Zaika Taste of India

It’s closed and I am very sad! :(We need to know where you are setting up shop next!

What happened to this place? Its gone! It was the best Indian around, total bummer. Come back or let us know where you relocated too!

I went to this place specifically because of all the positive reviews, but this mall food court vendor is closed down!

Very average. Chicken Tikka Masala was slightly sweet, rotis were like rubber and paneer tikka was nothing special. I realized after ordering that this is at a mall so they’re probably trying to create something that’s pretty generic and works for everyone. There are far better options available in Boston/​Cambridge/​Somerville

The BEST Indian food around!!! Yes, it’s in a mall food court which makes you automatically judge just how amazing it could be but please don’t let that get in the way of stopping by. The owner is extremely friendly and will let you try samples upon request. Excellent prices and excellent quality. Love love love this place! So happy I found it. Highly recommended.

This place rocks. Yes, I know it’s in the Ghetto Glen. But be quiet and hear me out. This place ROCKS!
The owner is so nice, (asks you sincerely about your day and life) and the combos are insanely cheap. And I have to say, while it’s sort of the goopy precitable side of Chicken Tikka Masala, the Chicken Tikka is ridiculously good. Like I could drink the sauce with a straw. Yea, I’m gross, whatever. Also, the lemon rice is unique and delicious. OH and the Nan! Some of the best I’ve ever had, and they have a Tandoori… in a mall. I’m serious. Sometimes however, (after about 6 or 7) the food on the combo bar starts looking a little less loved. This is when I recommend ordering from the menu. Everything on menu is also unbelievable. The lamb Boti Kebab is delicious, (almost like a lamb tikka masala) and the Chicken Vindaloo and Malai Kofta did not disappoint. