A weekday visit turned out to be an excellent tactical decision - no crowds, swift service, and zero chaos. The chaos, however, was entirely self-inflicted: eight opinionated adults staring at a menu where everything looked good is a recipe for collective disaster. Our server, bless him, stepped in like a professional mediator and steered us toward some solid choices. The food arrived hot and largely delivered on its promise. Largely. The Poori Aloo, while perfectly edible, lacked a certain - as our Punjabi taste buds put it, rather bluntly: the oomph. The Amritsari Kulcha, meanwhile, seems to have had a bit of an identity crisis - it showed up tasting like an Aloo Parantha. For anyone who's had the real deal in Amritsar, this one may prompt a moment of reflection. Everything else, however, was genuinely enjoyable and the menu is a vegetarian's dream come true. Minor culinary debates aside, it's absolutely worth a visit. read more

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We visited Kesar after a fun-filled day at Six flags. Everyone in our group were super hungry so we inhaled the chaats as soon as they arrived so no pictures :( The service was quick but the chaats were lacking some flavor. The server suggested the specials for the day and we ordered two of them - Tandoori Soya Chaap (appetizer) & Paneer Angara (curry). Tandoori Soya Chaap was 10/10. Main course: Paneer Angara - no where close to the actual dish. It was more like Paneer Kadhai. Methi Malai Paneer, I would rate a 6.5/10. Naans were good. Dal Tadka (not in picture) was good as well but missed tadka. Overall, we were kinda satisfied. Would definitely be coming back for Tandoori Soya Chaap. Huge parking lot, quick service! read more

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We were here on a weekday. The place had 2 othe tables besides us. We ordered multiple chats and Choley bhaturay from their menu. All chats were average and came out very fast. Which only meant that much of it was pre-prepared. The yogurt was freezing cold. Choley bhaturay was average and I think they forgot to hwat ir properly. It was cold. Not very impressed. read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Wednesday lunch - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

Drove to NJ for a thali! Loved everything. Each curry had a distinct flavor. For instance, got chole bhature and amristari thali and kids' thali. The paneer curry was rich and creamy, while the aloo sabji was mildly spicy. Raj khachori was exceptional. Maharaja thali is something to go for if you are coming here as a big group. Great service! read more

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As others mentioned, management is very rude and service is poor. Flavors are just ok. Portions are small for the price compared to reputable and nicer established Indian restaurants in the area. Reminds me it doesn't always pay to support local businesses when they could care less about customers or repeat business. The emptiness during peak hours reflects that. read more

So many different vegetarian Thalis so little time to try them all. I went to this Jersey restaurant for my dad's birthday. The front of the store sells a ton of Indian desserts. The back has booths and tables for their restaurant. In winter, I suggest not sitting near the front of the store. It got pretty cold up there every time someone opened the door (even with the heater over the doorway to help bring hot air in). My mom got the Gujarati Thali. I got the Punjabi Thali. My dad got the Kesar's Special Thali. I will speak for the Punjabi Thali only since that is what I mostly tried. All came with so many different vegetarian sides. The Punjabi thali has paneer makhni which was delicious. The Chana masala was the perfect spice level. I really liked the naan was well. read more

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I don't get the rave reviews this place has received. We came here for lunch after shopping at Patel East Windsor. We ordered pav bhaji and chole Bhature and both items were below mediocre. Forget close to Indian food standards, they were bland, tasteless and lukewarm. Service was ok. Overall, I'd rather go to Princeton for better places. Would not recommend. read more

A great spot for Indian vegeterian food. The service is very fast. The staff is very nice and very sweet. You'll feel welcomed here and the food is definitely amazing. It's a clean and kids friendly place. Every food item we ordered from chaat, thali, al carte dishes, chai and mithai - everything taste so good. read more

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May 2026 worst experience. i will never ever visit this place again. very friendly asked do you have pasta. response i got open the menu and see. so, dont talk to us,we are not interested. asked for green salad- just tomato and cucumber.said no we cant give. asked for roasted papad, same response. claim that they have tea and coffee. asked for machine tea, said we cant give now. everytime they make you feel that they oblidge us.not at all interested to serve food. still i havent come to food section,that is also worst. Terrible service and terrible food. read more

