Haveli Indian Cuisine

Location

1635 East Henrietta Road, Henrietta NY 14623

Hours (as of January 2016)

Daily: 11:30AM to 9:30PM (buffet and regular menu)

Phone

585 427 0430

Accessible

Yes

Website

http://www.DineAtHaveli.com/

Reviews

2010-03-31 City Newspaper review

Haveli Indian Cuisine is a restaurant located on East Henrietta Road in Henrietta serving Indian cuisine.

Comments:

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2010-02-05 21:24:23   Ate there on a Friday night. One other couple in the restaurant. The service was slow, but friendly when it happened. It took about 15 minutes from being seated to having out order taken. We almost walked out, but were glad when the food came that we didn't. The food was really good. We had Chicken Tikka Masala, Idlly Manchurian, and Lamb Samosa. The chicken had a good taste and a nice spice to it (it might be too spicy to others though). I wasn't crazy about the Iddly, but they tasted fine. The Samosa was very good too. I am willing to try it again, but they definitely have to work on service and remove some of the old posters from Wild Noodle. —JJohnson

2010-02-19 12:09:07   This place is such a disappointment. The service was slow and not friendly. The wait was excruciating, the food was upsetting. we ordered 4 dishes of which two were biryani and two were curries Chicken dhamaka Balti & mutton&peas curry. the biryani was soggy and amateurish with out accompaniments of Raita(which is how it is served usually). I think the biryani at the takeout place Bombay chat is much better than here. The curries were bland(no spices) and salty. I am usually lenient about commenting but this place is a disaster. This restaurant was started by the same people who had NAMASTE restaurant on west henrietta. If they dontgettheir act together this place will not last long. —WingAddict

2010-02-26 10:31:52   This place and the food was amazing!! Especially the Paneer Dosa and the Malai Kofta. I would deffinatly recommend it to everyone who hasn't been there yet. Yes I agree during the opening there was pretty slow service but they are really good now. Their restaurant offers a new variety of Indian food that basically no other Indian Restaurant has to offer here in Rochester. The South Indian food I would say is probably the best I have ever had since I've come to Rochester. Last time I went there, it was packed and customers were pleased with the service and food. Keep up the good work. —SarahKieler

2010-02-28 20:32:23   I was here a couple of days ago and the food was absolutely spot on. The vegetable pakora appetizer was a great deal at $2.99. The vegetables were crisp and hot. The Kadai Chicken, Rogan Josh and Masoor Masala Dosa were all delicious. Our server may have been one of the owners - he was friendly enough but seemed a little awkward (he rushed our appetizer plates off when we weren't quite done yet but the main dishes didn't arrive till 15m later). We were also served by a lady (might also be an owner) who was very amiable. The menus (and at least one server) are from Namaste Indian Cuisine. The prices are definitely right. My only advice is to not order your dish extra spicy the first time you go there. I eat Thai green chillis on a regular basis and yet my nose was running when I was eating my extra spicy dish. The pain was definitely worth it though. I strongly recommend giving them a try. —OneLove

2010-03-12 21:54:09   I ate the lunch buffet last saturday. Weekend buffet is $9.99, and weekdays is $8.99. Servers were polite and the facilities were clean. It was a good change of pace from Thali and Tandoor, the two other buffets I frequent. I find the quality of food at Thali, Tandoor, and Haveli to be equally good. Different menus with a slightly different flavor, but they're all good in their own way. Two other Indian restaurants (which I will not name) were horrible — found hair in my food twice at one (though the food itself was good), and the other had a poor buffet selection with cold food. But you can't go wrong with Tandoor, Thali, or Haveli. —logan

2010-04-29 09:53:58   Haveli management... read this please. My first three times eating at Haveli were amazing; it was the best Indian food I've ever had outside India. However we went this past Monday and it was not nearly as good. In fact, it seemed like half of what was on the buffet was left over from the weekend (the grilled & tandoori chicken was cold and just plain awful). Restaurants that do well initially often get complacent and stop paying close attention to quality and the little things that matter... please don't fall into this as you were off to a great start. —GaryAR

2010-05-15 14:37:22   Went for Saturday buffet. There seemed to be a lot more selection than your typical Indian buffet. The food tasted really good too. —TippingPoint

2010-05-17 14:10:16   Went last week and the food was fantastic. Service was friendly but a little disorganized. I'll definitely be back —Lnyxa

2010-05-23 17:28:25   We went there today for the Sunday buffet. There was only one other couple. I'm afraid that this place does not even compare to the quality and variety that Tandoor provides. Tandoor offers more options and their Chicken Mahkani does not even come close. There is no fresh fruit, not many dessert options. They only offered 3 non-vegetarian options. I fear that this place will not be open much longer! —ChefRamsey

2010-06-03 16:27:37   I have been to Haveli once. I don't think it matches up to the quality of other Indian restaurants in Rochester. We ordered a vegetable biriyani, a veggie balti dish and a dosa item. The veggie biriyani was not so great - just OK. The balti dish was filling, but kind of tasteless. The dosa item was good.

