Chili’s South Indian Restaurant

Really great service, prompt but reading the room. They knew exactly how much time we needed to browse the menu and they also gave us complimentary chai. After a day of hiking two of us shared a vegi butter vegetables and a masala dosa, it was a satisfying amount of food. The ambiance is just okay, but the food and service made up for it. If you’re looking for a delicious and relatively inexpensive Indian place near campus this is ideal.

We had a very tasty dosa and a vegetable butter chicken. My wife is a vegetarian and very few places make a veggie equivalent of the butter chicken, so I was really excited to try it. She was blown away.
I absolutely would recommend this place to anyone in the area looking for some delicious Indian food. The price can’t be beat too!

Food tastes ok, very tight space, no even space get by. Chicken are all gone, have to wait for it. Great service. Might try other place next time.

Probably my expectations were little higher. This is the first Indian restaurant I saw buffet without biriyani. Food was normal. Not that great and not bad either.

Loved the food. The paratha was super tasty!!! Thai was the best deal. We get good amount of non veg curry for the thali.

What an awesome place and very friendly staff. You should go here. If you’re in the UW area please visit this place.

Review for the new place. Much bigger space with plenty of spacing and a great menu to accompany it. Note: menu items are offered from 3:30 pm onwards Tues– Sun. We were here for lunch but didn’t opt for the buffet. They were kind enough to let us order from the menu. What we come here for are the scrumptious dosas and some good Kerala curries. We ordered the masala dosa and the goat dosa, Kerala fish curry and 2 mango lassi’s. The dosa’s did not disappoint. She makes amazing chutneys, tomato and coconut with a delicious sambar. The masala in the dosa was lightly spiced and perfect. The goat curry was authentic Kerala goat curry. Our gluttony had us order the fish curry as well, although the two dosa’s had us pretty full. The curry is very authentic and spicy. Next time around, I will do dinner on a full menu. Can’t wait to eat the appas and chicken curry, a Kerala classic. The restaurant has gotten bigger with more staff but has retained its authenticity and the owner is delightfully sweet and welcoming as always. The service was very quick and a definite improvement over the past place. This place serves very authentic South Indian (Kerala style) food.

I’ve never had South Indian food before, but the flavor had me coming back for more. After trying the food here during the lunch buffet for the first time, no other place could satisfy my palette. During the lunch time, the place is extremely packed. There are an assortment of Indian cuisine available and it’s all you can eat for about 12 after tax (but before tip!). While the quality of the food isn’t consistent between the two visits I’ve had, who cares. You’re not coming here for the class, you’re coming here for a quality and delicious cheap eat. You won’t be disappointed. I would have rated 5 if the quality was consistent, but understand that even the best restaurants will have trouble if the tables are constantly full and only have 2 wait staff. Come experience an experience like no other !

This is a review of their buffet. The items are pretty good, but there isn’t much variety. FYI: they really need to monitor the temperature of the buffet. I burned my hand on a metal spoon on the buffet.

Everything that was good about this place when it was further up the ave has gone. The lunch buffet is not south indian and serves the usual assortment of badly cooked chicken tandoori, assorted veg dishes and hunt-​the-​meat dishes. Tables are too closed together. I used to come here for the south indian food and they had great sambar and dosas. I couldn’t even get a dosa for lunch. I’m giving it 3 stars because the dal was very tasty.
Go to Shalimar two doors down for good north indian food.

Wow. If I could I would give ⁶⁄₅ stars, I know that is a bit fanciful, but my experience today was fantastic!
I have been to literally dozens of Indian food buffets, and Chili is really ahead of the rest. Many other buffets charge extra for tea or naan, no here! What they charge ($ 8.99 weekday lunches) is what you pay.
Also, this place has received outstanding rating by Seattle Public Health. Knowing the food is prepared in a clean environment lets me know they care that much more.
Service is outstanding as well, esp for somewhere so busy.

Love coming here. Dosas are great. Sambar is okayish. I love their coconut chutney. And tip– don’t order vada in sambar. Order it Separately or vada gets so soggy that it disappears in the
Sambar.

Came in on a Friday night with both kids (4 yr old & 8 mo baby) & the staff was super friendly and helpful. Ordered the vegetarian and non-​vegi thali and it was soooo delicious. Definitely going back!

This review is strictly for the lunch buffet.
I was happy to hear Chilli’s opened up on The Ave again, and closer to my workplace too! It was one of those places that I had bookmarked for awhile until they had to close down their old location. Indian food is one of those cuisines that I have to be in a certain mood for, but when it comes to Chilli’s I can have lunch here everyday.
The lunch buffet is under $ 9, which is pretty standard. They switch up the offerings daily but do consistently offer Butter chicken, rice and tandoori chicken. Speaking of tandoori chicken, that is the main reason why I return for lunch. Normally it’s something I don’t care for in buffets since it tends to be dried out and tough. However with Chili’s, they bring it out in small batches so it stays fresh. I love how tender and juicy the meat is. The curries that they offer are on the spicier side compared to other Indian buffets I have tried in the area. I honestly haven’t found anything I dislike yet so far but if you need something to cool the spices off, get an order of their mango lassi or serve yourself some rice pudding from the buffet area.
If you want naan, you have to ask the server for it, and they only give you one piece at a time. It doesn’t affect me since all I really need is just one piece.
One thing to keep in mind, lunch hour is busy at Chili’s so I wouldn’t recommend going here if you are on a time crunch. Also, it is buffet only during lunch.

