Chaiwali Harlem
“Good food, fast service & beautiful environment.”
“Beautiful interior design, super peaceful and perfect for a quiet meal with company.”
“Perfect for a romantical date.”
Chaiwali Harlem
Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
6 reviews
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Awesome new cafe in Harlem that specializes in coffee, chai, Indian home cooked snacks like samosas, desserts like nutty olive oil cake, gluten free food, and overall a gorgeous venue. Spacious and warm interiors with lots of seating, a communal round table outside, and a beautiful upstairs area with a nice birds eye view of Lenox Ave. Definitely worth checking out.
First review:
Beautiful beautiful restaurant! The ambiance and decor is fascinating. A true gem in the middle of Harlem.
The food is pretty good too. Not the best Indian I had but definitely a nice dining experience. It has a couple of plates that are worth trying. The roti was my favorite, a cheese quesadilla like plate, which came with a green sauce that was addictive! Crunchy on the outside and melty cheese inside is the perfect combination.
The rice cakes which came in the southern Indian breakfast were too tasteless for my palate. Good sauces and toppings on them but the actual rice cake didn't have any flavor.
The chili is great for winter and cold weather. It's a little bit on the heavy side since you can see all the oil they use. Literally the meat is floating on sauce and oil 50/50. Very good flavor though.
The samosas are not what I expected. Too small, a lot of fried dough and little filling.
Overall good food but I guess not the right choices. I would like to try the kale burger, eggplant spread and lentils next time. I like they have many options to go back.
I'll be back..
Second review:
I'm not going to be back to this restaurant ever! 1 hour and a half waiting for our food. The three times I came to this place the service was horrible. Understaffed, with an attitude and didn't care for the clients.
This time nobody was coming to our table from the beginning and we had to literally get up and go looking for water every time. But it doesn't end there although we were starving and we order appetizers for the table which they forgot to put them as appetizers so they brought everything together. No, when the plates came they forgot one of them and although we talked several times with the owner he did not do anything to compensate for the waiting neither for the basic behavior of the restaurant. He should have told us that there were few waiters and that the kitchen was running slow. Instead he didn't tell us what was happening and when the check came everything was charged. An owner needs to keep the clientele at all costs and I'm not saying that you should get free food all the time. You need to be compensated for such a bad service and mistreatment. At least the coffee is on the house or complimentary appetizers for the delay.
People don't know how to manage a restaurant.
You just lost 4 clients ChaiWali, so Chau Wali!
Adorable relaxing place. The inside decor and outdoor patio are very nicely designed. Everything on the menu looked interesting, we ended up getting the roti roll, eggplant with lentil wafer, okra fries and rice cakes with spices. Everything was great. The service is also on point even though the place is new.
Their beverage menu is very original, you can technically have their butter chai tea for dessert.
I had some issues with this place, but I'll focus first on the service and food. Came here on a weekday night and was seated right away in the corner. They had live jazz, so we were right next to it. It was nice listening, but hard to have a conversation. The waiter was great, very attentive, but not overly. His timing was just right and it really stood out as some of the best service I've experienced. I split the samosas, flatbread, and the vegetarian casserole/pie. Food was decent, good flavors, decent portion sizes, and an interesting twist of indian fusion.
When I walked up to the restaurant, it looks so adorable. A perfect date spot, and I was excited for a new Indian place in the area. I walked in and was greeted by the hostess who was wearing a Chinese shirt/dress. This is clearly an Indian inspired restaurant–it's in its name, its flavors, and its tag on yelp. So… why the heck is the hostess's uniform a CHINESE outfit?!?!
Then, I notice 2 of the male workers were wearing turbans as part of their uniform. They were wearing turbans as their uniform… they were wearing a religious garb as their uniform!! My Indian boyfriend didn't find this too offensive, but as an American Chinese, I found the hostess's dress VERY offensive. Although both cultures may be labeled generically as "Asian" we are not all the same. And, establishments need to be more careful to ensure they are not appropriating other cultures.
So I've read some pretty tough reviews about Chaiwali's service and I even experienced the bad service for a good 10 minute period before someone even brought a menu — but! The kale veggie burger is literally one of the most delicious things I've ever eaten so this place is getting 5 stars, no questions. The okra fries were also great.
Chaiwali is among a few trendier, hipstery restaurants popping up in Harlem – it's amazingly cute, white washed bricks, charming accessories – there's even an outdoor space with a large table literally in a giant bird house. The space is absolutely great.
Prepare for bad service but get over it, the food is awesome – get the veggie burger!
As an avid chai drinker, I absolutely LOVE the concept and implementation of this little cafe/restaurant.
Now, to start off, I've only had the take out because it's a half a block away from where I work, which makes it super easy to get my afternoon pick-me up here. And the only two things I've tried are the thandi chai and their chai biscuits. The chai is okay, I like that it is the closest thing to authentic chai in the area. And maybe I'm not so excited about it because thandi chai is basically hot tea poured over ice, which dilutes the pop and spice of chai.
HOWEVER, the chai biscuits are AMAZING. I absolutely love them, they remind me of the chai biscuits my grandmother makes but with the perfect amount of spice and sweetness. It's so well executed that I have been frequenting here strictly for them.
I definitely want to explore more of the menu because it so perfectly reminds me of treats and drinks that I grew up seeing, tasting and smelling. Definitely will continue coming here and trying more of their creations!