Cardamom

when they mentioned Hyderabad Biryani i thought it was going to be authentic which is not.
They mixed white rice in goat curry and added some raisins and almonds.
and way too pricey for what they gave me.
Total disappoinment

Five stars for the food — I had the birahi kabab while my wife had the malai kofta, with garlic naan and roti. All tasty, with excellent flavors, and huge portions. Service was fast, pleasant, and efficient. Three stars (or less) for my drink. I ordered a Tanq and tonic. The gin wasn’t Tanqueray and the drink was literally the worst gin & tonic I’ve ever had.

Solid and have managed growth well. I’ve only done take out (several times averaging 2/​month) so can’t comment on the dine in experience. Food quality is high and there’s a nice variety with some good vegan options for my lawfully wedded buddy. I love the matar paneer and if I forget naan, I hear about it from my 6 year old for days. Many experiences are 5 star but there have been some inconsistencies which is annoying (spice, degree of cooking) so I give a solid 4. Definitely worth a visit.

I used to think Cardamom was really good but I recently ordered takeout and found the food to be quite underwhelming. Given that it was Valentine’s Day, I ordered takeout the avoid the inevitable hour long wait. While the food was actually ready for pickup when I showed up (unlike some other places) 45 minutes later, what it essentially came down to was two small containers of bland food with a larger box of equally bland rice.
The chicken tikka masala that I ordered medium spicy lacked the creamy tomato-​y kick I was used to and was more mild in terms of spice. The chunks of chicken, while tender, lacked any flavor and was just accompanied by a thin, creamy mess. I thought that the palak paneer ordered mild spicy would save the day but it was just another extremely bland creamy mix of spinach with cubes of tofu cheese. While it’s been a while since I last ate here, either the chefs have lost some of their taste buds or it’s just a bad idea to order out from this place. I may give Cardamom another shot, but when I’m in the mood for yummy Indian food full of flavor I will likely look elsewhere.

FYI this rating is on take-​out only! Live up the road from Cardamom and somehow have never dined here. Didn’t feel like actually going out to eat so decided we’ll give Cardamom a shot after seeing how good the reviews were. Ordered the following:
Seafood Korma: Shrimp, scallops and fish, creamy almond cashew sauce. I stupidly ordered this mild so there was literally no spice to it whatsoever. I was not a fan, it could have been much better with some heat. Buyer beware, you get a minimal amount of seafood. I counted 2 (slightly overcooked) shrimp, 4 tiny bay scallops and 5 chunks of fish. Dish mainly consisted of the white creamy sauce.
Chicken Tikka Masala was much better than the Seafood Korma. Still ordered mild, but it at least had a little heat. Also had a good portion of chicken.
The naan and accompanying basmati rice were good, but the rice didn’t taste terribly fresh. My favorite part of the order was the rice pudding which at first has a strange taste but it keeps you wanting more.
I’ll try Cardamom again dining in and hopefully be able to give it a better review.

Great Indian restaurant. We went for a quick lunch bite. They have an extensive menu with all the typical Indian options you could hope for and some you don’t think about like the momo appetizer. This Nepalese dumpling has the perfect combination of East Asian and South Asian flair. The dipping sauce that came served with the dumplings was quite scrumptious. We shared the chicken hyderbadi and got the paratha on the side. The entrée was large enough to share and came with rice. The flavoring was spot on for the chicken hyderbadi with the perfect amount of creaminess. The only drawback was, we asked for the maximum level of spicyness and felt that the spice level was just mild. Maybe we need to emphasize how spicy we want it next time!

Some of our favorite Indian food in town. We’ve mainly gotten takeout. It was always tasty and seemed fresh, reasonable prices (though not the cheapest). The lunch thalis are well-​sized and won’t send you into a food coma, and they present a neat little variety.
I am not a huge fan of their naan, but I generally find it hard to get really good naan here, I looooved Raja Rani’s and am okay with Shalimar’s.

In the spirit of A Christmas Story, we stopped at Cardamom for a Christmas eve dinner. It was full of other diners doing the same thing. But the wait was only 15 minutes. We sat at the bar, and tried a couple of novel cocktails while we waited. One was a Mumbaitini, A ginger infused vodka martini which was pretty good, but not something you want to have every day. The other was lychee cocktail, quite sweet but fun. All of the servers and staff were very cordial. The place was a little bit crazy given the holiday, but the food was quite good. For appetizers we had the tandoori chicken and fried potato thingies both were quite good, but the tandoori was better! For dinner, we had lamb vindaloo, and a goat curry. Both were great. It may have been the best goat we’ve ever had because it was boneless and extremely tender. The spiciness was as promised, and if you ask they will give you the house hot sauce which will bring up the heat as far as you want to go! We ordered the bread sampler, however I am not sure that was a good idea. I would stick with plain nan or garlic nan. Similarly, the chai tea was OK but it came unsweetened and I don’t have the nerve to add the proper amount of sugar. All in all a very solid four stars. Nice atmosphere good food, with that excellent goat, a very solid place. We will be back. Highly recommended.
PS I recommend Kingfisher beer with the meal rather than anything else to drink.

