Sometimes you just get a craving for Indian food and have to act on it. This place definitely hit the spot. The butter chicken was really good, and I appreciated that it wasn't one of those dishes where you get way more sauce than actual chicken; the ratio was right. The vegetable samosas were also great, crispy and flaky on the outside, soft and well-seasoned inside, and served with both cilantro and tamarind chutney (I preferred the tamarind). I also tried the onion bhaji since it was on sale and I'm glad I did. no regrets at all. read more

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Can't speak for the food, as we got there at 6:30pm tonight and were turned away, being advised they were only doing take out. Given the kitchen was making food for customers picking up food, unclear why they would not serve customers that were physically in the restaurant. If you plan on going here during week, I would think twice (or maybe call in advance to guarantee they are open during their normal business hours as advertised), or you may find yourself having to figure out a new place to dine on the spot. We ended up going to Kama Bistro down the street, and they were open and taking customers! read more

This place only offers takeout so we were disappointed when we showed up for dinner. But with many positive recommendations, we decided to give it another shot and got food delivered the next day. Chicken Biryani was definitely the highlight- made with a very good balance of spice and flavors, you could taste every layer of rice, spice and meat separately. While chicken lasuni korma was average, the real reason for it was the dry chicken breast pieces in the curry. They surely have perfected the garlic naans so highly recommend trying it out other breads on the menu. read more

Came here for their weekend lunch which is only $23 per person and although the variety was good, I wish the food was hot. They could have put a bigger flame on the bottom or had lids for everything in my opinion. Nothing was necessarily cold but you could tell somethings have been sitting out for a while. I also saw some people grabbing things with their hands which isn't ideal. Despite that, service was great and the produce tasted fresh. The best thing I had was the aloo gobi and chicken tikki masala. read more

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Great place for an Indian/Nepalese buffet if you're in the neighborhood. The lunch buffet is a steal! The place is nice and spacious for large parties and the service was wonderful. Parking can be a little tough since it's such a busy area, but it's possible to get street parking. read more

Vajra - Lunch buffet - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Vajra just launched their brunch buffet, and it's an absolute winner! For just $25, the spread is diverse and delicious, with a tapioca pudding to end with. The quality and variety make it feel super worth it! That said, the cocktail I tried (the Banana Republic) was too strong, overpowering rather than complementing the meal. Stick to the buffet, and you won't be disappointed--it's a fantastic addition to the brunch scene in wicker park. I'll definitely be back! -AT read more

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The chicken biryani and butter chicken is to die for! I've only had takeout but I would love to come to the restaurant!

We had a lovely evening at Vajra last night. It was nice to see this space open again, we still have fond memories of it many years ago when it was Spring (one of the best restaurants ever in Chicago). The food was very good. We enjoyed the dynamite shrimp (but they need to warm the chutney that goes with it, ours was refrigerator cool, which didn't improve the lovely hot shrimp). The kulcha was excellent and the samosa tart was a nice change on the traditional samosa. The butter chicken was very good and the black dal was very nice (almost as good as my wife's). Service was friendly and efficient and although small, we thought the wine list was excellent and well chosen. We are big on Indian food and have eaten at highly regarded Indian restaurants in London, the middle east and Mumbai - Vajra did not disappoint. read more

Vajra - Dynamite shrimp, kulcha and samosa tart - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Vajra was an all-around delightful experience. The restaurant was mostly empty when my friend and I arrived for our 5:30 pm reservation. One of the first things I noticed was the beautiful ceiling lights that provided dim lighting and a romantic ambiance. I can see Vajra being a great date spot. Our server greeted us promptly after we were seated. We were not familiar with many of the menu items, and our server patiently explained and guided us through the menu. As spicy food lovers, we settled on a lobster momo, lamb roghan josh, and gruyere chili kulchha. Our orders came out pretty quickly. Each dish was delectable, but I would absolutely go back just for the kulchha. Loved the combination of truffle, cheese, and chili, and it paired especially well with the lamb roghan josh. The lamb roghan josh packed a punch with the bold, spicy flavors that I love. I was so full at the end of the meal that I was going to skip dessert, but our kind server gave an offer we couldn't refuse: a millet kheer on the house. The kheer was absolutely amazing that I finished it despite my overstuffed tummy. Paying and splitting the bill was seamless with the QR code. Highly recommend this restaurant. read more

