Amazing food and traditional taste. Will walk you though everything you want. Spice is perfect and will reduce if asked. Favorite Indian in the city
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Naman Sharma
we ordered 3 curries, 1 samosa, naans, and laccha paratha. the order value was 135$ The samosas were stale and spoiled which was extremely surprising given they could have determined this by simply smelling the potato batter and this is minimum expectation of quality standards from a restaurant. we ordered the curries to be spicy, but they were so spicy to the point of being inedible The naans are extremely thick and not really enjoyable to top it all for some reason if you order it from Instacart you don’t even become eligible to get refunded for the spoiled food. So better save your money My order was delivery, so rating on atmosphere is neutral
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
Michael Orman
We made a reservation for 5 on Saturday at 6p which we needed to change at the last minute, and it was no problem.
The dining room is somewhat small but cozy, and the staff is helpful and friendly. The menu is very extensive and obviously has a wide range of vegetarian meals, plus a variety of meat options, including chicken, lamb, goat, salmon, and red snapper.
The appetizers were fantastic and HUGE portions. We had Palak, Papari, and Spinach Simosa Chaat. We had a variety of entrees from ginger lamb chops, curry lamb, chicken Makhini, and lamb bhuna, all served with Basmati rice. The Entrees were good-sized and excellent. The prices, especially for DC, seemed very reasonable.
The one con about our experience was that the dining room was fairly empty (5-6p), and both the appetizers and Entrees took a little long to arrive. Parking is all street parking, and it is not easy to find a spot.
Overall, we would give our experience an 8.5 and would definitely recommend Jyoti for a nice Indian cuisine.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Aishwarya Harpale
They charged us gratuity on a table for 2 without informing us. Their menu did not declare this policy either. Moreover, food portions are really less. When we disputed the charges, the owner got defensive.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Irving Sr
I am visiting in the DC area and stopped by JYOTI for dinner. From the front, it looked like any other block resturant; but what we experienced had to be told. I have tried to communicate my experience in the following format below. Hope it helps in you selection on finding a nice resturant to dine at:
Pyhsical loc- Perfect for city proximity (my bias here / 5 star based on my HOTEL location in the city)
Inside- Cleaned and we'll arranged, table are on the small side but adequate for meals. 4 stars
Space- uhmmm, a bit tight, but it gives closeness to the meal experience (familish) 4 star
Service- Was great!!!!! We went in around 4pm, it was not busy, so we were given all the attention we wanted. 5 star on service. Attention was good!!!
Food- was grrrrreaat!!!!!!! Everything we ordered was fresh and very nice(fish cutlets, chicken vindaloo, shrimp vindaloo, kauai chicken, shrimp masala). The naan was a bit crispy, but I asked for another and explained why, they provided the perfect naan without issues... I especially love how the food was kept warm during the duration of the meal. Another 5 star here. To be fair, it should be a 5 plus star here.
Clearly, we enjoyed our dinning experience at JYOTI! I will most definitely visit JYOTI whenever I am in DC.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kuroi G
Decent casual place. Came for happy house which is advertised online but my server had no idea there was a happy hour or what drinks were included- had to ask the manager for help and finally got my $5 wine. Got the butter chicken which had good flavor but the chicken itself was dry. Everything took super long to come out including my wine which seemed odd despite there only being one other table at the time I ordered.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 3
Bradley Fuller
Get the lamb!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Lamb Vindaloo
Joanna Williams-Cromer
This is a fabulous restaurant. My family and I have been customers here for over 20 years. We have celebrated many important occasions at Jyoti. The service is always excellent and every dish that we have tried over the years has been delicious . Jyoti has lunch specials during the week if you eat in the restaurant at bargain prices. I got delivery today and enjoyed my favorite meal so much!
Hands down, this is the best Indian restaurant in the entire DC area. I am not kidding. I love Indian food and have tried so many places from hole in the wall to super fancy. There is very good Indian in the area but Jyoti is byfar the most superior. The place is not very fancy but it's nice. Most importantly, the food is always mind blowing. You must have the Saag Paneer!!!!
It is a bit difficult to get to because it is in Adams Morgan but believe me it is worth the trek. For a date, I highly recommend this place as a date location with someone you are already comfortable with because you may be sweating a bit with some dishes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Garlic Naan, Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Masala
Rohan Puri
Went and came out immediately. Right from the sitting to ordering the experience was not good. The counter guy was very rude with his behavior and food then becomes secondary
Service: 1
Akhil C
I had one of the worst dining experiences at this restaurant. The staff was extremely unprofessional and the management especially the manager didn’t seem to care at all about customer satisfaction. The food was served cold, and to make things worse, the naan was hard and stale – easily the worst I’ve ever had.