It has many options and variety of thaalis. But what is in the thaali? That is the question and that helps make the decision. For example the maharaja has multiple katoris, but some items seem a repeat, some have one paneer piece or one kofta. Why make such a fan fair just to reduce the quantity. Granted, no one can eat it all, but that is not the point; It is about integrity. Over the years, Indians have given up taste, authenticity for convenience and just eat anywhere. I am disappointed as when Kesar first opened, we enjoyed our food served by the owner from Jullunder and his wife while little Kesar was there sometimes read more

Group by 5 driving from DC to New York we decided to stop by Kesars' Thali after looking for restaurants on our drive map. The pictures of Huge Thali really caught our attention. The Maharaja Thali was $99 and we were told only 4 people can share so we were forced to order another meal for 5th person. We ordered another chat Thali for 15$ since there were no chat items in Maharaja Thali. We had 2 older people who do not have an large apatite so the thali was a lot for 5 of us. It was very odd where restaurant gets to decide how many people eat an dish that is a la carte and limited. It would make sense if its a Buffet or there are refills on the thali. Now Maharaja Thali had a lot items from different cuisines including puris , naans , different curries , dals , rice, dessert , chaas. Some of items were really good but most items were very mediocre to bland. But again, this more of an experience than filling our tummy so we enjoyed it. The food however was alright ! read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Maharaja Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

We tried out the Kesar in East Windsor this weekend. Friendly service. We were seated at a table towards the back. He ordered a Chai tea and I got a Masala Soda. For our meal, we ordered the Punjabi Thali and a Aloo Gobi Tadka. When you order a thali, you have a choice to get naan, roti, or 4 poori. We went with the poori option (I was a fan of the puffy fried bread; my hubs wasn't as much). We also ordered the assorted bread basket, which comes with butter naan, roti, and garlic naan (the butter naan was my favorite of the three). The Aloo Gobi was the winner and would be the repeat order for us; great flavors and satisfying. read more

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Kesar's serves up a mixed menu of North and South Indian Vegetarian Dishes. Everything from Punjabi entrees of Aloo Gobi and Dal Makhni to Dosa specialties of the south and street food of Mumbai encompasses the all vegetarian menu. A nice mix of food and regions offered at very reasonable prices. The reviews seem very mixed, but I have only had great experiences here with the food and will continue to dine in and take-out from this authentic establishment. If you are a lover of Indian food, go with the Thali! The Punjabi Thali is our favorite. It includes a great selection of Punjabi classics to satisfy your palette. Not many restaurants are able to get my classic favorite, Saag and Maki Roti (spinach and corn roti), correct but Kesar's nails it. The saag is so good that even my mother, an amazing cook, loves it. The establishment is very casual with large booths as well as table seating. The walls are adorned with Indian classical art as well as music to set the tone for your Indian meal read more

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Friendly and nice staff. Bhindi Masala, Methi, Malai Paneer and Mah-do-Daal and Tandoori Roti were great last night Enjoy these dishes.

Tried this place with a colleague and there aren't enough kind words to use to describe the food here. We ordered a few things that I never tried before and I was absolutely blown away. The flavors, the spices, the textures, smell and so one and so forth were all perfect! I am looking forward to trying everything on the menu! read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - The end result - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

We want to try this place as one of our friends suggested this place for a North Indian thali food. We didn't try the Maharaja thali but ordered several combinations of thali like Punjabi, Kesar Speciali thali, Panch Chat thali, Kids Thali , Hara Bara Paratha, masala soda, Lassi etc. We drove an hour and a half, by the way. We were able to park as this small shopping center had ample parking. We were greeted on arrival, and I requested a booth as tabled seem congested. It was originally denied, and then later they accommodated the request, then we moved to the booth. We started off with paani poori, and it was on spicier side l, but it was tasty and presented well. Paanch Chaat thaali is probably the best of all it tasted delicious, and the presentation was wonderful. Everybody enjoyed the varieties of chaat. Punjabi Thaali because presented very well I ordered it with four poori and it was delicious with the chana masala. The eggplant sabzi was the best. The dal tasted amazing, too. Special Kesar Thali was great, too. Jadi pakora was delicious. Kids thali wad perfect for kids to enjoy.. Masala soda was great and bought back memories. My next favorite was Hara Bhara Paratha twins perfectly made and served hot, rest all food was cold... The only negative is that the food was not hot. I felt it cold..... read more

