Located in Poway by the movie theater and Board and Brew. This was my favorite Indian restaurant in North County (I have tried several). I have been coming here for several years. However, recently in Fall of 2025, the menu got cut back by many items. Saag Paneer is no longer available. I'm so sad. A long time ago hyderabodi vegetables was also my favorite, another item cut from the menu. Perhaps blame the demographics. If people in the area do not want variety and authentic indian food, and are ordering dulled down versions, with no spices or flavor. Perhaps its my opinion, but please keep authentic as it was. I would love to keep supporting this mom and pops. It's still tasty, food comes out pretty fast but is made fresh. Plenty of parking. read more

This place has unfortunately really gone down hill over the years. Doesn't seem they ever recovered from the pandemic take-out only era, even though they still reside in this prime spot in downtown Poway at the Creekside Plaza. First, the good/okay: The food is still pretty tasty and priced about what you'd expect. One $16 entree and a rice will feed two. You will have leftovers between two adults ordering the $39 family feast. If you have a craving and are ordering delivery or take-out for two or more, you will probably be pretty satisfied. Now, the bad/ugly: The sit-down restaurant experience has become absolutely abysmal. I ordered the $39 "family feast" which comes with one appetizer, two entrees with two drinks. For those drinks, however, all that was on offer was either refrigerated cans of Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, or Sprite, or...room temperature bottles of water. I asked for additional cups of water (eating with my three kids) and was directed to a table of filthy glasses and a drink dispenser of room temperature tap(!) water (see attached picture). Also, it wouldn't be a big deal otherwise, but having to transfer the food from the disposable takeout containers to the dining ware isn't helping the ambience. One last nice-to-have would have been a...erm...less...authentic (i.e. non-spicy) kids' option. Too spicy for li'ls. I would happily revise my review if they started trying to be a decent dine-in restaurant again which would start with clean glasses, filtered water, and an ice machine. read more

Tikka Lounge - Room temperature tap water in a clean(?) cup - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

My husband was craving Indian food and we were in the Poway area so we decided to have dinner here. Service was good and the food was better than we expected. We ordered the chicken vindaloo and the dum ka chicken. Full of flavor and spicy! We ordered the $30 family meal and there was enough food for lunch the next day. We ordered the garlic naan and the garlic chili naan. Both were SO good though I wish they were a little thicker. read more

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I stopped by to grab a large takeout order on Father's Day. They really fill the takeout containers to the brim, which is awesome. I thought the food was delicious, but my dad thought it was a little too spicy, so I sort of wish they had a "zero spicy" option. They have several options listed as vegan on the menu, which was awesome for my parents. I ordered the aloo gobi, Chana masala, bhindi masala, roti, rice, pani puri, vegetable samosas, and the vegetable pakora. While everything was good, our favorites were the pakora and the bhindi masala. The okra was perfectly cooked and they just burst in your mouth. We loved it! The pakora are so tasty and are kind of like hush puppies. So good! I also really liked the potato mixture for the pani puri - it was sort of like potato salad and so good! I really like the food here and loved having leftovers the next day too. read more

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The food is delicious, don't get me wrong. But this is now twice that I've ordered online for pickup and they've been closed. I now have to open another claim with my bank to get my money back. There has to be a way for them to turn off online ordering when they decide to close for a random day. read more

Came in for lunch and wound up doing the all you can eat lunch special! Amazing deal at only $14 and includes favorites like butter chicken, garlic naan and samosas. It is self service but food was regularly refilled. It is a little hot inside and water was not cold so did get a little stuffy but overall great deal! read more

Tikka Lounge - All you can eat lunch special - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

Clean and my kids like the food. We usually get the Family Feast. That's a winner. Service is fast as well. read more

Tikka Lounge - Updated menu as of date of post - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