What’s even more shocking is the ridiculously high pricing compared to the tiny portions they serve. It genuinely feels like they are cheating customers with inflated prices and low-quality food.
Save your money and time. There are far better places out there that actually care about their food and service. I’ll definitely never be coming back here, and I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Farida jalal
Overhyped and Overpriced – Poor Quality, Tiny Portions, and Arrogant Management
This was hands down one of the most disappointing dining experiences I’ve had in a long time.
We were a group of three, and all of us were shocked by the tiny portions, cold food, and the ridiculously high prices. When we brought up our concerns politely, especially about the food quality and unclear communication around the naan order, the manager brushed it off with an arrogant attitude, saying he’s been running the place for years and no one has ever complained. Honestly, that response made no sense — especially when we could hear people at other tables quietly talking about how bad the service and food was.
It felt like the management was completely out of touch with reality, and instead of listening to customers, they were too busy defending themselves. There was no effort to make things right, no basic courtesy — just ego and blame-shifting.
We left hungry, annoyed, and disappointed. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone who actually cares about food, service, or getting value for their money.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
shaik ruksar
Wouldn’t Recommend – Rude Management and Overpriced for the Quality
I genuinely don’t enjoy leaving negative reviews, but this experience left me really disappointed.
I asked the staff a simple question before ordering: “How many pieces come with one naan?” and was told very clearly that we’d get one per order. So we ordered five. But when the food came, we received five full naans — which wasn’t what we expected based on what we were told.
When we politely asked for clarification, the manager stepped in, and instead of helping us understand or acknowledging the confusion, he was rude, dismissive, and blamed us for not knowing their menu better. It was honestly shocking how unprofessional and condescending he was, especially when the misunderstanding came from their side.
To make things worse, the food was cold, lacked flavor, and the portions were tiny compared to the price. The pricing is extremely unreasonable for the quality and quantity they serve. We left feeling uncomfortable and honestly a bit cheated.
I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone. There are far better restaurants that know how to treat their customers with basic respect and serve food worth paying for.
Amazing food and traditional taste. Will walk you though everything you want. Spice is perfect and will reduce if asked. Favorite Indian in the city
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
we ordered 3 curries, 1 samosa, naans, and laccha paratha. the order value was 135$
The samosas were stale and spoiled which was extremely surprising given they could have determined this by simply smelling the potato batter and this is minimum expectation of quality standards from a restaurant.
we ordered the curries to be spicy, but they were so spicy to the point of being inedible
The naans are extremely thick and not really enjoyable
to top it all for some reason if you order it from Instacart you don’t even become eligible to get refunded for the spoiled food. So better save your money
My order was delivery, so rating on atmosphere is neutral
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
We made a reservation for 5 on Saturday at 6p which we needed to change at the last minute, and it was no problem.
The dining room is somewhat small but cozy, and the staff is helpful and friendly. The menu is very extensive and obviously has a wide range of vegetarian meals, plus a variety of meat options, including chicken, lamb, goat, salmon, and red snapper.
The appetizers were fantastic and HUGE portions. We had Palak, Papari, and Spinach Simosa Chaat. We had a variety of entrees from ginger lamb chops, curry lamb, chicken Makhini, and lamb bhuna, all served with Basmati rice. The Entrees were good-sized and excellent. The prices, especially for DC, seemed very reasonable.
The one con about our experience was that the dining room was fairly empty (5-6p), and both the appetizers and Entrees took a little long to arrive. Parking is all street parking, and it is not easy to find a spot.
Overall, we would give our experience an 8.5 and would definitely recommend Jyoti for a nice Indian cuisine.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
They charged us gratuity on a table for 2 without informing us. Their menu did not declare this policy either. Moreover, food portions are really less. When we disputed the charges, the owner got defensive.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
I am visiting in the DC area and stopped by JYOTI for dinner. From the front, it looked like any other block resturant; but what we experienced had to be told. I have tried to communicate my experience in the following format below. Hope it helps in you selection on finding a nice resturant to dine at:
Pyhsical loc- Perfect for city proximity (my bias here / 5 star based on my HOTEL location in the city)
Inside- Cleaned and we'll arranged, table are on the small side but adequate for meals. 4 stars
Space- uhmmm, a bit tight, but it gives closeness to the meal experience (familish) 4 star
Service- Was great!!!!! We went in around 4pm, it was not busy, so we were given all the attention we wanted. 5 star on service. Attention was good!!!
