces I LOVE THIS PLACE!! read more

After coming here for the second time and finding the food and the service as good as I remember it being the first time, I decided to post this review. My friend ordered the pistachio lassi and loved the subtle sweetness and the flavor. For the main course we ordered the mutton kheema curry, the spicy tilapia a fish curry , garlic nan and the raita. The mutton curry was par excellent. The mutton pieces were soft and succulent and the spices were just out of the world! The fish curry was spicy and tangy and just a treat to the senses! The garlic nan was also crisp tasty. For dessert, we shared a beetroot halwa and were blown away by the subtle sweetness and flavor. Our server was very courteous and polite. I highly recommend this restaurant. After all Indian food is much more than just chicken tikka masala! read more

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I don't know where to begin but I can say I am going back here to try other things on menu. This restaurant has been one of the best Indian restaurants I have been to in PNW. Everything we ordered was outstanding and I will recommend its a must try. Their gunpowder dosa was rich with flavors. The restaurant is quick in service and very clean. Go,Go,Go! read more

Kathakali - Nalla Molagu Chicken Curry ""Gunpowder" Dosa Meen Pollichathu spicy lamb chops - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

My friends and I stopped by Kathakali on Thanksgiving and had a great dinner! I've heard good things about it from all sorts of people, so we decided to take a trip out to Kirkland for it. The Butter Paneer was AMAZING, literally my favorite dish. The Gunpowder Dosa was really good, my first time trying dosa :) I wish there was a little more of the filling. However, the Biryani was a little dry so my friends and I weren't big fans. I would definitely want to come back, I haven't had much Kerala cuisine so I need to try more! read more

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Amazing food, one of the only Indian food spots on this side of the water that I've enjoyed. The lamb vindaloo is incredible as well as everything else I've tried! I will say that every time I have ordered on the website for pickup they forget my drink and then say that I didn't order a drink and try to charge me for it again. I always have to pull up the receipt on the website because it doesn't show on the receipt that they have. Not sure where the breakdown is there, but make sure to have your receipt ready if you're ordering for pickup so that you aren't double charged! read more

Kathakali - My boyfriend picked up food and paid for an extra lassi when I had already ordered and paid for one. - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

Without question, the best curryI have had in the PNW. Too many gold menu items to list. Excellent, friendly service too.

I was excited to try this! The curry was delicious , garlic naan bread was so good. My husband had the butter chicken, it was good but not the best. The chai tea was quite awful. The pistachio lassi wasn't that great. But the curry and garlic naan made it worth it! Service was average. The waiter didn't smile but whatever haha. I'll be back for the curry! read more

I have been meaning to check this place out for a while as it is pretty close to me but just never did until now. Place was pretty crowded so I was surprised how quickly that were able to sit us. The restaurant was seemed smaller at first but had a decent amount of seating in the back. The place is clean and very cute. A good variety on their menu with a lot of foods I never tried, including a larger selection of vegetarian options. My partner got the Chicken Masala and I had the Paneer Butter Masala. They were delicious! Great flavor with a good level of spice. The garlic naan was soft with a nice crisp to it in the edges. Service was friendly and relatively fast considering how packed the place was. The owner was checking in with all the customers and working on the floor with the waiters. Had a great experience overall here. Will be coming back again and definitely recommend coming in for a visit. read more

Very very good Indian food-- we got the Chicken Tikka and Butter Chicken paired with the shrimp pakora. Wish they would have saag panner as an option (that's always our go to). read more

Finally got to come here with a friend and was excited to try some dishes! I ordered the chakka thoron dosa and a pistachio lassi (which I'd never seen before, it was very yogurty). I didn't realize it was going to be as spicy as it was! (Yes I'm weak) but it was delicious and the dosa is as comically large as I wanted it to be. And every bit as tasty! My friends ordered Palakkad avial and nalla molagu chemeen curry (I think?). The shrimp in the latter were amazing according to the person who ordered it, but he's a bigger lightweight on spice than I am so he suffered more haha. The former I enjoyed a lot and overall my friend said the food was very good and reminiscent of india. We were full but got dessert anyway, and ordered pal parotta and dates apple pradhaman. The first was very crispy-crunchy and drenched in condensed milk, very delicious. The second one was reminiscent to me of red bean soup from China, somehow, while having a cardamom kick. Also tasty, and warming. (I didn't eat much of either though, from how full I already was.) The only thing was that it was hard to grab a waiter for additional items like the lassi (I ordered after I started eating and it was hot) and the dessert, and then the check later. I'll be back to try some more food for sure! read more

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The service was fast. We loved absolutely everything that we ordered from this place. It is one of our favorites.

Food was so good! Service was quick! The place did feel a bit crowded as they placed two of us next to a couple and the place are very small. Otherwise i would highly recommend this place for the food and the variety! read more

Kathakali - Paneeer Tikka - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

Came here based on a recommendation and to be fair I've definitely had better South Indian food, however Kathakali is probably the best for Kirkland. Authentic compared to most Indian restaurants, and with lots of open seating, read up on the reviews and order whatever is best liked, as this place follows a traditional Keralan menu. Definitely do order the vada appetizer. It comes with coconut chutney and was delicious! Nice and crispy and paired excellently with our dosas. The pistachio lassi I ordered was probably the highlight of the meal, tasting perfectly sour and sweet at the same time, and I didn't miss the mango. The dosas definitely could use a better variety with chutneys (i.e peanut and tomato) but overall pretty standard! read more