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I am surprised at all the glorious reviews tbh, we stopped at Kesar for lunch on a friend's recommendation. The restaurant parking has plenty of spots, and the interiors looked decent. We ordered two thallis - Punjabi and Amritsar thalli. While the kulcha was moist and freshly rolled out, it lacked salt. The chole curry, paneer curry were okay, nothing special. Overall, expected a lot more looking at the reviews but was disappointed with the actual end product. read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Amritsari Kulcha Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

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So, we were very hungry after a long day of shopping and decided to go to Kesar. We ordered : * Dal Makhani * Malai Kofta * Tandoori Roti * Paneer Bhurji * Jeera Rice * Rasgulla * Mango Lassi * Masala soda Yes yes yes, we ordered too much as we were very hungry. The food was definitely made fresh, every item we order was very tasty . Dal makhani had that authentic smokey flavor and the creaminess of butter and cream. Malai Koftas were soft and tender dunked in perfect combination of tangy, flavorful spices and a slight touch of sweetness creamy gravy. The Paneer bhurji was so delicious and the taste of paneer was very fresh and tasted just like homemade paneer. I love their masala soda. I am giving it a 4.5 stars because we had to wait for a bit to check out. read more

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Perfect start for the weekend. Friday evenings are the most waited evening in the entire week, you don't enjoy Saturday and Sunday more than Friday evening, and you know what makes it more happening, is utterly butterly delicious food and Kesar is making sure that you're going to enjoy every bit of it. First of all I would like to appreciate the cleanliness they have maintained in the restaurant. The staff is friendly and make sure they make the changes as per the customer demands. Coming to the main part, for appetizers we started with sev batata poori, kachori chaat and Vada Pav. Mine fav was Kachori chaat. Vada Pav could have been better. For the main course we ordered two thalis. A Punjabi one and a Rajasthani one. We have a vegan friend with and that's where Kesar make it sure to adjust vegetarian options with vegan. I was happy the way they have taken care of it. They replaced paneer with saag aalu and aalu gobhi. I ordered Rajasthani thali and I was completely satisfied with the taste. I had the best besan gatte sabji in years and I am making sure I am visiting them soon to enjoy the rest of the items. For take away we took Jalebi and Emarti. That was fresh and tasty. Thank you for the hospitality and keep serving the best food. Cheers and love, Amey! read more

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I rarely give 5 stars and this is one such place . Very good food . First time in NJ we experienced the MAHARAJA THALI. 36 items . 70$ but 5 of us ate . Something different . Wish they had an ice cream and some more sweets in the maharaja thali... Kids thali was also good . Nice and courteous service. Quick service too. Lots of parking available and lots of tables to sit. They also have a banquet hall if someone is interested. See my full here: https://youtu.be/H66qveXg7so Well done whole team :) read more

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Best Indian food I ever had ! Everything was so fresh. Restaurant was very well kept and staff was very attentive. read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Kathiyawadi Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

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Wow the Thali's were soo yummy. Each sabji was delicious and spice level was good! The service was quick, the employees were friendly. Music was nice. Ambiance was cool, good location in a plaza. Definitely recommend read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

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Great food, friendly service, very affordable! The desserts were unbelievable ! Will definitely be back!

We ordered 4 different thalis and enjoyed the awesome food . The service was superb too along with their ambiance. Each and every item in the thalis were cooked perfectly. The quantity and quality both are very good . read more

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this is a great family place to have a feast! if you dont know what to get, then order EVERYTHING with the Maharaja Thali!

Very Nice ,Food ,Service Ambiance Definitely I'll visit again with Family There Chole Bhature I try at Guru dwara Sahib read more

Kesar is our go to place when we are vegetarian and today my husband went to dine for palak Paneer and packed left over for home. While eating i discovered something like this in pic. I won't be able to go there again after this. It's extremely upsetting where food is not taken seriously... I am so discussed when i actually took this thing out of my mouth. done puking with one round. Please inspect your kitchen and please keep your food covered read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Palak Paneer - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

