Cafe Maharani
Honolulu, HI 96826
Phone: (808) 951-7447
User Reviews for Cafe Maharani
04/19/2008 Posted by manoawally
I love Indian food and have eaten there a few times. There's a wide variety of meat and vegetarian seclections; a huge choice of fresh breads. The flavors are complex, delicious. My Mom loved the chicken vindaloo. I've had many vegan dishes. It's usu mild-mod spicy. There is an adequate amt of food for price and the atm is enjoyable 4 casual dining. BYOB too. Too bad, but the whole staff was VERY rude to my group 1 nite about 1 1/2 to 2 hrs before closing. We are an easy-going group of bartenders and servers from a close-by restaurant. We called ahead and they said that we could come, but when we arrived 15 min later, they said that they didn't have room to seat us, which was a blatant lie. There was a large table available and a few small ones. And at least 2 groups were seated after us. One was a 4-top and the other was a 2-top . The 2-top was seated at an open ~8-top table. We were mystified. We were quiet, polite, clean. Most of the group was waiting outside while 2-4 people tried to ease the process. We had even pre-selected the food we wanted - before being sat - since they said that they would serve us. We thought very hard about why they didn't want to seat us. The worse thing though was that they were curt and impolite and it seems like they were lying. Many reviews show that this place has spotty service. We tried to order take-out after learning that they wouldn't seat us and it was a difficult process. Again, they were short and not helpful. Apparently, they were out of a lot of food. Reasonable since it was about an hour before closing at this point. We did not feel the least bit welcome by any of the staff, and in fact, we just felt like they really hated us being there. Guess they had a hard night. I had no complaints before this episode, but I will never go back. Our group has been in the industry a long time, and we really felt that we received unreasonable treatment. The food is good, but not that good. There are other restaurants.
Pros: Good food, central location, tandoor oven, moderate prices, BYOB
Cons: Spotty service with occasional unwelcoming atmosphere
03/25/2007 Posted by srao01
We were on vacation and were craving some spicy Indian food. We tried Cafe Maharani and found that the food was just great. The naans and curry were fresh. The restaurant is small and usually gets crowded, I would recommend grabbing a bottle of wine from the Star Market across the street and having a glass while waiting for a table. The food is worth the wait!
Pros: Great food
Cons: Slightly slow service when busy, but the staff is great!
Users Like You Also Viewed
Roy's
6600 Kalanianaole Hwy
Honolulu, HI 96825
India Bazaar Madras Cafe
2320 S King St Ste B4
Honolulu, HI 96826