I'm as disappointed as you are that I'm giving this 1 star, but alas here we are. When we walked in, we immediately thought it was a gorgeous spot. Very well done ambiance. We were then seated and told our server would be by shortly. We sat for a bit until someone came by to fill our water and left. After some more time our server showed up. If we had a reservation at a busy time this wouldn't have caught our attention but it was 5:30 and there was one other table with plenty of staff standing around. Our server was very timid and quick to walk away and while that wasn't a pain point in the beginning, it soon became one. There was a sign out front that mentioned happy hour but we were told it was for bar guests only. Not an issue, just worth the mention. Server finally came back to take our drink order and we put everything in because it had been a while. I ordered a soda water with lime and was told they didn't have lime and so I said lemon was fine and was then told they didn't have any fresh fruit. No worries-- just the soda water then. My husband ordered the eternal flame (great taste, slightly tart and Smokey) The raj kachori chaat -- terrible. I've only ever had warm or hot kachori, as has my husband who is from India so it was quite the surprise when we took our first bites and it was ICE cold. Like it was sitting at the back of the fridge were things almost freeze. We didn't eat it... We'll come back to this later. Lobster momos-- flavor was fantastic but they definitely could have been hotter, were room temp at most Lahsuni chicken korma-- pretty tasty but I will say when I think of Indian food containing chicken, chicken breast isn't really top of mind and that was the texture it had. Came with complimentary rice-- and they even called it that when they dropped it off which made me lol Chana masala-- overall, disappointing. Needed salt badly, wanted to love it but it just wasn't doing it for me Butter naan & garlic naan-- tasted fine but both were slightly burnt and so crispy they fell apart when you touched them Food was underwhelming but was plated nicely so I'll give them that Ok back to the kachori.... We didn't eat it because it was cold and the person who took it was not our server so later my husband let the server know it came out so cold we couldn't eat it and so the other person had taken it She said no worries, they could take it off. We thought that was that. It was not. Someone else came over to the table, guessing a manager but they did not introduce themselves. They started by saying they were told our kachori was cold and that it is actually served that way and had they left it there it would have been fine. Most managers would just say I'm sorry you didn't like that-- can I get you something else. She never apologized, that's fine... but it got weirdly aggressive when my husband said it wouldn't have been an issue or we wouldn't have ordered it if someone had just mentioned it would come out cold because she just kept trying to tell us that's the way it's made and that they had never had anyone complain which was ironic since we were. Like if that's the way it's made FINE, we just didn't like it, but it just kept going We just didn't want to pay for something we didn't eat. So she said if we didn't eat it she could take it off and then proceeded to ask us again if we ate it or not. We said no and she said she would take it off. That was that. We didn't order anything else, we just wanted to leave. It took forever for our server to come back, when she did we got the check and paid by scanning the receipt so we could leave quickly because it felt so awkward. We got home and checked the receipt and it was still on there. We were so disappointed with the whole experience. We won't be back and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. read more

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Stand fare Indian menu and quality is above average. Nothing exceptional but still good. Ambiance is nice and good service. read more

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Very cool decor (and a very cool enormous bar in addition to the dining room) and an exceptionally talented kitchen (meats, veggies, rice, but the meats were exceptionally well prepared). The dessert guy...well, get dessert somewhere else. Just skip it. Also, they need to work on the non-existent non-alcoholic drinks menu. Tea might be nice. Service is super nice if not super efficient. Price is a bit out of whack with value. read more

We were wanting comfort food but something different than we typically order in. Vajra popped up, and there were great reviews, so we decided to give it a try. Pricing was a tad high, but they had a Dinner Date for Two option on UberEats. It seemed worth it, and we liked everything we selected. The flavors were tasty, a touch of spicy, which we enjoyed. We both liked the Goan Shrimp Curry flavors more than the Chicken Chettinad, but the shrimp was a little overcooked/rubbery, whereas, the chicken was tender and soft. The Chicken Momo looked like soup dumplings but without the soup. The dipping sauce was needed bc they weren't very flavorful. Garlic Naan was soft and chewy, but they didn't reheat as well. The Mango Mousse Cheesecake was too sweet for my preference, but it was good- jelly mango layer, whipped cheesecake mousse, and graham cracker crust. read more