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Absolutely love this place! I dropped by here with a friend on a Wednesday evening around 6pm. It wasn't busy at all when we got there. However, after we got there it became super busy. We ordered the "gunpowder" dosa, chakka potato stew, and nalla molagu chicken curry. It was more than enough food for the two of us. We had to take some home after. My favorite was the chakka potato stew. It was so creamy and flavorful with the potato and jackfruit combined throughout. There were so many other dishes I wanted to try so I'd come back again for sure! It is a little on the pricey end with the meal+tip costing over $60 for the three items. But it's a special treat once in a while for sure! read more

Kathakali - "Gunpowder" dosa - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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We were near the farmers market and wanted dinner so decided to check this place out. The ordering process was easy and smooth and the people are pretty nice. We got one of the breads as the appetizer (malabar parota) and it was good. Flaky and soft, similar to a roti. It went well with the sauces and curry. The main dish was the fish cooked in the banana leaf. It seem like the most popular dish so we wanted to check it out. This dish was decent as well, definitely on the spicy side and it was cooked well. The 3 star is mostly the price. The fish dish was $18 and it was small, like 1 piece of fillet and that was it. If the food was outstanding or spectacular, I would understand the high price for the small quantity, but it was pretty standard. read more

Kathakali - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington

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Food 5/5 1) Parippu Vadai - solid - similar to a falafel, crispy, nutty, slightly spicy 2) Meen Pollichathu - delicious - Heavily spiced flaky white fish w/a good amount of heat. The table next to us loved it as well. 3) Gunpowder dosa - solid - classic slightly spicy potato dosa w/chutneys 4) Mango pulisery - delicious - This hit the spot for me. This was creamy, slightly sweet, slightly spicy, and refreshing. This was just delightful. 5) Chakka ice-cream - delicious - Creamy, sweet, fruity, nutty, and fragrant w/bits of jackfruit and cashews to add textural variety. Loved it. read more

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One of the best Indian places on the Eastside. I ordered the gunpowder dosa and the nalla molagu chicken curry. While I enjoyed both of the items I ordered the nalla molagu chicken was by far my favorite because it was both flavorful and spicy. I enjoyed the dosa but I felt that the batter was a little salty at places. But otherwise good! read more

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Really impressed with all the dishes here, great prices, and good service. It was a bit hot on the day we came in, but the staff was kind enough to let us switch tables. read more

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Diverse menu with other options than regular South Indian restaurants. Menu is vegetarian and vegan friendly. They don't take reservations. They're family friendly and have a casual atmosphere. The only reason I gave it a 4 star was the cost. Some items on their menu seem quite expensive for what is served - (example Adai and Idiyappan) I'm glad we tried this place read more

Big fan of this spot just walking distance from Juanita beach park. My family has been here before but it was my first time trying the food here and I was impressed! I loved the flavor of the basil spinach dosa and also how unique of a dish it was. We also got a chicken curry that was super spicy but that's my own fault for not asking for it to be mild. I also ordered a rose mocktail which was overly syrupy so I might skip that next time. I really enjoyed the food here, and the service was quick! Only downside is the limited parking :/ read more

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

Kathakali has shown up on some lists when I have searched for Indian food in various places. I wanted to try it since it was specific to a region (Kerala) which is known for spicy food. We arrived fairly early on a Saturday and it was already busy with dine-in and take-out. Our server seemed concerned when I ordered the Kasargod Chemeen Masala (spicy shrimp dish with chillies, garlic and spices in a tomato base). I told her I would order a side of raita to save myself! We also ordered a "gunpowder" dosa, Vegetable Ishtoo and Malabar Parotta. Spouse also insisted on his standard tandoori chicken. I can see why the server warned us! The shrimp curry was fire, but also delicious. The actual shrimp seemed slightly overcooked, but we took the container of sauce home to used sparingly on rice later. The dosa was definitely my favorite dish. I wanted it all for myself, but shared of course. I liked the Ishtoo, but I had just made one from Meera Sodha's Fresh India book, and her recipes are kind of hard to beat. Service is brisk, and the environment is pleasant enough for eating in. I would definitely return to try more of their unique dishes you don't see at every Indian restaurant. read more

Me and my husband wanted try this since sometime and friends recommended it too. Exquisite kerala style South Indian food. Everything that we ordered was delicious! What we ate: Parippu vadai , comes with coconut chutney (shared) Chakka thoran dosa - absolutely loved the jackfruit/ coconut filling it comes with (found it better than the usual potato masala) - their chutneys and sambhar were on point (shared) I ordered Palakkad Avial for my vegetarian curry, comes with rice. My husband ordered Lobster coconut curry with Kerala Parota. We both loved what we ordered! Also tried the different Indian beers they had and my favorite was 1947. The dessert options are as interesting as the rest of the menu. We tried their Chaka Ela Ada and liked that. Can't wait to come back and try more things. I'm already eyeing kerala appam and jackfruit ice cream!! The restaurant opens at 5 pm for dinner and we reached around 5:15 for an early dinner. The place was packed and busy by 5:45. Highly recommend coming early and have a feast. The service is quick! For curries, they gave us a heads up when we ordered that it'll take 25 mins because the kitchen was busy. So we were mentally prepared and ordered another beer to try The interiors and seating is basic, nothing fancy. Their focus is on food and service. The Juanita beach and bay park are closely to walk before/ after the meal. read more

Highly recommend the Gunpowder Dosa. The dosa was outstanding, crispy and thin. Loved the Gunpowder masala and aloo masala. The flavor was balanced and on point. Was impressed with the coconut chutney and Sambhar too I wished they had filter coffee in their menu as well :/ Moreover , the service was fairly quick read more

Great place to try authentic Kerala food! We have been coming here for all our special events and celebrations! Love their Ishtoo & Idiyappam combo :) Small place. Fills up pretty fast. Parking is also limited. Food, Decor and ambiance wise will give this place a 5 Star review. Will visit again! read more

Kathakali - Jack fruit ice cream - Indian Near Me - Kirkland, Washington