Were excited to go and taste the food at Chopathi but came out with the following impressions: Staff (6 boys and 2 girls - all college bound), two aunts, two uncles and occasionally one other person was popping out frequently all crowded in a corner. Poor aunts, were I guess preparing the food. It Looked like family owned road side idly/vada stall(s) on the highways of Telangana/Andhra Pradesh. These guys were inexperienced and did not have customer service training. Babai idli was supposed to be served with chili powder and butter on top, but was served with god knows what (some yellow powder) Kanchivaram idli was supposed to be made with vegetables, but hardly did I see any vegetables All idlis including the plain one were flat and very thin. The ginger (allam) chutney was a little spicy and tangy, but the peanut chutney (source of liability for peanut allergy) was OK, the serving size was so disproportionate that Sambar was served in the smallest of plastic cups. Dosa (plain, masala and ravva) were crisp but the batter was tasteless. Gobi Manchurian was crispy when served hot but became rock solid as the time elapsed. That means the flour used was too much. The funniest part was, multiple number of ginger chatni, peanut chatni and sambar cups were all arranged in the tray and brought over to the table. Usually, these chutneys and sambar are served with the idly/vada or dosa separately. No plates were provided to eat until asked and everything was served in paper plates instead of the traditional indian steel plates and bowls for chutney and sambar. The owner Mr. S........... came through once and inquired about the food and when told about the quantity of sambar given with these order, he supplemented some additional cups of sambar. Traditionally the sambar is supposed to be a thick soup of boiled vegetable and i did not that, b'cos it was diluted. The Franchisee definitely needs some corporate level training in business management including the personal, quality of food, cleanliness of the restaurant and staff training on how to greet the customers and handle the food and how to serve. Did NOT get the vibe which we were so excited about. I hope and pray that the management of this restaurant takes these constructive critiques to enhance and improve their services. Explore it with low expectations.
Gracy P.
I ordered Masala Dosa which had a fishy oil smell. . It may have been reused oil used for frying fish.The item came with sambar which was ok. the other two chutneys were not good, the coconut chutney tasted old . the other one was very hot. I requested water . The ice machine is not working. on a hot summer day I had to drink tepid water. we ordered masala chai which was ok. but it was not even 6 oz. the ladies room was out of hand soap and paper towel. I did tell the above comments to an employee before I left the restaurant. I will not go back to the establishment for another meal. My companion ordered Chicken Chopathy Bowl. The chicken was cold.
Khadija H.
I always come here for my lunch break at least once a month for their idli and sambr. The service is quick and everything is made fresh! I tried their biryani one time and the taste didn't sit well with me. So I'd just recommend to stay away from that. Otherwise, the perfect place!
Carlos D.
Service was clumsy and place doesn't looks clean. Our table looks half cleaned, okay restaurants is about the food and food still goes in a plates so we thought maybe food here is good. Atmosphere wasn't bad. Food has extra heat, wrong spices or to much, don't know but food has no taste except a heat. Also menu is hard to understand. Will not come back.
Autumn E.
Service was amazing, food was great. Nothing bad to say about this place. Definitely worth the dine in.
C S.
I used to eat here occasionally pre-pandemic. I love Indian food and the concept of a chipotle-style Indian restaurant was novel. Today was my first visit since the pandemic and wow was I disappointed. You can no longer build your own bowl. Now it's pretty much biryani or curry with a couple of daily dishes. I agree with a previous reviewer that the food is way too spicy. I ordered mild chicken biryani. It was so spicy as to be almost inedible for my palette. I have a sensitive stomach and boy did I pay the price two hours later. I used to really enjoy this place. However, the original comcept for this restaurant has vanished. It was dirty and unkept. I was the only diner indoors and the service was poor. Sadly this restaurant looks like another covid casualty.
Pieter D.
If you've just left BWI or BWI car rental center and are on your way to DC this is in a super convenient location right near 295. Also, if you're stuck in the Arundel Mills area with few food options culturally.... This place is for you and only a hop skip away. Authentic flavors and amazing tastes. The restaurant is incredibly clean, open, airy, and light filled...it's just really a good place to stop for a meal. Vegetarian and gluten free options are labeled clearly on the menus so that's cool if that applies to you. PS: My wife said to say they have the absolute best Masala Chai in the area.
Anil K.
Worst food, old food, smelly food! Never go there. Idli and Vada they severed seems like made it many days in advance and just warm up. We picked up food and when start eating at home its too hard. Sambhar they serve several days old. Coconut and ginger chutney had hair. Upon calling them to complain they argue and yelled at us. Don't waste your money going there or buying food. Never never go there. Staff is very arrogant!
