Hot N Chili Indian Restaurant

Great food and service

Loved the palak paneer and the mint chutney is sooo good!

I normally do not write reviews, but this place is so good I feel compelled to write one.
I had the lamb karahi with medium spice level and garlic naan. The dish is aromatic and has great flavor, the lamb is tender.
My friend ordered chicken tikka masala, but because he is dairy free, he asked for cocunut milk instead of yogurt and the restaurant delivered, no problem.
Service is really good too, and the restaurant is located in a nice old-school looking plaza with lots of other restaurants nearby as well. Everything was amazing here, 100% will be coming back if I am in San Clemente again.

Lamb saag was terrific. And as a white guy ordering “spicy”, restaurants usually give me under-spiced and mild. This had spice, thank you

Ordered saag chicken and pakoras on uber eats..
( can’t leave a long form review there - so here goes)

Upon looking at the reviews, I can sort and notice a number of negative experiences - which leads me to believe that this new restaurant is taking the short cut of paying for reviews or gaming the system somehow…

The saag chicken was possible the most bland thing I ve ever eaten and that includes non Indian cuisine. I am pretty tolerant of mediocre food - however this was so bad,I had to season the food myself and add stuff into it( something I ve never done in my life before!)

That still wouldn’t justify a 2 star review..
However, the pakoras!
Seemed stale, floating in oil and despite all that again , the most bland thing on the planet

It s as if they cut out a bunch of ingredients from the restaurant

My recommendation is to completely avoid them because of those 2 reasons - the bland food and possible gaming of the system

We ordered quite a few dishes. Everything was very good. The Palak Paneer was exceptional. We will return for sure.

Very delicious food!

Love this place!
Some of the best Indian food I’ve eaten.
We had the Chiken Korma, Chicken Tika and Karahi vegetable dish. Side of Naan.
Rice is included. Papa-dons and sauces were complimentary.
The chicken tika was a bit different as it had cabbage and onions with lemon wedges. Delicious!
This dish may bump my favorite Chicken Korma to second place…maybe.
The korma was a very nice blend of coconut and other spices non overwhelmed the other.
Prices are reasonable.
Our second visit and we will be back.

Everything was so authentic, tender, and delicious! All the food had bright, vibrant colors, which tells me it’s fresh! What a sweet tasty Indian spot. We will be back many times.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

My family and I had the pleasure of visiting this restaurant for the first time last night— and it was delicious! We all LOVED the food and the prices were very reasonable, with generous portions as well. We will be back- and often! If you are looking for wonderful authentic Indian food, look no further— Hot N Chili is your place!

Vegetarian options: We came here because we are vegetarians and there are plenty of delicious options

Parking: Public lot across the street from the center generally has plenty of parking

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The food was excellent, and Stella was so kind, welcoming and attentive. Will visit again!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Very good food and excellent service! Stella is great!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Amazing, authentic Indian cuisine. Lovely people!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

First time having Indian food and it was delicious. Service was great they were very attentive and made sure we had everything we needed. I came for the lunch buffet I tried a lil of everything and it was all delicious. Thank you for the great food and service!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

The lamb and chicken curry was delicious
The service and atmosphere was great
I recommend this restaurant
We are lucky to have a great Indian restaurant in San Clemente

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5