We went for the lunch buffet. Not a large selection and the tandoori chicken was SO DRY! The only meat was chicken, many of the dishes were veggie based. I was happy to see they had rice pudding but my work husband said it was only «okay».

We went on a late Tuesday evening for dinner. The tables that were unoccupied were all dirty, we had to go and ask for a place to sit. Later when we wanted to order, we were told that it will take some time and after ten minutes we placed order. Mango lassi was rose flavored which was not mentioned and Mysore Masala dosa was bland. Not a good experience at all!

I am not really fond of Indian food & buffet! Yet this place is a Bomb! Very authentic selective choices of great dishes includes Chicken Tika, Naan & Delish tea (authentic Chai). The staff is very accommodative

I came in the restaurant by myself at 8:45pm. The restaurant was busy; people knew before that this place was good back when it was on 50^th. I was seated. The waiter came to take my order. I told him I wanted a goat dosa and a non-​veg thali. He told me that was too much for one person like me, and he looked at me from head to toe, sizing me up. I told him wanted two dishes anyway. He said ok, wrote down my order, and left.
I waited, hoping the food will come out within 15 – 20 minutes, at max 30. While waiting, I noticed the table in front and behind me, each has 2 people in the party, came in after me, got their foods, paid the bills and left. Another party of 2 came in to sit at the back table, got their foods, paid the bills and left. There was a family of 3 who order a to go, came after me, got their foods, paid the bill and left. The long table in the middle had around 16 people, 8 of them came in after me; they too got their foods before me. The table near the cashier with 6 people came after me also got their foods.
An hour after, a different waitress came to refill my water. She said what did I order. I told what I ordered, and she came back to the kitchen to check on it. The goat dosa came out; it was cold. I told the waiter I was not happy with the situation and asked if I can speak with the manager. The manager came out, apologize that my ticket got «lost» in the kitchen. He showed me my ticket, and there was only ONE order: the goat dosa. I told him I ordered 2 dishes; he didn’t apologize for that and said the kitchen only go by what were on the ticket.
I asked if there was anyway I could get this dosa for free, and he said no. He stated, «If you eat, you have to pay. I apologize for the lost ticket and the waiting time. I serve you the food now. You can choose to eat it or not, but if you do eat it, you have to pay».
I couldn’t believe that statement. He was right on the hard rules; you pay for what you eat. Yet, what makes a restaurant great is by following many soft rules: serving the foods within reasonable time and offering the one item free of charge if the customers has been waiting for a long time.
I left without eating the dosa. This visit spoke volume to me about the manager (pretty sure he’s the owner as well). I will just bullet-​listed my criticisms down here:
Inaccurate ticket
Discouraging customers from ordering their choice
–Loooong waiting time
–23 people that came after me and got served before me. 4 parties paid the bills and left before me.
–Disrespect single party
–Stringent management
–Standing by the hard rules at the wrong time, making him looked ridiculous
–Does not understand the soft rules in food service
–Does not apologize for the inaccuracy of the ticket, hence, defending the waiter at the wrong time
–Cold food
–Bad treatment to frequent customers (been to Chili’s for 4 years since it was still on 50^th).
Don’t believe the waiting time? The security tape will confirm it.

I don’t know what makes this «South Indian,» but it was very good. The service was friendly and prompt. The food was very good (maybe a little salty). The atmosphere is nice, on brand I’d say. I had the veg-​thali. It is the first entrée listed, and I think for good reason. They give you a nice assortment of vegetarian sides with excellent flatbreads and aromatic rice. I’m not even a vegetarian and it was very satisfying. Definitely going back.

An extremely bad puttu that does no justice to original south indian version, a horribly tasting dosa with very bad sambar and deformed idlis.
Coffee was the only saviour.
Very sad — they could do so much better but they choose to do so very badly. Won’t be visiting again.

Please do yourself a favor and have chettinadu chicken if you like spicy authentic Indian food. The best Indian food I have had outside India. Oh and and the parathas… OMG. too good!!!

Went to their new location. Food has not changed. It still taste the same. Additional bonus of tea and service was very attentive and quick.

The new location is a real step up! The menu seemed a little bigger and better organized too. Veg thali was delicious. Can’t wait to try the buffet.