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One word - Maharaja Thali Reading review that was what attracted me to this place. Literally the size of the entire table and filled with a variety of dishes, sides, and sweets, it is the feast fit for a king. Along with the thali we ordered a gobi 65 and it was enough to feed 4 hungry people. The Maharaja thali is a combo of all the other thalis they have. Food was delicious and hot however it does take a bit to be prepared. Ambiance is nice but I was more impressed with the cleanliness! read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Kesar's Maharaja Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

We (4 adults and 2 kids) came to Kesar's after hearing great reviews. We were extremely hungry and decided to try out the Maharaja Thali. The Thali does stay up to its name by the looks of it and that's pretty much where it ends (to sum it all up). The thali is supposed to be only shared by max. 4 people (irrespective of the age of people sharing it). We were asked to order a separate item for the kids. When we asked the reason, we were told - "they are here for making business". Now regarding the food itself, the Thali (like some other reviews mentioned) is a limited thali and comes with 15 sabzi's which are a mix of Punjabi, Gujarati, Rajasthani and Amritsari. Basically all the other Thalis that they sell are combined into this one. The food itself was served cold and did not have any taste. It was nowhere close to any authenticity. Most of the gravies were repeating with minor changes. The one appetizer that it came up (bread pakoras) was dripping oil and stinky. It also came with one desert (Gulab Jambus) Basically the Thali is not worth it for the price and is a one time show. read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Maharaja Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

Poor quality food and service. Ambiance was nice. First of all, when we walked in we were told we can't sit in the booth as they might get other customers. Red flag, means we are not that important. We ordered chat thali and chili bhaji, it was ok. Then each of us (4 people) ordered different thali: Punjabi, Amritsari, gujrati, and special. All of them were so bad. It felt like boxed food. Except naan. They were the highlight. Soft, fluffy, and edible. Their masala lassi was pure yogurt (same yogurt came in each thali). Would I go back? Probably not. At least not with my willingness. read more

Kesar's is open on Mondays! It's kinda hard to find great Indian food in the general vicinity on a Monday. It seems to be the norm that most are closed on Mondays. Kesar's has great appetizers and some of these plates come with a lot of food so definitely bring some family or friends. Personally my favorite, the Gobi Manchurian, is cut large and tender. The sauce is perfectly spiced; salty, oniony, sweet and sour. This is one of my favorite dishes in a South Indian restaurant and this version was certainly a good choice for an appetizer. The Mirchi Bhaji, aka thick battered fried Jalapeño, for those that love spicy, especially since the seeds of the jalapeño are not removed, is a nice crunchy and spicy option. If you are a Chaat fan, the Paanch Chaat Thali appetizer comes with Bhel Poori Chaat, Pani Poori, Sev Poori, and Aloo Papri Chaat is delicious. This is a very good appetizer to share among 2-4 people. Finally the Samosa Chaat appetizer was a smaller portion, just right for one to two people. The broken up pieces of samosa provide just a little contrasting texture to the tender chickpeas. The Tandoori Paneer Tikka Sizzler was presented well and came out on a sizzling platter. The Paneer was cut in large slices and was accompanied by raw onions, cilantro, and cabbage underneath. Paneer generally speaking to me is kinda bland and this version did not seem to have been given sufficient time to absorb flavors. The exterior of the Paneer didn't really take enough, the Tandoori flavor on the platter and while the onions provided some benefit, it wasn't enough. This was a good dish but not extraordinary. The thali's here are really great. Kesar's Special Thali is a fulfilling meal. It may not look like much but at the end of your meal, you will be full for a variety of reasons. First, you have the option of choosing several different bread options, including Naan, Roti or my personal favorite, Poori, a deep fried "puffy" bread. In this order, there were 4 Poori that came in the Thali. It came with a variety of small bowls including Shaam Savera, Dal Makhni, Punjabi Kari Pakora and Kesar's Special Subzi, which was on the occasion I went, a spiced cauliflower/potato mixture. Of the small bowls, the Shaam Savera was rich and reminded me much of a Tikka Masala. The desserts options are fantastic here and offer options outside of the standard Golub Jamon. The Masala Chai is thick and rich. It might be a skip due to the other fantastic after dinner options. Finally the staff are friendly and will take time to answer any and all your questions. read more