Stopped in for lunch today, everything was perfect. They were extremely busy but was still seated immediately. Ordered the cardamom chai tea and veggie samosas to start, both were delicious. My friend had the chicken makhni, it was very good. I ordered the lamb korma and the lentil soup, both were excellent. The naan could have been a bit crunchier, but the service was great and overall have no complaints. Parking is tough, had to park at Wendy’s.

Pardon me for being late to the party. I usually don’t try the Indian cuisine but I had heard so many great things about Cardamom I had to give it a try. We were pressed for time so we just had 3 appetizers and all were great. The dumplings, potato pouches, and the chicken (I would just slaughter the Indian names) were each delicious. The sauce for the dumplings is kick-​ass. We got there about 5:30 and just beat the rush. The waiter was very attentive (perhaps a little more than necessary) and the service was very fast. The one drawback is they have only one beer on draft (Bell’s Seasonal and tonight it was Best Brown), they also have beer in bottles, wine and mixed drinks. I’ll be back so something bigger next time, maybe the goat curry.

Happy to see how busy this restaurant is on a Friday evening, especially since recent expansion & reno.
Upon entering, the air is fragrant with spices. Waited for table at the new bar — cozy, good bartending.
Family celebration, table of 4 — 2 of whom were unfamiliar with any Indian cuisine (both celebrating birthdays). Shrimp, chicken, lamb dishes all outstanding. My veg korma was rich, savory, creamy. All generous servings — fresh, fragrant, lovely. Recommend the bread basket — I am always partial to aloo paratha.
Won 2 new fans — in addition to the 2 existing!
Special commendations to Jeffrey, our server — professional, joyous, spirited, always a pleasure!

Cardamom offers the best Indian food in Ann Arbor, and probably the best Indian restaurant food I’ve had (note: I’ve never been to India).
Food: Of note, they have dinner menu and a lunch menu, the latter is limited in variety of options. I typically stop by for lunch since it’s near my work, so I’m more familiar with those portions etc. And the portions (with one exception, noted below) are generous. Everything I’ve eaten here tastes great. From the rice (which I think is sauteed in butter and cumin before cooked), naan, karahi chicken, lamb korma, tandoori chicken, chicken makhani. it’s literally all really freakin good. Of note, they use only white meat chicken. If that’s your preference, then great. If you prefer your Indian food to have white and dark meat, at least you know what to expect. Also, the lamb is good — though not the best quality lamb I’ve ever had. Importantly, it’s not super gamey or whatever, like poor quality lamb tends to be.
However, my biggest complaint is that the tandoori chicken disappointed me… Not in taste (which was fantastic), but the lunch portion was stupid small. I got 3 pieces, which would be fine if there weren’t so many bones in the chicken. The bones to meat ratio was awful. Funny thing is that I’m quite familiar with chicken, but wasn’t sure what parts I got (though I found a wish bone, and that was fun, though I lost). I don’t know, maybe I was unlucky. It’s the only time I was disappointed eating at Cardamom.
Other quick thoughts:
–It’s crowded, and that sucks. You’re like elbow to elbow with people when it’s busy, which is always.
–But at least the service is reasonably quick during the rushes.
–Staff are very friendly
–Beer prices are outta control
–The outside sitting area is nice. And when it gets cold, they close it off with plastic and turn the heaters on. Bring a sweater and you’ll be fine outside even if it’s cold. More elbow room out there.
–Prices are reasonable.
–They’re closed between 3pm and 5pm, which is annoying. I’m sure they have their reasons. I don’t care. It annoys me.
Conclusion:
If you like Indian food or don’t know if you like Indian food, I highly recommend Cardomom. But beware that it’ll very likely be quite busy, but it’s worth it.

It is currently the best Indian (north-​indian restaurant-​style dining) restaurant in Ann Arbor. Shalimar used to be best in this segment but I think cardamom has overtaken it.
The only problem is the wait times, and the fact that they seem to have taken Anthony Bourdain’s show name to heart (= No Reservations: P)
The bread basket is good value for money, and gives you more things to try than your go-​to garlic naan !! The curries I like are karahi chicken, rogan josh, chicken makhani, palak paneer and malai kofta.

