Indian Restaurants in Ardmore

Executive chef and owner Bharat Luthra named his restaurant Khajuraho after a town in Madhya Pradesh, India—a town famous for a series of Hindu and Jain temples filled with erotic monuments. Like those iconic statues, the sights, smells, and tastes of Luthra’s Indian cuisine create a vivid statement in support of sensuality and the enjoyment of life. His restaurant's elegant white-clothed tables, great enough in number to seat up to 120, stage feasts fit for mild to spicy palates and carnivorous to vegetarian appetites. Luthra bakes succulent marinated chicken inside a tandoori clay oven, spikes fresh seafood with garlic and ginger, and keeps vegetable balls from rolling off the plate with a smooth cream sauce and repurposed bowling-alley bumpers.

Tiffin infuses drab dishes with a plethora of Indian spices imported straight from the subcontinent itself by peripatetic purveyors. Shrimp and chicken absorb flavors of orange and chile de arbol after a bathing in the mango-chile marinade ($10), and curry finds its savory soul mate in the complementing haldi turmeric powder ($5.59). Elaichi whole green cardamom ($6.59), a staple of Indian desserts, leaves its native India, bidding a tearful farewell to its ginger family in search of a starring role in pungent dishes. Customers can pick up dish dustings or have them delivered ($25 minimum) to their home, office, or underground solarium for no additional delivery charge.

Shere-E-Punjab owner and chef Zail Singh Shergill has more than two decades of cooking experience packed into his apron. Even with all that wisdom, he still counts on those around him—family, especially—to keep the restaurant’s spread fresh and exciting. Zail’s son and Shere-E-Punjab co-founder, Pushpinder Singh, consistently concocts recipes for new dishes—an ongoing effort reflected in the lengthy and varied menu, which includes fresh naan, chicken tikka masala, and barbecue lamb kabobs cooked in the clay tandoor ovens. The restaurant also carries a selection of Indian beers, wines, and cocktails.

Voted top five in the Best Indian category of the 2011, 2012, and 2013 CityVoter awards, Laxmi's Indian Grille serves a range of dishes—from spicy meats to subtle vegetable stews—designed to please all palates. A perfume of fresh ginger, rose water, and house-made cottage cheese drifts from the bustling kitchen out into the dining room of the Main Street location, where vibrant paintings provide an elegant contrast to walls of rustic exposed stone. At both Main Street and the newly minted Tilden Street eatery, a clay tandoor oven is kept aflame throughout the day, enabling chefs to bake breads, meats, and underripe bananas to a golden patina.

Executive chef Mohan, who has commanded Lovash Restaurant’s kitchen for 12 years and been in in the restaurant business for 30 years, infuses an equal blend of color and flavor into his Indian recipes. He tosses chicken into bright-red sun-dried-tomato sauce, marinates tender lamb in coconut milk, and sprinkles spices across wilted spinach and yellow cheese cubes. The colorful dishes mimic the stained-glass chandeliers that hang overhead to illuminate portraits hanging from the exposed-brick walls. The BYOB eatery also has a private dining room to host family gatherings and laid-back jury deliberations.

Every morning at Jazmin Restaurant, chefs load morsels of freshly kneaded naan dough into the tandoor oven. The aroma of baking bread soon fills the dining room, mingling with the heady scents of curry and cumin that waft from grills sizzling with halal chicken and lamb. Chefs also flaunt seven vegetarian entrees that swap meat for lighter ingredients such as homemade cheese and lentils. To contrast the savory dishes, dining companions can share traditional Indian desserts of mango ice cream and mango custard, which stand as evidence of the mango’s worth beyond its inclusion in fruit hats.