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We just happened to be in the area with our friends and found this place. Just random pick and we were pleasantly surprised. Food is amazing. We shared maharaja Thali and it was full of variety and flavors. We enjoyed it a lot. We also packed Samosa, bhajji and some Indian sweets to go. Would highly recommend it for Indian vegetarian food. Five starts to this place and I will definitely go back. I am updating this review for their Samosa NS mirchi pakoda as I took it to go and had it in the evening same day. It was very oily. And mirchi pakoda batter was too thick and mirchi was super spicy. So may be not the best for samosa and pakoda but again I loved the Thali and all the sweets I took which includes chum chum, motichoor ladoo and few more. read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Kesar's Maharaja Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

This place is known for its thali, especially Maharaja thali because of its size and variety of dishes. it was quite fun sharing this thali with 4 of us which gave us a sense of communal dinning. The Maharaja Thai comes with chaas, poori, different types of naan and almost 15 different vegetables sabji. This was the most exciting part as you get to taste the restaurants most of the menu. However, this is where I had issues. In those 15 different vegetable bowls, most of them had the same creamy base with just different proteins. Some of them were too sweet for my pallet and lacked flavor. We were never asked for customization as well. The only vegetable that I loved was the baingan ka Barta. It was extremely tasty and Smokey. Their pakoras were delicious too. I also liked their pulav as the rice was perfectly cooked and was well balanced. Serious issues: 1. When we entered, no one checked our temperature and we were directly seated at the table. However, only the alternate tables were open so that gave us a bit of comfort. 2. Ladies washroom was clogged and had no toilet paper. Overall it was an intriguing experience and looks great on the Instagram but the food doesn't live up to the optics! read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Kesar's Maharaja Thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

really good indian comfort food, the chole bhature were the best! flavorful food and the staff is welcoming read more

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Despite one person still eating, they incessantly kept rushing us. It's a wonder this dump hasn't sunk under the weight of its abysmal service. Absolutely disgraceful, a real testament to incompetence. read more

We went on a recommendation so wanted to try it out. Food felt very homely as we ordered various Thalis, flavor was okay nothing extraordinary. But on the positive side it wasn't oily and greasy like other restaurants but some curries were not well cooked and flavor was average or below we all felt. Service was not bad, as people serving us were very eager to serve and nice. Although we all felt very rushed to order as soon as we sat down. Ambiance wise it's a nice place overall but avoid sitting in booth as the backrest of the booth was wobbly and shared with folks on the other side of the backrest and was very uncomfortable to sit. Try out once if you like but we were not too thrilled and food is not that cheap so wanted to share our honest experience. read more

As a vegetarian, I'm not used to having so many options at a restaurant so coming to Kesar's was a really exciting change! The food itself was great -- well flavored and warm. The soy chaaps (both tandoori and with curry) were a standout. My mom enjoyed the Rajasthani thali. It gave her great variety. The daal was sweeter than she is used to so be mindful if you prefer savory daal. The roomali roti was a little thicker than a traditional preparation. Our server was very patient and gave us some recs which worked out well. The inside is pretty cute. It's a great option for bringing family when they're visiting the area. Will definitely be back! read more

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One of the best vegetarian places around. Ordered pav bhaji, chole bathure, kesar thali and malpua Rabri. Every item was a delight. Will definitely visit again. read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Kesar thali - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

Being last day of Spring Break we drove with kids from Edison to Kesar in East Windsor for the experience of Maharaja Thali. Our Experience: On Entrance we were greated by a gentleman from restaurant industry, i guess seen him in moghul before. The person who took order with no custome service and smile did not inform maharaja thali will take long We waited for over 30 mins to ask for food ended with arguement First item we picked was bread pakora, hard and old and we went on to next item leaving that alone(Potato mixture was tastless). All Other items were not even warm forget being hot and were tastless. Kids were hungry and we continued with our meals We did not complain as there were other people there did not want to spoil the atmosphere there. We reached home and my Son has fallen sick after eating such food, he is vomiting and loosies too. Taking him to ER. That one star is for that uncle who was the only one with a smile and others possibly had a fight with their girlfriend or wife. Good luck to those who visit... read more

Kesar’s-An Indian Thali - Today 4/24/22. At 2.50 pm - Indian Near Me - East Windsor, New Jersey

I liked their Rajasthani Thali. It had Bajra roti, bengan bharta, dessert, daal. Still it wasn't authentic rajasthani thali which includes besan gatta , churma in it but yeah kind of close. read more