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I used to come here often for lunch because the food is good, but I'm done. Their posted hours say they close at 2:30, yet for the third time I showed up around 1:45 only to be told they were already closed because "the boss is gone" or "the machine isn't working." If you can't stick to your own hours, don't post them. Really disappointing--this used to be my regular spot, but I won't be going back. Such a waste of time!! read more

Felt like getting some Indian food for dinner and I used to go here when it was the prior owners. Parked at 4pm on a Tuesday and the place looked closed. The hours said open until 9pm so I tried the door, It opened and I walked in. Absolute silence and 4 people sleeping on the benches. Turned around and slowly walked out. absolutely wild. read more

Tikka Lounge - having a sleep - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

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The service here is interesting, to say the least... Their menu on Yelp is not accurate, as many of the items that we requested were not on the actual menu in the restaurant. Some guy shoved a menu in our face and said, "No! Order here..." We were relegated to just ordering the same couple of items for everyone in our group. The Chicken Tikka Masala and Butter Chicken Masala were nearly identical. It was very difficult to tell the difference between these two dishes. However, they were good. There was plenty of chicken, and the creamy tomato base was very savory. The Chicken Tikka Masala Wrap was even better. This should be highlighted by the restaurant as their signature item. It not only had an abundance of chicken overflowing in the wrap, but the addition of red and green bell peppers with onions made this dish... Just imagine adding fajitas to Chicken Tikka Masala. It really improved the texture and the flavor of the wrap. I gave them 3 stars instead of 4 stars, because of the service. It got the night off on the wrong foot and frustrated us a little bit before our dinner... It would behoove them to put a smile on their faces and be a little kinder to their customers, then this place would possibly get more repeat customers. read more

The food was great overall. Service is good but ambiance is great. I will come again for the food. read more

They need to update their online menu price. The actual price is more expensive than what they have in their online menu. Understand that the cost of everything is high so need to update the online menu otherwise it looks dishonest to have a lower price in the online menu and then charge more when the customers come to pick the order. Food quality is pretty good, no complaint there. read more

This place is not bad if you're really craving Indian food. It's mediocre IMO. I ordered Garlic Naan, Butter Chicken, Chicken Tikka Masala, and Goat Pulao (since it's the closest thing they have for Biryani). Kinda sad how they don't have Biryani. Garlic Naan was okay. It was as fluffy, a bit elastic, but super garlicky flavor. They're butter chicken is super soft, but the chicken almost tasted fake. The sauce is also good but it also tasted like straight from a can and they just recooked it and add more spices to it. They're chicken tikka masala was good. Their goat pulao though... hmm. Kinda sus. I've been eating goat since I was young but some reason the meat on this DID NOT taste like goat. Maybe 2 pieces were but the rest tasted like beef. I like the spicy kick to it though, super flavorful. Service was okay. The place is small. Feels a little intimidating sitting there to eat. read more

Tikka Lounge - Goat Pulao - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

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This place changes the closing times as the please. I went into the restaurant today at 1pm and a male employee said " we are closed early today " when l asked why he say nothing I asked where are the hours posted ? He said nothing. They advised lunch hours from 11am to 2:30 however it is not the first time they change hours without letting the public, customer know or posted new hours sign. It is not the first time ! I think they don't want to sell their $9.99 lunch special! BAD BUSINESS. read more

This place is very inconsistent with their times. I called at 1:45 and asked when they were closing and they said 2:30. I called back to order a to go order at 2:08 and no one answered. My husband went there and the sign said open but the door was locked. The worker came out and said they were closed despite what they just had told on the phone and what their sign says. He said what the boss says goes. This is not the first time we have went there and they are closed regardless of the posted signs. Pretty inconsiderate business practice. We enjoy the food but not at the whim of what they feel their hours should be at any given moment. We will take our money to another Indian restaurant who values our business. read more