I ended up at this place famished and craving South Indian food when on a business trip. I only got to try the vegetarian thali and it was excellent. Unlike other thali’s I’ve had in other cities, this one had a lot of veggies and greens which was a refreshing change. I thoroughly enjoyed the meal and am definitely bookmarking this place to come back on future trips to Seattle.

We ordered the Dahi Vada, Mysore dosa and Fish Moiler with parathas and rice. Everything was authentic and delicious. Prices are very reasonable. The only downside is the service is a bit slow. But that’s a price I’ll gladly pay for this sort of Indian food. The owners are so nice as well!

We love Chili’s. Have been coming here since before it was really a restaurant. The owners are the nicest. The food is great! I miss the fun/​funky ambiance of the old location. But the new place is really nice and hopefully attracts even more people. This is one of the very best Indian restaurants in Seattle. If you have only ever been to regular North Indian/​Punjabi/​Nepali restaurants, you have to come here! Indian food is so diverse and you are missing out! I recommend the thalis, dosas, and goat curry.

we were so eager to try out the new renovated location at university district. the prices went up a lot and the quality and quantity is very less. the kurma parota that we ordered had frozen parotha and the curry was very liquidy. the masala dosa sambar and chutneys taste was not that great as we expected. not sure what happened. the earlier reviews were great but we had very bad experience. we are not going back unless they fix it.

Me: Let’s go to Chili’s!
Someone else: No… how did you make Unilocal Elite??? I’m never taking your restaurant advice ever again…
Me: No! The South Indian place!!!
When you say, «let’s get Indian food!» yr probably talking about North Indian food. North Indian food tends to have ingredients like grilled meats, yogurt, cream, and is non-​vegetarian. We’re talking about stuff like tandoori chicken and naan. Hey, it’s what the people like.
On the other hand, South Indian food tends to focus on vegetarian dishes, fish, and more rice than bread (my vegan friend loved it here). You’ll see dishes like spiced potato and onion wrapped in dosa (a fermented crêpe made from rice batter and lentils. It’s more brittle than the typical crêpe and It’s a South Indian staple.) South Indian spices tend to be thinner but spicier.
Chili’s used to be in a dingy place near 50^th St., so this new location is a much-​needed upgrade in terms of décor and cleanliness. When we entered the restaurant, it seemed very busy and it took about 3 minutes for us to get seated when there were already seats available. Once we were seated, service was prompt and the waterman visited us often. Pay at the counter, not at the table.
A friend and I split the lamb dosa and goat dosa. Both were excellent and flavorful. The goat meat was bone-​in and much softer, while the lamb meat was boneless and more substantial. The spices for both dishes were sharp (not creamy like North Indian curries) and seemed between a 2 and 3 in terms of spiciness level. The waiter did not ask for spiciness level so you’ll have to specify your spice level if you wish. My vegan friend ordered the masala dosa, which he seemed to really enjoy. Each of our dishes were served with sambar (a lentil vegetable soup) and chutneys (SAUCE FOR DA DIPPIN).
Both my friends still seemed a bit hungry after their dinners. The dishes aren’t particularly heavy like Indian curries. However, for what you get, the flavors were well-​crafted and you can tell that the ingredients were carefully selected and combined.
Strong 4 outta 5

Had lunch buffet here. The food was amazing. Specially their butter chicken and egg curry. This is the first indian restaurant in seattle where I found egg curry. The service was good but a bit slow.

This is a place I frequently visit and advice others to do so, a must visit for any South Indian residing in Seattle. Very friendly and prompt service. This place has newly relocated to a new address within the University district, a few minutes walk from the University parkway stop. Don’t be fooled by the humble exterior, the interiors are neat and cleanly made with an authentic Indian touch. Chili’s has a great dinner and lunch buffet which is a real treat for $ 10, do look out for the excellent butter chicken and steamed rice in the buffet platter. The Indian chai is also included with the buffet which literally transported me to India for a few minutes. The authenticity of food served here is even greater than some hotels in India, which is really difficult to maintain in a foreign country (you have to believe this coming from a south Indian). I could happily say that this place has made up my day more than once.

My wife and I have been to this great and I mean beyond good, South Indian restaurant numerous times. Every time, we are so very pleased that we chose to dine there. The décor is lovely and the staff is always sweet, sincere and most welcoming. The food is home style and delicious as well.
The owner warmly wants to please and does! Makes me /​us wish we lived closer.

Updated ¹²⁄₂₀₁₅ for new location:
This restaurant has been open for many years as Chili’s Deli Mart which had many happy customers (
). I’m still coming back for all of the dosa’s (the lamb’s my favorite!) So thrilled they reopened with the same owners at the new location (definitely a step up). It’s much more sit-​down dinner friendly with a nice décor and the food is excellent. Definitely the best South Indian in Seattle– low cost, delicious.
Original review:
Stopped here with my wife (from Delhi) for some late night dosa. Excellent South Indian food– the Lamb Dosa was delicious, ordered extra to take home. The environment is basic, employees friendly, food is wonderful.