John H.
Delicious simple South Indian dishes like dosa and uttapam with yummy chutneys. Everything very fresh! They gave us minced chilis with the chutneys since we wanted extra spice
Anissa H.
The food is delicious but it's too spicy. My kids can't eat it and I ordered mild. The staff is very friendly and I would eat there much more often if the food wasn't soooooooo spicy.
Quick, no frills south Indian food. Clean and very delicious authentic food. Enjoyable dinner of vada sambhar, plain dosa and rava onion dosa.
Sowmitha G.
Really disappointed with Chopati! Before covid I used to visit this place frequently and loved their Mutton Biryani. Better than Paradise Biryani Point. Did not get a chance to visit them during covid and finally went back on Sunday. Ordered Mutton Biryani and Veg Biryani for take out. Came home and was really excited to have Chopati food after more than an year. As soon as we opened the lid, we knew the food was going to taste bad. The rice looked terrible. Almost spoiled. Rice from 3 or 4 days ago. The consistency was not the same. And the taste! Oh my God. It was terrible. A novice would make better biryani than this. It was as if they asked someone walking on the street to wip up something. All they did was use rice that was cooked a while ago and add raw masala powders to it and put it in the to go box. Not sure if the chef changed or the management changed.. But you can see the carelessness towards the food that is being given to customers. I wish they take our reviews seriously and make changes.
Bekk B.
This spot is inexpensive compared to most Indian restaurants and still delivers great flavors. I got the chicken curry and samosa chaat. The chicken curry could come in mild and spicy. I got spicy. And it did have a lot of heat, but you could still taste all of the flavors. The samosa chaat was delicious as well, having a nice balance between sweet and spicy this isn't like a fine dining restaurant, more like a cafe, so don't expect fine dining quality. But it is good quality for a good price.
Don J.
This is a delightful healthy eating alternative. For lack of a better comparison consider it the Indian Chipotle. You can create fresh nutritious bowls for a reasonable price. If you enjoy the Indian flavor palate it's a must. If you aren't sure what I mean then do yourself a favor and check it out. It's in an odd location but worth looking for. I will be coming back.
Robocop Martian
Ordered takout. Appetizers were awesome and so was the Paneer 65!! Awesome ambience when I went to pick up my food. Love it!
Were excited to go and taste the food at Chopathi but came out with the following impressions: Staff (6 boys and 2 girls - all college bound), two aunts, two uncles and occasionally one other person was popping out frequently all crowded in a corner. Poor aunts, were I guess preparing the food. It Looked like family owned road side idly/vada stall(s) on the highways of Telangana/Andhra Pradesh. These guys were inexperienced and did not have customer service training. Babai idli was supposed to be served with chili powder and butter on top, but was served with god knows what (some yellow powder) Kanchivaram idli was supposed to be made with vegetables, but hardly did I see any vegetables All idlis including the plain one were flat and very thin. The ginger (allam) chutney was a little spicy and tangy, but the peanut chutney (source of liability for peanut allergy) was OK, the serving size was so disproportionate that Sambar was served in the smallest of plastic cups. Dosa (plain, masala and ravva) were crisp but the batter was tasteless. Gobi Manchurian was crispy when served hot but became rock solid as the time elapsed. That means the flour used was too much. The funniest part was, multiple number of ginger chatni, peanut chatni and sambar cups were all arranged in the tray and brought over to the table. Usually, these chutneys and sambar are served with the idly/vada or dosa separately. No plates were provided to eat until asked and everything was served in paper plates instead of the traditional indian steel plates and bowls for chutney and sambar. The owner Mr. S........... came through once and inquired about the food and when told about the quantity of sambar given with these order, he supplemented some additional cups of sambar. Traditionally the sambar is supposed to be a thick soup of boiled vegetable and i did not that, b'cos it was diluted. The Franchisee definitely needs some corporate level training in business management including the personal, quality of food, cleanliness of the restaurant and staff training on how to greet the customers and handle the food and how to serve. Did NOT get the vibe which we were so excited about. I hope and pray that the management of this restaurant takes these constructive critiques to enhance and improve their services. Explore it with low expectations.
I ordered Masala Dosa which had a fishy oil smell. . It may have been reused oil used for frying fish.The item came with sambar which was ok. the other two chutneys were not good, the coconut chutney tasted old . the other one was very hot. I requested water . The ice machine is not working. on a hot summer day I had to drink tepid water. we ordered masala chai which was ok. but it was not even 6 oz. the ladies room was out of hand soap and paper towel. I did tell the above comments to an employee before I left the restaurant. I will not go back to the establishment for another meal. My companion ordered Chicken Chopathy Bowl. The chicken was cold.