This place is the only Indian restaurant in Poway. It has everything and affordable. A variety of selection for vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Plenty of parking, indoor dining and tables outside. I got vegetable korma, tikka masala samosa, vegetable samosa, garlic naan and roti. Both samosas are fried and comes with mint and tamarind chutney. The vegetable one is stuffed with potatoes and come in 2 large pieces. The tikka masala samosa is layered in sauce and stuffed with vegetables and potatoes. It comes in about 6 small pieces. I got garlic naan and roti. Both are breads. Roti is unleavened and naan is leavened which means that it uses a raising agent where as roti is not so it's flat. Both came out flat and tastes the same. The naan wasn't puffy anymore and came out flat. Vegetable korma came with rice. It's creamy and you could taste the nutty flavors. Had a bunch of vegetables, potatoes, cauliflower, carrots, and snap peas. read more

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Soo much smaller then before. Hardly non of the filling and mostly the fried samosa dough. It was good but not for the tiny rationed mini bites. I am disappointed to say... I have to go elsewhere for a decent more traditional size samosa. Shown in the photo is the size of the samosas. About 1 inch in length and width. I remember the samosas being almost doubled or about 3 inches wide. Pay more but get less. read more

Tikka Lounge - Samosa order 10.75$ - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

My grandson told me he would love curry tonight so we went to Creekside Plaza off Poway Road to Tikka Lounge, located between Subway and Crumble Cookie. We had the family feast with two garlic Nan and two fantastic curries: Tikka Chicken Marcela and Dum Ka Chicken a tomato based red curry. Both curries were almost perfect in texture and taste and the Nan was fantastic. The curry was so good we each needed a second bowl of tandoori rice to take full advantage of their thick deliciousness. It was one of the best curry dining experiences ever in regards to flavor and value and we both highly recommend it read more

Tikka Lounge - We had a family Feast: fantastic Chicken Tikka Marsala and Dum Ka Chicken, a red tomato based curry and 2 x garlic nan - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

Best indian food in san diego i've tried. Service isnt the most amazing but I personally don't care as long as the food is great. Mango lassie and garlic naan is super good. read more

My wife was out/town, so I decided to grab some takeout after a quick Costco run. I called ahead to place my order. The guy answering the phone only said "Hello", so I wasn't quite sure if I was calling a restaurant or not. When I arrived a few minutes later, the same dude at the front counter was so indifferent, told me that food wasn't ready yet, and when it was, he put it own the counter and I thanked him, with no reaction (nod, thank you, smile, etc.) from him. I really don't it when basic customer service is lacking. The food was nothing to write home about, so I don't think I'll be coming back despite its convenient location. read more

Stopped here today while my car was being serviced at Toyota. I ordered my usual--Tikka Masala and garlic naan. The garlic naan was amazing! Super soft and with just the right amount of flavor. The serving size was also HUGE! The tikka Masala was also creamy and delicious. It went perfectly with the rice. The serving was plentiful. The Masala was also piping hot, which I appreciated. The chicken was tender, too! The cost was about $15+ tip and of course a I left a tip. These are challenging times so support businesses by leaving tips! Upon entering the store, a mask was worn by the cashier. However, the mask was taken off and I noticed the cook was not wearing a mask (it was under his mouth). Overall, the experience was good and the food was solid. I'd come back here for sure! read more

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We used to love this place, but I'm honestly not quite sure if they're on drugs or what's going on. First, they removed popular items from their menu. Then, they ended their lunch buffet. Now, we had ordered door dash but waited an hour where one driver left since the order was taking too long, and then found out from the second driver that they didn't even have the ingredients to make our food. Were they planning on telling us ?.. Won't be ordering or going back here read more

Tasty Indian food at reasonable prices and good portions. We ordered Vegetable Pakora, Vegetable Samosas, Aloo Gobi, Chicken Tikka Masala, and Garlic Naan to go. The pakora is so crispy, light, and has a great spice kick. The veggie samosas were also fried really well and nicely spiced. My only disappointment was the samosa didn't come with either the mint chutney or tamarind chutney I'm used to eating them with. The Chicken Tikka Masala was a tad sweet, but still creamy and delicious with tender chunks of meat. I really enjoyed the Aloo Gobi. I loved the big pieces of potato and cauliflower, and the curry itself was well seasoned and spicy. The portions here are pretty generous and we easily got 2 meals out of it. Would recommend for anyone craving some good Indian food! read more

