As a far more qualified food critic than our Editor in Chief, Eli Schultz, who typically writes this sort of food review for less dignified foods, I am extremely grateful to finally bring some dignity to the Orange & Black food reviews. My food of choice for this will be the Indian dish “Chicken Tikka Massala.” This dish is a type of Indian Curry, although it is not spicy curry. Rather, its flavor comes from various spices such as Garam masala, turmeric, and Kashmiri chili powder. While it uses chili powders, it isn’t as spicy as traditional curries. For each meal I ate it over standard rice, which didn’t change depending on the restaurant. At each restaurant it costs roughly $20-25. While not necessary, I also recommend having some naan bread on the side, as it really adds to the overall meal. I chose this dish as I believe it is a great introduction to the amazing world of Indian food for the uncultured person. I reviewed this dish from the Grand Valley’s very own three Indian and Nepalese food restaurants.
Note: All dishes can be shared, but I would suggest if you are hungry or have a large appetite to order for yourself. All restaurants should be visited outside of school due to the wait times.
Guru’s Kitchen
This is the best Indian food restaurant within the city of Grand Junction. You’re welcomed to the restaurant after walking down Main Street close to the corner of 4th Street. Once you walk in, you’re greeted by the extremely nice people who work there. It has one of the quickest wait times, even during the busier hours, but the quality of food doesn’t reflect that quick time.
Once you receive your food, you’d be a fool to wait even one second before digging in. Guru’s kitchen has to have the creamiest Tikka Masala sauce out of the three I visited. While the chicken can sometimes be hit or miss in regards to tenderness, the sauce is enough for it to be the richest and most flavorful option out of all three. Add this to the phenomenal atmosphere, and it’s very clear why this is my top option.
Karma Kitchen
Similar to the setting of Guru’s, Karma Kitchen is also located in a downtown area, that being downtown Fruita.
Once you walk in you are greeted by the friendly staff and seated. However, from experience, the wait time for your food is exponentially longer. While the wait time is longer, it is worth it.
While I still prefer the Tikka Masala from Guru’s, Karma Kitchen is still super creamy, and I even entertain the thought of it being slightly more flavorful at times. The best part of Karma Kitchen has to be the absolute most tender, delectable chicken you have ever laid your tongue on. I don’t think the best poet in human history could even begin to write about the joys that come with the Karma Kitchen chicken. While Guru’s Kitchen is still my favorite, if you are in Fruita, you absolutely cannot go wrong with Karma Kitchen.
Namaste Nepal
Namaste Nepal is located at 2692 US-50 near the county fairgrounds, so as you can guess, not the most ideal location for many GJHS students. While the location makes it appear less aesthetically pleasing, you’re greeted by possibly the friendliest staff out of all three restaurants when you walk in.
My opinion on the food has been met with some dismay from my peers, so I suppose I may have had one of the off days at the restaurant. While the food wasn’t bad, it took the longest amount of time despite there being very few people in the restaurant — even less than Guru’s which was the fastest. When I received my food, it was insanely hot, as in the temperature. While I don’t critique it for being fresh, it did make the wait to eat even longer than it already was.
The food itself was quite alright, though compared to Guru’s and Karma Kitchen it could be considered the worst. The Tikka Masala sauce was creamy, though considerably more watery than the other two restaurants. The chicken may compete with that of Guru’s, but mixed with the more watery sauce it lost a little bit of its saving grace. However, despite the harsher criticism, I would still highly recommend this restaurant — especially considering the likelihood my slightly negative experience was most likely an off day.