The ambience was good and the staff friendly. However, if you are a student, please do tell them so before they bring your bill. We got a surprise because apparently, they cannot apply a discount once the bill has been prepared. That is the first time I have heard such a thing from any restaurant in Rochester.

Overall, the eating experience there was OK, but not great. If you want to eat Indian food, go to Haveli only if you are bored of Taste of India, Thali of India or Tandoor of India. —Foodie18

2010-06-26 15:35:16   I lived in India for a few years so I feel I can comment on what Indian food should be like. I am happy to say this restaurant is spot on! The Chicken Mahkani was the best I've had in years. It wasn't made with 'Campbells tomato soup' like many places here in town (i.e. Thali of India). Each dish on the buffet was tasty and hot. Naan was good too and delivered fresh to the table. Half the buffet was vegetarian.The service was very slow but I will be back! I feel it is much better than the other Indian restaurants around here.—RocDiner

2010-07-08 15:36:57   This Indian Cuisine seems to be one of the finest serving places in Rochester. Their food is beyond comparison to any other Indian restaurant. For once I feel like I am tasting real Indian food with the power pact of all the spices. I'm sorry to hear from ChefRamsey that his taste is so bad in Indian delicacy. I went there again on Sunday and not one table was empty. It's a good thing we had made a reservation ahead of time. I see a very bright future for Haveli Indian Cuisine. It is definitely something new and keeps you coming back for more of its addicting new tried before recipes. I would like to thank the Haveli Chefs who work behind the kitchen doors because its their hard work that pays off. I will be back again this week. Keep up the good work. —SarahKieler

2010-08-21 04:18:57   First visit last night. Ordered Tofu Pakoras, Lentil Soup, Chicken Shahi Korma, Baingan Bartha, Onion Kulcha, Mango Lassi, Kheer, Masala Chai and all the food was excellent and the service was good, and the only thing not exactly to my taste was the chai which was on the watery side and a bit too sweet. Although one would like Indian restaurants that have buffets to have consistent quality between the buffet food and menu ordered food, I don't often go for buffets and don't like to judge a restaurant based on their buffet food, especially because some restaurants intentionally make the buffet food on the mild side so that they can satisfy customers who can only eat mild tasting dishes whereas I prefer most dishes anywhere from medium to extra spicy. I'm looking forward to future visits and hope to find that all of their food is as good as it was on this first experience. —KairakuShugisha

2010-08-24 02:12:37   The food used to be way better earlier. The quality has gone down in the past few weeks. Food offered in ala carte are just okay and those offered through buffet are sometimes bad which is sad given that they have one of the most expensive buffet among Indian restaurants. I hope their food quality would improve. —Mahul

2010-08-25 17:43:16   I went to Haveli Indian Cuisine yesterday again and I must say the food is very delicious, in fact I believe it's better than before. They have made many improvements on the decorations, making the whole environment cultural and beautiful. I loved the North Indian dishes especially, they were such a delight. As far as my knowledge goes, the head chef there has always been Gurpal Singh, he's a very humble and noble human being, saying so I've met him myself.Avtar was one of the sideline helpers that also helped with few dishes but I wouldn't give much credit though it was still under training. God has really blessed the REAL head chef of Haveli (Gurpal Singh) with a splendid talent that only few people carry. The price is pretty reasonable according to the variety of food that is offered, I doubt there is any other Indian restaurant with such rich foods in buffet.I wish Haveli Indian Cuisine all the best for I see a very bright future in its path. —DavidG.

