Tandoori Night food review

On 1420 East Roseville Parkway, a few blocks from Sunsplash and down the street from In-N-Out, lies a departure from the humdrum of suburban chain restaurants. Its only advertisement is its unassuming neon sign, reading simply, ‘Tandoori Night’. But the ever-present crowd of locals and foodies – and the smell, my god, the mouth-wateringly vibrant smell of the place – speaks to its greatness.
Tandoori Night specializes in Indian and Pakistani halal cuisine, and if I can emphasize one point about them, it’s this: they cook some of the freshest food around, bar none. And they’re proud of it. As you order, you’re given an unobstructed view of their largely open kitchen.
Moments after I walked in, I watched a cook pull a massive skewer of chicken out of a tandoori (high-heat) oven, slide the still steaming hunks of meat from the metal, deposit them into a takeout box and hand it over to an eager customer.
This was pure torture as I am a vegetarian, but thankfully, their meat-free entrees were more than enough for me.
All in all, my family and I ordered samosas (dough stuffed with vegetables), pakoras (which are like small veggie fritters), chana masala (garbonzo beans), briyani (vegetables in spiced rice), saag dahl (lentils and spinach), paneer makhani (mild cheese cubes in sauce) and garlic naan (flatbread).
I also sprang for the mango lassi, which is like a tangy yogurt milkshake. They go great with spicier dishes, or so I’ve been told; I drank the whole thing in about a minute. Be warned – they are addictive.
The appetizers – the samosas and pakoras – came quickly, an had obviously not been pre-prepared. The pakoras were delightfully crunchy, and I recommend them with a drizzle of sweet tamarind sauce for a bit of zest. The samosas were rich, but not so much so that they dampened my appetite – rather, they enticed it.
When the rest of my order came, the portion sizes were staggering. I had to arrange the plates so that every spare square inch of space was used. But the food’s quality,
I’m pleased to report, didn’t decline with its quantity.
The chana masala was a surprise favorite of mine, as its texture was creamy and its flavor savory yet delicate. The biryani was excellent, heavy on fresh veggies and relatively light on excess oil. The saag dal was delicious, too, spicy and filling. My least favorite dish had to be the paneer makhani, as it tasted more heavily of tomatoes than I had expected, but the paneer (cheese) itself had a pleasantly chewy texture. The garlic naan served as the perfect side dish to everything, well-suited to sauce-dipping.
By the end of it all, I was so full that I dreaded standing and left with a hefty bag of leftovers.
Tandoori Night is, without a doubt in my mind, the best Indian cuisine in the Roseville-Granite Bay area. Their food is fresh, their service is quick and their prices are almost absurdly cheap for what you’ll get.
If you, like me, grow tired of the same old burger and fries, Tandoori Night offers a delightful culinary escape.