I always come here for my lunch break at least once a month for their idli and sambr. The service is quick and everything is made fresh! I tried their biryani one time and the taste didn't sit well with me. So I'd just recommend to stay away from that. Otherwise, the perfect place!
Service was clumsy and place doesn't looks clean. Our table looks half cleaned, okay restaurants is about the food and food still goes in a plates so we thought maybe food here is good. Atmosphere wasn't bad. Food has extra heat, wrong spices or to much, don't know but food has no taste except a heat. Also menu is hard to understand. Will not come back.
Service was amazing, food was great. Nothing bad to say about this place. Definitely worth the dine in.
I used to eat here occasionally pre-pandemic. I love Indian food and the concept of a chipotle-style Indian restaurant was novel. Today was my first visit since the pandemic and wow was I disappointed. You can no longer build your own bowl. Now it's pretty much biryani or curry with a couple of daily dishes. I agree with a previous reviewer that the food is way too spicy. I ordered mild chicken biryani. It was so spicy as to be almost inedible for my palette. I have a sensitive stomach and boy did I pay the price two hours later. I used to really enjoy this place. However, the original comcept for this restaurant has vanished. It was dirty and unkept. I was the only diner indoors and the service was poor. Sadly this restaurant looks like another covid casualty.
If you've just left BWI or BWI car rental center and are on your way to DC this is in a super convenient location right near 295. Also, if you're stuck in the Arundel Mills area with few food options culturally.... This place is for you and only a hop skip away. Authentic flavors and amazing tastes. The restaurant is incredibly clean, open, airy, and light filled...it's just really a good place to stop for a meal. Vegetarian and gluten free options are labeled clearly on the menus so that's cool if that applies to you. PS: My wife said to say they have the absolute best Masala Chai in the area.
Worst food, old food, smelly food! Never go there. Idli and Vada they severed seems like made it many days in advance and just warm up. We picked up food and when start eating at home its too hard. Sambhar they serve several days old. Coconut and ginger chutney had hair. Upon calling them to complain they argue and yelled at us. Don't waste your money going there or buying food. Never never go there. Staff is very arrogant!
Delicious simple South Indian dishes like dosa and uttapam with yummy chutneys. Everything very fresh! They gave us minced chilis with the chutneys since we wanted extra spice
The food is delicious but it's too spicy. My kids can't eat it and I ordered mild. The staff is very friendly and I would eat there much more often if the food wasn't soooooooo spicy.
Restaurantji Recommends
Quick, no frills south Indian food. Clean and very delicious authentic food. Enjoyable dinner of vada sambhar, plain dosa and rava onion dosa.
Really disappointed with Chopati! Before covid I used to visit this place frequently and loved their Mutton Biryani. Better than Paradise Biryani Point. Did not get a chance to visit them during covid and finally went back on Sunday. Ordered Mutton Biryani and Veg Biryani for take out. Came home and was really excited to have Chopati food after more than an year. As soon as we opened the lid, we knew the food was going to taste bad. The rice looked terrible. Almost spoiled. Rice from 3 or 4 days ago. The consistency was not the same. And the taste! Oh my God. It was terrible. A novice would make better biryani than this. It was as if they asked someone walking on the street to wip up something. All they did was use rice that was cooked a while ago and add raw masala powders to it and put it in the to go box. Not sure if the chef changed or the management changed.. But you can see the carelessness towards the food that is being given to customers. I wish they take our reviews seriously and make changes.
This spot is inexpensive compared to most Indian restaurants and still delivers great flavors. I got the chicken curry and samosa chaat. The chicken curry could come in mild and spicy. I got spicy. And it did have a lot of heat, but you could still taste all of the flavors. The samosa chaat was delicious as well, having a nice balance between sweet and spicy this isn't like a fine dining restaurant, more like a cafe, so don't expect fine dining quality. But it is good quality for a good price.
This is a delightful healthy eating alternative. For lack of a better comparison consider it the Indian Chipotle. You can create fresh nutritious bowls for a reasonable price. If you enjoy the Indian flavor palate it's a must. If you aren't sure what I mean then do yourself a favor and check it out. It's in an odd location but worth looking for. I will be coming back.
Ordered takout. Appetizers were awesome and so was the Paneer 65!! Awesome ambience when I went to pick up my food. Love it!