The food is good. The service is terrible. We ask for ice for the bottled water. We were told they had no ice. We asked containers for our left over food. The server was not happy. When we asked for a Small container for the condiments (2 small ones) we were told it's not protocol. The food was good, really good. And I don't want restaurants to lose business. However the Guy in charge didn't seem to care. I think they rely on grub hub for most of their business. When customers walked and waited .....and waited. They were not told to behave a seat . We seen several couples just walked out because the guy in charge ignored them. We are actually lucky to have many Indian restaurants near us. The food is excellent and the service is warm and caring. We will not go back To the Tikka Lounge. read more

The image I posted doesn't do this place justice because I was too busy eating and not taking any pictures. This is hands down the BEST Indian place I have ever been to near my area. It is a buffet style place for lunch and everything is super organized and clean. The food selection isn't even that big -- but the dishes they do have are super delicious... you can smell the fragrant spices as far as the stater brothers store next to it. I highly recommend this place to any foodie or anyone who wants high quality Indian food at a LOW price! I really ate everything here but the butter chicken and the veggie korma are my favorites. I'm a huge fan Pros: delicious food. I mean amazing. And the people here are amazing!! There's a very sweet and kind server that recommends you food and takes your plates super quickly Cons: since this place is so amazing, peak times will be a bit busy and may have a hard time finding seating P.S: This place actually provided FREE water to Poway residents during the huge water sanitization problem not too long ago. Talk about being involved if I could leave a 10/5 rating instead of a 5/5 rating I would read more

Tikka Lounge - Samosa - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

Food tastes good but portion size is small and they really skimp on the meat/cheese or veggies in their curries. I had veggie korma which was like soup. I saw some peas and pieces of carrots but I expected more vegetables. The paneer masala had very little paneer in it and was mostly sauce. Also, they never confirmed receipt of my online order and they do not answer the phone. read more

i got it to go everything was nicely packaged the rogan josh was alright the samosas were delicious and the tamarind was also really good! read more

I've tried items from their buffet as well as some of their specialty dishes a couple of weeks ago. The buffet items were plentiful and if an item was running out, they would replenish it quickly. I scooped a little bit of almost everything from the buffet when I went. There was vegetable mixed pakora, chili potato, tandoori chicken kebab, sesame chicken, chicken tikka masala, goat, egg curry, hyderabadi chicken dum biryani, vegetable noodles, mixed vegetable masala, potato curry, tomato daal, watermelon, kheer, salad, raita, rice, and naan bread. My favorite items were the sesame chicken and veggie noodles! Everything else was pretty good too though. Don't forget to try their sauces as well. The price is very reasonable for everything you get, including Chai tea! As for the specialty dishes, our group shared the paneer tikka kebab, chicken tikka kebab, tandoor shrimp, and garlic naan. The dishes had similar flavor, just different proteins. The paneer was very interesting though, it was essentially a cheese kebab with all the spices. I still prefer meat, so my go to was the chicken tikka kebab. We saved room for dessert and tried shahi tukda and some ice cream. I've never had shahi tukda before, but it tasted like bread pudding, so if you're a fan of that, you'll definitely enjoy this. Service was very friendly and attentive. If you're a fan of Indian, Halal, or Pakistani food, this spot is worth the drive if you don't live in the Poway area. read more