Vajra - Chicken Momo, Chicken Chettinad, Goan Shrimp Curry, 2 Garlic Naan, Mango Mousse Cheesecake - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Vegetarians beware. Anything that's veggie and fried (starter menu) is fried in the same oil as shrimp. I know the food is good here what a shame read more

Good food, excellent cocktails, great servers (hosts were a bit unenthusiastic lol), and trendy yet low-key ambience with a huge bar area. It's street parking only but there is metered parking all up and down North Ave. We ordered the lobster momo, chicken seekh kebab, lobster moilee, gruyere kulchha, and lamb vindaalu for dinner, the kheer for dessert, and the callas went away, fruits of the earth, fire & ember, and xanadu y el cielo cocktails. I will say the lobster in the moilee was a bit overcooked, the lamb vindaalu had good flavor but was a bit salty, and the kheer was a smaller portion than we expected. But we really enjoyed the lobster momo, kebab, and all of the cocktails (especially the xanadu y el cielo). A lovely addition to the neighborhood and a great little date spot. Looking forward to returning and trying other items on the menu! read more

Very happy with our experience ordering from Vajra! We had gone to this location when they were not yet open for indoor dining - happy to hear they are back open! Standout was definitely the chana masala - it was well cooked, not too mushy and had enough spice (customizable for every dish to your spice level preference). I agree that pricing is slightly higher, but I don't mind paying extra because the food is quality (and a lot better than other cities' Indian premium restaurants!!). read more

Vajra is a great mix of traditional Indian and some fusion dishes. The momos and vindalu really stood out. Highly recommend eating there!

Food was fine, if overpriced. I do not quite understand the hype about this place? having been to brilliant Indian restaurants in several countries (London is heat, DISHOOM whoops Vahra's arse) I can say this is good to pretty good care. The rice happily was unsticky and well made. The cocktails and appetizers were standouts, but the menu dishes sorely lacked in presentation. How about a little apologetic cilantro thrown on top yo give it color? A nice slice of like? C'mon, make the effort. What will keep me away is the ambience, which was way too loud. The place has a dearth of volume-controlling fabrics---like, none --and no candies or flowers on the tables. And the music ....yeesh. Why do restaurant owners believe everyone wants to hear bad pop music at a volume too loud at which to speak with your dinner companions? It's quite absurd. Then to be handed a 200$ bill for three people, with only one appetizer and four drinks? Nope. Pass. Moving on. read more

Ended up ordering Indian food to work so my coworker could finally try it out. He was elated, but I wasn't. I guess that's the difference in a first timer and an Indian. We both got butter chicken and garlic naan. The chicken was cooked well but too tangy on its own. The gravy was very nice and creamy but the overall flavor was off from what I am used to. The garlic naan was super garlicky but didn't have any fluff. I personally prefer a fluffy naan rather than a thin and crispy one so I switched over to the rice for the rest of my dinner. Overall, a good amount of food but pricey. So far the best traditional Indian food I've had in the city but the bar was pretty low. read more

Vajra - Butter Chicken and Garlic Naan - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We had previously only done takeout here but went last week for Sunday brunch buffet. Holy wow! Everything was wonderful and it was fun to try dishes we hadn't ordered in the past but will next time. The vanilla dessert was like eating an ice cream cloud. Don't skip it- it's delicious! The service was also kind and attentive and the ambiance was great. It's really a beautiful restaurant. If you are in the mood for Indian, this place is the BOMB. read more

We attended a private event and i personally loved the minimalist decor and clean look to the restaurant. The food was delicious... our hosts were vegetarian so we had the best variety veggie food from paneer to dal makhani, Baingan barta, pakoras etc . They had a list of mocktaiks and cocktails... I had the old fashioned which was good but had better. Loved the use of micro greens on all the entrees. Apparently their mock-tails were better. We will certainly revisit, read more

Vajra - My plate - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Having delicious food is one thing, but experiencing food is another thing. If you want to experience flavors, Vajra is your place. I love how their menu is small and has all the best items. One would not get into analysis paralysis deciding what to have and whatever you decide to order would be delicious. We ordered kachori, kulcha for starters, saffron rice, kofta and seasoned vegetables in large plates. We absolutely loved all of them!! Very delicious! We also had both their desserts and they were outstanding. The ambience and service were amazing as well. The chefs really know their stuff. Would highly recommend and would definitely return. read more