Food- was grrrrreaat!!!!!!! Everything we ordered was fresh and very nice(fish cutlets, chicken vindaloo, shrimp vindaloo, kauai chicken, shrimp masala). The naan was a bit crispy, but I asked for another and explained why, they provided the perfect naan without issues... I especially love how the food was kept warm during the duration of the meal. Another 5 star here. To be fair, it should be a 5 plus star here.
Clearly, we enjoyed our dinning experience at JYOTI! I will most definitely visit JYOTI whenever I am in DC.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Decent casual place. Came for happy house which is advertised online but my server had no idea there was a happy hour or what drinks were included- had to ask the manager for help and finally got my $5 wine. Got the butter chicken which had good flavor but the chicken itself was dry. Everything took super long to come out including my wine which seemed odd despite there only being one other table at the time I ordered.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 3
Get the lamb!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Lamb Vindaloo
This is a fabulous restaurant. My family and I have been customers here for over 20 years. We have celebrated many important occasions at Jyoti. The service is always excellent and every dish that we have tried over the years has been delicious . Jyoti has lunch specials during the week if you eat in the restaurant at bargain prices. I got delivery today and enjoyed my favorite meal so much!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Garlic Naan, Chicken Biryani, Tandoori Chicken, Bhel Puri, Vegetarian Thali, Rock Salt Naan, Vindaloo, Shrimp, Chicken Tikka Makhanwala, Mango Chutney, Chicken Masala, Lamb Vindaloo, Tandoor Red Snapper, Lamb Biryani, Palak Chaat, Chicken Curry, Goat Saag, Vegetable Samosa, Gulab Jamun, Rasmalai
I ordered butter chicken for take out and it was alright. But for almost $30, I was stunned. I would say it wasn’t worth it. Don’t think I’ll return.
Very unpleasant experience. Very rude and arrogant behavior of the staff. There is no restroom facilities. Not at all recommended
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
Hands down, this is the best Indian restaurant in the entire DC area. I am not kidding. I love Indian food and have tried so many places from hole in the wall to super fancy. There is very good Indian in the area but Jyoti is byfar the most superior. The place is not very fancy but it's nice. Most importantly, the food is always mind blowing. You must have the Saag Paneer!!!!
It is a bit difficult to get to because it is in Adams Morgan but believe me it is worth the trek. For a date, I highly recommend this place as a date location with someone you are already comfortable with because you may be sweating a bit with some dishes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Garlic Naan, Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Masala
Went and came out immediately. Right from the sitting to ordering the experience was not good. The counter guy was very rude with his behavior and food then becomes secondary
Service: 1
I had one of the worst dining experiences at this restaurant. The staff was extremely unprofessional and the management especially the manager didn’t seem to care at all about customer satisfaction. The food was served cold, and to make things worse, the naan was hard and stale – easily the worst I’ve ever had.
What’s even more shocking is the ridiculously high pricing compared to the tiny portions they serve. It genuinely feels like they are cheating customers with inflated prices and low-quality food.
Save your money and time. There are far better places out there that actually care about their food and service. I’ll definitely never be coming back here, and I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Overhyped and Overpriced – Poor Quality, Tiny Portions, and Arrogant Management
This was hands down one of the most disappointing dining experiences I’ve had in a long time.
We were a group of three, and all of us were shocked by the tiny portions, cold food, and the ridiculously high prices. When we brought up our concerns politely, especially about the food quality and unclear communication around the naan order, the manager brushed it off with an arrogant attitude, saying he’s been running the place for years and no one has ever complained. Honestly, that response made no sense — especially when we could hear people at other tables quietly talking about how bad the service and food was.
It felt like the management was completely out of touch with reality, and instead of listening to customers, they were too busy defending themselves. There was no effort to make things right, no basic courtesy — just ego and blame-shifting.
We left hungry, annoyed, and disappointed. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone who actually cares about food, service, or getting value for their money.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Wouldn’t Recommend – Rude Management and Overpriced for the Quality
I genuinely don’t enjoy leaving negative reviews, but this experience left me really disappointed.
I asked the staff a simple question before ordering: “How many pieces come with one naan?” and was told very clearly that we’d get one per order. So we ordered five. But when the food came, we received five full naans — which wasn’t what we expected based on what we were told.
When we politely asked for clarification, the manager stepped in, and instead of helping us understand or acknowledging the confusion, he was rude, dismissive, and blamed us for not knowing their menu better. It was honestly shocking how unprofessional and condescending he was, especially when the misunderstanding came from their side.
To make things worse, the food was cold, lacked flavor, and the portions were tiny compared to the price. The pricing is extremely unreasonable for the quality and quantity they serve. We left feeling uncomfortable and honestly a bit cheated.
I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone. There are far better restaurants that know how to treat their customers with basic respect and serve food worth paying for.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
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