Cardamom is amazing!!! I went with my brother and we split a few things.
Appetizers: vegetable pakora and chicken momos. The pakoras were passable but the momos were delicious!
Meals: bhindi masala (okra based curry) and the chettinad lamb (coconut + chickpea curry sauce.) both came with basmati rice and were phenomenal.
We were too full for dessert but I cannot wait to go back!

Best Indian in Ann Arbor, and I frequent them all.
A couple favorites are the mattar paneer and the baigan bartha. All the chicken dishes are delicious. Just about everything is good.
They just finished their expansion, so now there’s plenty more space to handle their very busy meal times.

As part of my husband’s dedicated efforts to make my bar review summer less miserable, he took me out on a date to Cardamom last night. Nothing cheers up a future bar-​failure like delicious food!
When we got there, the place was busy, but we were still seated immediately by a pleasant host. Our waiter also provided excellent service, and his humorous jests were much appreciated after a long day. Their beer selection was on-​point: I got something local, while he chose a beer more in line with the cuisine.
We tried out the momos, on the suggestion of fellow Unilocalers. They were tasty, but weren’t as extraordinary as the reviews led me to believe. (Still, a solid choice is you’re an appetizer person.)
For dinner, we split the lamb karahi and some chicken tikka. Both were quite good, though we overestimated our spice tolerance on the lamb. The portion sizes for the proteins were a bit smaller than I’d hoped, but the flavor profiles were strong enough to make them feel more substantial when mixed in with the rice.
Overall, it’s a great restaurant and I look forward to seeing them expand into the abandoned Biggby next door. We’ll be back to try some of the other options and hopefully next time I’ll save some room for a mango lassi (provided I’m back to having time to work out by then…).

Best Indian restaurant in Ann Arbor– I’ve tried them all, and when factoring price and quality, it really doesn’t get any better than this. Compared to many of the Indian food lunch buffets and dinner options on campus, the freshness of the ingredients here is unparalleled. The naan is extra fluffy and the curries just taste… so pure. I can’t put a finger on exactly what sets it apart but this is just quality you can taste right away.
I would recommend coming for lunch if you can! They have great lunch deals and lines are also much shorter. If you come for dinner, make sure you leave plenty of time for your meal. The wait time can seem impossibly long– I once waited ~45 minutes for my food after ordering it.

This is my favorite indian restaurant in ann arbor! This restaurant serves delicious food with ample portions! I ordered chicken tikka masala ($ 13), lamb saag ($ 14), and onion Kulcha (which is naan bread with onions $ 2.50). They also give unlimited rice. (I asked for more rice twice and they gave more unhestitantly)
I highly recommend the chicken tikka masala and lamb saag! They were both delicious! The sauce for lamb saag was incredibly savory.
They also serve ample portions. I eat ALOT and it’s hard for me to get full. However, the food here really filled me up.
Service was great considering how busy the place was.

My family and I just left Cardamom after stopping by for an impromptu post-​Commencement lunch (go Class of 2015!). What a gem!
It took us a while to get seated, but not only was it the lunch rush, it was also graduation day. So that was understandable.
This restaurant is so cute inside. I love the décor, it kind of reminds me of a nice yoga studio lobby area. It’s cozy, but in a chic way– not in a «hole-​in-​the-​wall» way. There is also outdoor seating.
We ordered the Seekh Kabob (minced lamb). It came with basmati rice and a little cup of the yummiest baby potatoes. I wish they gave you a bigger portion of those, they were delicious. We split this entrée between 4 people and didn’t even finish it– granted, it was a hot day and we weren’t starving, but still, it was a nicely sized portion.
My chicken biryani was very good, as well. Loved the raita it came with.
We also ordered the plain naan and the Kashmiri naan. DELISH! So soft and buttery. The Kashmiri naan was slightly sweet and just mmm you must try it.
The mango lassi was sweet and creamy (but not too heavy), and wasn’t as kefir-​y as some of the other lassis I’ve tried. The pista kulfi (pistachio ice cream) was interesting and refreshing but I probably wouldn’t get it again. I prefer creamy ice cream, while this was served in firm pieces.
I will definitely come back next time I’m back in Ann Arbor.

Food — just okay. Service — just okay. Nothing I’d write home about.
We went on a Saturday night so the place was packed, and after a 10 min wait we were seated in the side extension area that was sectioned off a bit haphazardly out in the open. Luckily, the area was heated so we weren’t cold. Unfortunately we had to keep flagging down our waiter throughout the night to bring just about everything — it seemed most people in our section were being forgotten about.
The food was pretty mediocre as well. The appetizer pakoras were crispy, but the Varanasi Aloo was too oily for my taste and my stomach felt a bit uneasy later that night. We ordered a few desserts as well but none were really that impressive.
This might suit the average American palate, but for someone who has grown up on Indian food, it was really just okay.