Vajra - Raj kachori - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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This is my new go-to Indian restaurant! The food is always great, and I really like the interior. They play nice music, and overall, the atmosphere is much better than many other Indian restaurants--both in terms of food and ambiance. read more

**Vegetarian Friendly** I wouldn't consider this an "authentic" Indian restaurant, because it has flavor but not the authentic flavors of Indian cooking. None the less, the food is still fantastic. The best priced item on the menu is the "Vajra Family Meal at Home". It comes with everything: appetizer, entree, and sides. They have a Date Night at Home kit too. The "at Home" kits are priced well, especially for the quantity of food. Our Dinner Kit for 6 could have fed 9-10 people. Ordered: Vajra Family Meal at Home - Starter: Vegetable Samosa - Entree: Paneer Cashew Tikka Masala, Vindaalu Lamb Curry, Madras Chicken Curry, Dal Makhani, Aloo Gobi - Sides: Rice, Butter Naan, Garlic Naan - Dessert (additional): Mango Cheesecake and Black Forest Cake All of the Entrees were delicious, and had such great flavor. The garlic naan had better taste than the butter naan. Non-Veg: I didn't taste it, but it was a highly recommended to order again! If you order dessert, get the Mango Cheesecake! It doesn't look as appetizing, but it tastes delicious! PS: All of the food was packed and traveled well for delivery! read more

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Good mix of traditional dishes and new interpretations of classics. Great presentation on drinks and dishes. Excellent balance of flavors. Very cool spot in Wicker Park. read more

Vajra - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Really nice spot--we showed up towards the end of happy hour and got seated for dinner quickly after getting an HH drink at the bar. All the food was great, but the butter chicken stood out. Great food and friendly service. Will definitely be back read more

My husband and I were in the mag mile area with our daughter and puppy and while looking for restaurants to eat, I found Vajra. We ordered saag paneer, garlic naan, dal tadka, rice and gajar ka halwa. The food arrived hot, all dishes tasted great. Dal was on point, so close to homemade - after eating out a couple of days, this felt like home, so satisfying! The gajar ka halwa was so delicious - just the right amount of sweetness, loaded with ghee and nuts. We liked it so much that we saved it for our family to try it the next day. I have never been to the restaurant and this was only a take out experience but I have already recommended it to a few people I know. read more

Beautiful space, so glad they opened for dine-in service. We've been getting their take out for some time now, the food is excellent. Now we got to have a cocktail at the beautiful bar before a great meal. Highly recommend the Martinez cocktail btw. Servers are friendly. Elevated Indian food, the best I've ever eaten read more

Vajra - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Indoor bar is open for their soft launch and it's everything I hoped it would be! Cocktails are so tasty (try the Flight of the Nubian Ibex) & the staff is super welcoming. Can't wait until they open for full dinner service in a couple weeks! read more

Excellent authentic Indian food. Highly recommend the Palaak Paneer. Everything else tastes great too!

Very good experience at this dine in restaurant, with attentive service and pleasant ambience. We ordered samosa tart, duck chhoela, kathal biryani, butter chicken, saag paneer, butter naan and millet kheer for 4 people. Everything was delicious and abundant. we will certainly be going back. read more

Got delivery. Expensive for what it was and my wife refused to eat it. About medium spice. Garlic Naan - 3/5. Good garlic flavor but the texture of the naan not quite right. Chicken Shahi Korma - 4/5. Cashew sauce is fun and interesting. Good texture on the chicken. Cashew pieces work well for texture. Feels like one note off from a great dish. Paneer Stuffed Capsicum - 2/5. The green pepper is a pretty dominant flavor. Strong masala flavor. Fun experiment but didn't work for us. read more

This place was designed to me as "London style Indian food" and totally fits the description. The dishes are heavier/creamer than traditional Indian food. Definitely loved everything we got - goat momos, chat samosas, paneer tikka masala, another chicken curry. Everything comes with rice. The cheese naan and the goat naan was also good (beware veggies - the goat naan is described as "goat cheese" so we didn't realize it had meat) They don't have a liquor license yet but gave me some chai on the house. Tried the mango habanero lassi - delicious! read more

