The Yellow Chilli Tustin - 2.5/5 Stars

Owned by Chef Sanjeev Kapoor who starred in the well-known televesion show Khana Khazana. Features a a wide variety of authentic Indian meals for all to enjoy.

Butter Chicken - Chicken tikka in a rich buttery makhni sauce.

“A recipe has no soul, you as the cook must bring soul to the recipe.” - Sanjeev Kapoor

Location

The Yellow Chilli is located in the Tustin Legacy District. The District is a shopping mall with many clothing and fashion stores, as well as an abundance of restaurants. The restaurant is located close to a bar place, as well as the AMC Theatre. Being close to the parking lot, it is very easy to get to and there are a lot of other things to do besides eat.

Company

Since my dad loves Indian food, we decided to try Yellow Chilli since it was new and not too far from our home. My mom isn't a huge fan of Indian food since she has been eating it almost every day for a very long time, but she did not mind coming along. For me, I usually like Indian food, in particular Punjabi food which has things like Chicken Tikka Masala, Paneer Masala, and other curry-based items.

Service

The service was quite poor at the Yellow Chilli. Once we sat down, we waited 10-15 minutes, and my dad had to call the waitress to come take our order. This is something that is completely unacceptable in any restaurant. Once she came to our table, our waitress was not too friendly. She seemed distracted and uninterested in our dining experience and helping us choose which items to get. We noticed that she was talking a lot more to two middle-aged men who were seated close to us. The reason is most likely they were going to get drinks and tip more. Nonetheless, I did not think she treated us well overall. Our waitress maybe checked on us once throughout our whole time there and it did not seem genuine at all. Also, it took almost 45 minutes to get our food even though there were only a few other people dining.

Ambience

The ambience of the restaurant is probably the only half-decent aspect of Yellow Chilli. The lighting was nice and dim which provided for a more intimate experience. I think this would be well-suited for anyone, particularly people going on a date or meeting with a small group. The seating was relatively comfortable and the tables were setup well with clean, white cloths. From my seat, I could see the bar area and it looked very exquisite, with hundreds of bottles of different alcoholic beverages all arranged in rows and columns. The casing and organization of the drinks was done well. One thing I do want to mention is that the seating was a bit tight. For my dad who was sitting opposite to me and my mom, there was not much distance between him and the person behind him which was not a great experience for him. Also, he had to push in his chair every time a server or waiter had to walk through that area. The restaurant could better organize the seating to avoid this issue.

Food

I ordered the Butter Chicken and we ordered some Plain Naan and Rice to go along with our dishes. When I first poured the sauce over my rice, I noticed how thin it was. I couldn't grab it with my naan which was a bit frustrating so I stuck to eating it with rice. I usually equate a good consistnecy of any sauce or gravy with quality. So in this case, not so great. As far as taste goes, the chicken tasted good but the sauce was not good at all. It did not taste anything similar to butter chicken curries that I've previously had at fine Indian restaurants. It tasted more tomato-like and was too spicy for me. My parents were not too impressed with their items either.

With all the critiques I had at The Yellow Chilli, I was not exactly happy with my experience. There are a lot of things that this restaurant can improve on aside from the food that would make it a lot more pleasant to go to. I also think that the food should have been a lot better, with regard to taste and texture, given the high price of the food there ($25+ per item). I will not be going to this restaurant in the near future and hope to find a better Indian restaurant for my family to enjoy in the future. Make sure to post any restaurant and food experiences in the forums!