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We are always on the hunt for good Indian food. I've been discouraged with most options in the area since they seemed to have dropped in quality. Someone did recommend this restaurant when they first opened but I did not have an opportunity to visit before covid hit. Amidst the covid crazy, they were doing take out, delivery services, and no dine in. I ordered via telephone to avoid the grub hub extra charges.. but was surprised when I arrived that the total was higher than what I accounted for on the menu posted online. We ordered the family feast. If you order garlic naan, it's an extra $1 charge. If you order two meat curries, it's another charge that the online menu doesn't seem to account for. (Online = $26.99 flat). The variety we sampled included: Chicken Tikka Masala: the best entree we ordered. very flavorful and creamy. I wish they offered/ inquired about adding some heat to the dish. Definitely could have tasted a bit better spicy. Lamb Vindaloo: this was disappointing since vindaloo to me is supposed to automatically have a level of spicy to it. The lamb was very gamey. It was okay in general but without that spicy factor, it seemed to be missing something. Chicken Makhani (aka butter chicken): This was creamy and a great dish for the kids. Almost sweet. I didn't mind it but hubbie wasn't a fan and preferred the Tikka Masala sauce more. Shrimp Karahi: This was surprisingly tasty. There was a little bit of heat which I appreciated.Good veggies.. shrimp wasn't bad.. Samosa Chaat: This wasn't bad. Chaat style added the garbanzo beans and the equivalent of what I call Indian Salsa Fresca. I enjoyed the freshness of this dish. The samosa filling was so-so. kind of small in size and a bit bland to me. Garlic Naan: I wish I knew it was an extra charge. There was hardly any garlic. It tasted a bit plain. It wasn't bad but not the best. I would have opted to save the $2 bucks and get the plain (since that's what it tasted like) Rice was generous and fluffy. They did not fail in that regard. Mango Lassi: Deeeelicious. Sweet, creamy with the yogurt tang. I wish they would sell this in a larger size. --------Overall:---------------- PROS = good flavor in general for the curries and generous on the proteins. Portions were.. acceptable (I saw negative reviews about portion size but disagree with those reviews; it wasn't mind blowing large.. but it wasn't small either. It was enough.) Lots of options on the menu. Good service and timeliness on the food prep. CONS = needed more spicy factor in all the dishes (and I don't usually eat that spicy). I wish they were open about the additional charge re: two proteins and garlic naan on the family meals. I highly disliked that the to go containers were these flimsy plastic containers. The hot curry disagreed with the containers making them weak to the high temperature food and made me very concerned about what was leeching into my food since the containers were obviously not made for that type of temperature. Naan could have used more garlic and herbs. TL;DR: Not bad. It does it's job. It's like "Bombay Express" (as Panda Express is to Chinese food). It'll satisfy your Indian food hankering and is probably more popular with ethnic groups who did not grow up with this type of food in their household. We do recommend giving them a try and would likely return if we had a tikka masala itch. Check them out! read more

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I got to try their lunch buffet recently and it was great!! I love Indian food and they had a wide variety of options: vegan, vegetarian, chicken, and even goat with all food being halal certified. They had 12 different entree items at a time plus fresh naan bread and salad. I met the owner and he was such a nice guy, very friendly and checked on other guests at the restaurant as well! read more

Tikka Lounge - On my plate I had: Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani, Mutton Rogan Josh (Goat), and Sesame Chicken! - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

Order over the phone not online. Delicious Tikka Masala. Mango Lassi was a real treat!

Had the lunch special with butter chicken which was great! But initially trekked out here for the lunch buffet they list on their site. Unfortunately they dont seem to actually have a lunch buffet so docked stars for false advertising and disappointing a very pregnant lady craving a good variety of indian food. read more

The best Indian food I've had in SD. And the only Hala certified Indian place in SD. Inside smelled really good, all those delicious Indian food smells. We tried the buffet. Food was fresh and filed with so many great flavor. Butter Naan was crispy with the perfect amount of fluffiness! I even had a chance to enter the kitchen and witness how they cook some of the dishes. I didn't see anything dirty. It was clean and organized Service was excellent. From the moment you walk in you are greeted with a warm welcome. Workers were very polite smiles all the time when they talked to us or offered something. Will definitely come back again Weekday Buffet $10.99 Lunch: 11am to 2pm (Mon - Fri) $10.99 Weekend Special Buffet $13.99 Lunch: 11:30am to 3pm (Sat & Sun) Dinner: 6pm to 9:30pm (Fri, Sat) read more