Vajra - Paneer tikka masala, chicken madras - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Here's what you need to know: this is a review for carry out only while the restaurant is closed for dine-in during COVID. Food continues to be very good (Butter chicken is really the star of the show), service was quick and pleasant. We ordered 2 curry dishes and naan bread for our dinner. The butter chicken (aka chicken tikka masala) is the absolute star of the show. Superior, decadent curry with a symphony of flavors in every bite. Perfect consistency and color of the sauce too. Wow! The heritage goat curry ($25) was well made but lacked the complexity and layers of a lot of their other dishes. But most memorable part of this dish was that it was very salty, which is the key reason it's 4 stars instead of 5 for this dinner experience. The naan was a bit unmemorable too, not at the thin/crisp/delicate level I would expect from an elite Indian restaurant. The curries came with a generous portion of plain basmati rice. The 2 curries and the naan cost us about $70 for carry out with tax and tip. We will continue to patronize Vajra fondly. read more

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Updating review to 2 stars. Past couple times they've forgotten rice and wait had been significantly longer than stated. Food can be great but 40 minutes late??? Totally unacceptable. There's a sign that says if you don't like the wait you can cancel your order." Clearly they don't care at all so I don't think I can continue to support this business. If the dishes were reasonably priced I'd keep trying, but they aren't. Nope, there's an extra $4 charge for chicken. read more

We had a profoundly bizarre and unpleasant experience at the lunch buffet on Father's Day. Two adults and a baby (6 months old) (reservation specified need for a high chair). Staff told us they could not seat us in the main dining room with the stroller (we would be seated in the room with the bar), which we said was fine. A few minutes later, they told us they could seat us in the main dining room if we only had the car seat, detached from the stroller, which we also said was fine. This whole process of deciding where to seat us took ~10 minutes. We finally arrived in the main dining room where the lunch buffet was being served to find it totally empty. Despite this, they squeezed us into a two-top along the banquet with instructions to put the car seat on the banquet, however, this still blocked the banquet seat of the two-top next to us. No space for a highchair - we just passed the baby back and forth during the meal. Overall, we were made to feel very unwelcome. Food was fine, but nowhere near good enough to make up for this service. read more

This is my third time at Vajra and they are always great! Such delectable biryani, love it. Takeout was very well packed. I especially appreciated how the (complimentary) raita was packed in a separate bag so that it didn't get warm. Ignore the bad quality photo. Definitely check this place out for authentic south Asian food! read more

Vajra - Goat Dum Biryani Cucumber Raita - Himalayan/Nepalese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Take out was fantastic. Not too spicy nor salty. The flavors were subtle and complex.

My family and I cannot get enough of this place. We are an eclectic bunch and it can sometimes be difficult to get us all to agree on what to eat. Vajra is always a unanimous choice. There are two vegetarians among us, myself included, and this has become one of our staples. The food is always delicious, seasoned to absolute perfection. I am a spice queen (if that's a thing) and they really deliver on the heat for me. Now on to serious business. CAULIFLOWER. Although ubiquitous and often controversial in nature, in this essay I will-- haha no but in all honesty is probably the star of their offerings for me personally. I don't care how many fried versions of it you've had, the bar will be set after you try their Gobhi 65 (if it's not sold out). Just spicy tempura goodness. And if that's not your thing, the Alu Gobhi is cauliflower florets and potatoes sautéed in all kinds of delicious spices and aromatics. Is the agenda working? Anyway, just eat some food here is really what I'm trying to say. Oh and best vindaloo I've had to date. Oh and double oh, please get the fluffy garlic naan with whatever you decide to try! read more

Kinda hard to find legit good Indian food in city. Either you get the late night old school mom and pop hole in the wall spots, or you get these very westernized modern takes that isn't even Indian food anymore? Vajra just solved this problem. Vajra combines the perfect blend of traditional authentic flavors with a modern take. The food was amazing. Our favorites were the Tandoori Venison, Salmon Curry, and the gruyere cheese naan, and the mango lassi, prb one of the best I ever had. To go along with the food they have amazing drinks, with a well accredited bartender who apparently is ranked one of the best in the city! More and more amazing restaurants are popping up on Chicago ave. This area will pretty soon rival the west loop for best food in the city, and Vajra gets my vote for best Indian food int the city! read more

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