2010-10-09 07:46:21   Guy's please do not take any restaurant.com certificates or entartainment B1G1 entre coupon to this restaurant. These guys are still selling the certificates and when you take it they are not accepting it. What a way to attract the customers and overcharging them. Food is good no doubt but no professionalism. This is the main problem with many Indian restaurants in US and Canada. Try to avoid using any coupons or certificates. The owner of the restaurants will turn red face but will come and will discuss with you and will try to convience you that they cannot accept it. It becomes embracing for you and the restaurant owner both. Avoid this. —RM

2010-10-16 10:36:11   On Oct 15, 2010 my friends and I went to Havali for dinner. I bought a gift certificate for them and the restaurant refused to take it. Not only was the waiter rude about the certificate the hostess was rude as well and said it was not their policy to accept restaurant.com certificates. If they were not accepting them, then they should not be available for purchase. Note I purchased this on October 12th. Because of their rudeness I will never go there again. Hopefully my poor experience there, will educate others on what to expect. —MrExtreme

2011-03-25 17:57:57   Not good, my least favorite indian place in Rochester so far. Too americanized —jberna

2011-04-03 15:21:22   very good buffet with many choices, went on a monday night. downside is its relatively expensive at $12 a pop. don't know if they offer a student discount. —MehulMalik

2011-11-28 19:49:58   I can't speak to the authenticity of their Indian food because I am not an ethnic Indian and have not eaten at any restaurant in India. But the meal my wife and I had on Friday evening was tasty, pleasently seasoned, attractively presented and plentiful. We had vegetable pakora, onion kulcha, chicken keseri and paneer jalfrezi. Service was attentive and professional. The dining room was comfortable. And they gladly accepted a "buy one get 50%-off the second entree" coupon from "Clipper" advertizing magazine, so the price was quite reasonable for what we got. We will certainly go back. —JGerek

2012-02-17 20:25:51   I should start by saying that I'm rounding this review UP from the 3.5 stars it deserves. Food was pretty good (some was great, some was just average), but the decor and service were pretty poor. Still, at least they cook well...

I tried the lunch buffet, which, at $9.99 isn't the cheapest Indian buffet around, but it may well be the most varied. For a place that is supposedly specializes in northern Indian food, they actually made a pretty good dosa, raita, and samosas. In the meat dishes, the chickem Mongolian was particularily noteworthy, as was the gulab jamun. Some other dishes, like the cucumber tomato salad, the chicken makhani and the keer were good, but not really spectacular.

As others have said, the service is haphazard, at best. Bollywood videos were playing on the TV, but luckily the volume was low (BTW, when did Indian dance music start using a chicano rap beat?). I plan to come here again, maybe next time to see how they handle different dishes, such as balti dishes, or perhaps a vegetarian meal.

—Alex-C

2012-03-10 08:26:17   This place is THE best Indian in Henrietta, hands down. Being run by the former owners of Namaste (where there was an accident many years back), this place really does most things right. I usually don't go to the buffet, but if you order of the menu, you'll be happily surprised. Rice is seasoned very well, portions are correct and really delicious for what you're paying. Decor has been upgraded and everything looks really nicenow. Serving staff can be hit or miss, but overall not a bad experience most times. They use real tandoor ovens for the naan and the meat/chicken/sausage-y tandoori dishes and it just is awesome in every way! Always happy to go back —AGoldman

2012-06-17 13:13:26   Well, I finally tried them for dinner. It wasn't very good. The food was, for the most part, OK, but the service was at best crap.

We started out being seated in the completely empty back part. nobody else there, yet the hostess wanted to seat us on a dinky table against the wall, next to the kitchen door. This is the seat USUALLY reserved for looneys and people who smell bad. We protested, so she placed us in a 4-spot, then she spent the next 3 minutes fumbling around with the 2 placings she removed.

Our waiter took quite a while to show up, and was really less than helpful. I suspect that he was serving on both ends of this fairly odd-shaped layout, but he certainly wasn't paying any attention to us.

We ordered a single order of Aaloo Parantha nan, which was pretty good. I ordered the Paneer Jalfrezi, while my partner ordered the Kadai Chicken. My dish was a bit strong on the onion, but the chicken dish was really quite good.

I guess there isn't much you can do about the layout of the place, which makes a lot of sense for the lunch buffet, but is a real hindrance for the dinner crowd. I would suggest that they offer the buffet at dinner, or else offer combo meal pricing. Buying several dishes works well for a party of 4 or more, but when it's only 2 people, you don't get much of a selection, or else you end up taking a LOT of food home. Offering combo meals of half-sized portions with a range of dishes would attract a lot more singles and couples.

I'll probably go back there for the lunch buffet again some day, but never again for dinner. —alex-c

2013-06-25 12:19:42   Two of us went for buffet on Sunday, June 16, 2013. We found the food to be substantially more salty than other Indian buffets in town which was unappealing to us. The vegetarian selections were not particularly tasty either. The flow of traffic around the buffet — the narrowest point in the restaurant — was terrible. I found it frustrating that staff did not yield to customer traffic. Finally, it was more expensive than other buffets and did not include nan (which we were not even offered.) Lesson learned. —JasonOlshefsky