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Really needed to feed my face before hanging out with a group of friends tonight. My friend and I decided to give Tikka Lounge a try. The past restaurants in that location were disappointing. Sat down at a table and they provided service which was lovely. They brought out baked crackers (papadom) and it was still warm and delicious. I ordered a tandoori chicken wrap. It came out and had extra sauce to dip in. The outside wrap was naan! It was cooked well, the chicken was tender. I loved it. They have a buffet during lunch and also on the weekend. I will be back to give it a try. A+++ read more

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This place has changed ownership and names a few times, but thankfully the cuisine has remained Indian. This incarnation features a buffet as well as the option to order specific items. This restaurant also offers delivery and catering. I came in for lunch with a crew of hungry co-workers. All of our group chose the buffet option, which comes out to just under $12 (with tax). We left satisfied after several rounds at the buffet. Most of the usual Indian buffet selections are available here. The food is decent, but nothing stuck out as amazing. The staff are attentive and the buffet stations were continuously refreshed throughout our visit. It's worth a visit if you live or work in the Poway area. read more

Tikka Lounge - My first plate...of several. Haha! - Indian Near Me - Poway, California

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Last minute decision for Indian food one night. Great little spot, could do with being cleaner but food was great, tasty and fresh.

I absolutely love this place. This is the hidden gem and a great place to go for lunch or dinner before going to amc theater. I had the mushroom masala and my husband had another kind of masala (sorry for being so vague, I was just so in love with my dish). The guy who help us was so helpful and we just had a fun experience. Loved the ambiance! There was music in the kitchen, I think if they had the same music everywhere it would have added to the ambience and given everyone a little more privacy. Please put some Bluetooth speakers in that would have given the music more depth (I think it was just on a phone in the kitchen and the kitchen is right there. Please given us all the magic of the music. That's the only suggestion I have. Then we all don't have to listen to orders being taken. Thank you!!!! This is my new favorite place! They also have desert. Lots of seating - and we'll have to come for the buffet!!!! well done on the masala!!!! Great place for a date. My daughter comes here (they are all teenagers), then they too go to the movies after getting something real to eat before the candy. LOVE! LOVE! LOVE! Certainly the top place to go in Poway's!!!! read more

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Want to preface this review with the food being quite good and portion sizes are generous. Have tried a number of items and have never been disappointed. If not for the couple of issues noted below would have rated a 5 star from food perspective alone (unfortunately lost some delicious items from the old menu: yellow daal, house special biryanis, and the onion paratha/kulcha.) Standout dishes: Malai kofta, Korma, Saag. Notes to management (one star each): 1) Please update your menu online (on your own website!) both the available items AND the pricing is outdated (11.99 listed, 13.99 new price). Raising prices is fine, totally get it, but should be represented as such on your own websites menu link. 2) Let customers make the decision on what to, if any, tip. My wife was aggressively berated with continuous "reminders" as she waited for our large TO GO order (near $200) prior to checking out, to the point of feeling bullied. Other customers in the vicinity noticed as well and was quite uncomfortable. Tipping, while nice, is optional and based on service. If required to keep business running, then just make the menu prices sustainable for your business. read more

Okayish Indian food. Ambience is smaller. Not for fine dining. Service is not bad. Same owners as charminar & dosa studio in Mira Mesa. Among these three, charminar is the best we concluded to have a full satisfactory meal (even though our vegetarian options are less compared to the other two). We got the best veg biriyani in San Diego only in charminar. read more

Great food, consistent. Lamb Pulao and Chicken 65 are my go to. Their okra is also delicious. High five, very nice. read more