Essence Of India, Chicago, Illinois, Indian Restaurant Details

Food:

A great Indian restaurant in the Lincoln Square neighborhood for those not wanting to venture a little bit further north to Devon Avenue. My dad and I came here for a late dinner on a weeknight, and we essentially had the entire restaurant to ourselves. That being said, the waitstaff was incredibly attentive and accommodating, which was great! After looking over their extensive menu, I decided to go with one of the "Lamb Essence" dishes, the Josh Rogan. My dad was craving his staple dish, Lamb Madras, which surprisingly wasn't on the men. Since my dad was unwilling to branch out, we asked the waiter if they could make it, and he gave us a decisive no and walked away. Although, a few minutes later to our surprise, he came back and said they'd make the Lamb Madras for my dad. This is fantastic customer service, and my dad was jubilant. The food took awhile to come out, but I don't mind that as it is typically an indicator that your meal is made to order and it's relatively fresh. To whet our appetites while we waited, we were served a crunchy chip like bread and a variety of chutneys. Their mango/jalapeno salsa was quite spicy, and I could see many not liking this, but it was balanced out by the other offering, which was a mint and sweeter chutney. I enjoyed these as they tasted very fresh. When the entrees came out I was pretty pleased with the dish, as it was pretty much what I expected it to be. A few pieces of the lamb were poorly cut, meaning they were chewy and gristly. This caught me off guard as the first few bites were very tender and melted in my mouth. This is pretty standard with most dishes in this style, so I wouldn't dock them any points. The sauce had a nice spice to it, but I'd probably order it "really spicy" next time as "spicy" was pretty mild. The portions were large and I had enough to tide me over for lunch the next day. Good, not great, Indian food. For the proximity to my apartment and the ease to get here on public transportation for those not in the neighborhood, it's definitely worth a visit.

Food:

Amazing food. Paneer kurchan is out of this world. Will continue to keep coming back over and over. Staff is also phenomenal. Try this place out.

Food:

Really enjoyable meal & very friendly staff. Definitely returning!!

Food:

Looking for vegan friendly Indian on the north side? Look no further! The Dal Turka is out of this world!

Food:

Essence of India can hold it's own against any Indian restaurant I've been to (and we live in silicon valley where there is are some amazing Indian food options). They do tend to serve food that is on the spicy side, so if you aren't a fan of spicy curries, make sure you request the lower spice levels. Their naan is fluffy and delicious and they have a great selection of chicken, lamb, and veg dishes.