Maharaja - Rosemont

Maharaja
9765 W Higgins Rd
Rosemont, IL 60018
(847) 720-4971
http://www.maharajachicago.com

Had a very enjoyable meal here the other day. It is always a good sign when you walk into a restaurant which has food from another country and the restaurant has patrons from that particular country. This was the case at Maharaja. we were the only non Indian customer in the restaurant, when we went.

The place is really nice. Tray ceilings, lovely lighting, solid tables and comfortable chairs. i was very impressed with the restaurants design. Also, I was worried that there was not going to be a bar. There was, so that is also a big plus. American beers were 3 bucks, Indian beers were 5 dollars for 8 oz and 8 dollars for 22 ounce.

I happened to be dining with someone who was allergic to onions.. Imagine? It's especially hard at an Indian restaurant but, i was informed it was not a deadly allergy, otherwise we would not have gone.. However, anything with onion in the description we avoided.

We started with the samosas and a chat.. both the appetizers were ok. i have had better and more exciting versions.

The next few things we had were very good.. The chicken tikka was just excellent.. The cubes of chicken were moist and super flavorful.. Often times you get dry chicken but, this was sizzling hot and just perfect.. I was very happy.. served with a side of yogurt.

We also had the goat briyani which was starred as a house speciality.. I requested for it to be spicy and we were not disappointed.. This was really wonderful. The basmati rice was so long, i thought it was fideos at first. However, i am blind so, there ya go..However, the basmati was cooked so well and I love that in parts they had been slightly crisped.. the goat, stewed and oh so tender. bone in. This is a must try.

We also had a side of cheese kulcha. which is this naan bread that is covered in cheese and some spices.. it was very nice..

I look forward to coming back here.. i wish you this restaurant a lot of luck.. It is as good as the restaurants over on in the Indian Section on Devon Ave. It's nice that they have kept true to the cooking and have not gone the route of the Americanized Chinese Restaurants that dot the suburban landscapes of our country.

Plus another exciting thing is there 10 dollar lunch buffet.. i have not been but, I saw the room that is used for the buffet.. There were like 12 or 15 different chafing dishes set up. It looks like a pretty hearty set up.

Daniel wrote:However, i am blind so, there ya go..

Plus another exciting thing is there 10 dollar lunch buffet.. i have not been but, I saw the room that is used for the buffet. There were like 12 or 15 different chafing dishes set up. It looks like a pretty hearty set up.

??

Daniel wrote:
I happened to be dining with someone who was allergic to onions.. Imagine? It's especially hard at an Indian restaurant but, i was informed it was not a deadly allergy, otherwise we would not have gone.. However, anything with onion in the description we avoided.

It's actually not that hard to do in Indian cuisine, because the Indians who practice Jainism do not consume onions or garlic or any other root vegetables.

TomInSkokie wrote:

Daniel wrote:However, i am blind so, there ya go..

Plus another exciting thing is there 10 dollar lunch buffet.. i have not been but, I saw the room that is used for the buffet. There were like 12 or 15 different chafing dishes set up. It looks like a pretty hearty set up.

??

I am confused, what is ?? Oh, there is an expression where someone says they are blind but, they just mean, they can't see well.

Sharona wrote:

Daniel wrote:
I happened to be dining with someone who was allergic to onions.. Imagine? It's especially hard at an Indian restaurant but, i was informed it was not a deadly allergy, otherwise we would not have gone.. However, anything with onion in the description we avoided.

It's actually not that hard to do in Indian cuisine, because the Indians who practice Jainism do not consume onions or garlic or any other root vegetables.

yeh, this restaurant had onions in about every dish.. I don't think these people practiced Janism. I don't think i have ever been to a restaurant like the one you speak of. Can you recommend one?

Went here for dinner tonight. Had a Groupon, so a friend and I figured we'd check it out.

Food was quite good, though, other than the dal makhani, not better than other places that are closer to where I live -- and in a couple of cases, not as good.

Had the Chef's tasting menu, which had a price change penciled in on the menu that wasn't clear and didn't match the website, so the bill was a bit higher than expected -- but that is merely an annoyance, not a deal breaker.

If I lived in the area, I'd probably be glad to have this place, but as I noted, it's not better than places closer to where I live, so not a destination place. But if you're in the area, the food is good -- especially the rogan josh, dal makhani, and tandoori shrimp.

One thing that did strike me as odd was that everyone in the room where we were seated was Anglo, but when I went to the ladies' room, I noticed that everyone in the main room was Indian. Surprised that they'd segregate us. I don't think it affected the service, however.

So good food if you're nearby, but not a place deserving of a special trip.

All that said -- the one thing that might get me to go back again is that there was a small menu insert that listed a lot of southern Indian dishes -- idli, dosas and such. Since southern India is the part of India where I've traveled, and since these foods aren't often offered at other Indian restaurants, it might be worth another visit.

Sharona wrote:

Daniel wrote:
I happened to be dining with someone who was allergic to onions.. Imagine? It's especially hard at an Indian restaurant but, i was informed it was not a deadly allergy, otherwise we would not have gone.. However, anything with onion in the description we avoided.

It's actually not that hard to do in Indian cuisine, because the Indians who practice Jainism do not consume onions or garlic or any other root vegetables.

and not only Jains, many Hindus also follow a Satvik diet that also forbids onions

I work just around the corner from Maharaja and for a long time, it was simply a decent Indian option in an area devoid of any decent Asian food. But the food has gotten better and better and I am now comfortable saying that it's very good and better than Himalayan Restaurant in Niles, my former (but farther away) Indian (and Nepalese) option.

I work in the area, so my usual visit is for lunch and their buffet is not only huge, but very good, and the bill comes in under $15 with tax and tip. Although the buffet items change all the time, standards include raita, sauces, lentil doughnuts, a soup, basmati rice, hakka noodles, excellent tandoori chicken, fresh naan brought to the table, a couple of appetizers (usually a vegetable pakora), a few vegetarian dishes (one chickpea dish in particular was really stunning the other day), perhaps a butter chicken or other chicken curry dish, usually another chicken or meat or fish dish, and perhaps a goat or lamb dish (I really like the goat curry on the bone). Not a lot of spice heat to be found, but generally very nicely balanced flavors with good spice. They also offer the same three desserts all the time, and very respectable versions of each: kheer, gulab jamun and mango kulfi.

Based on my several visits over the last few months, I now feel very comfortable recommending a visit to Maharaja.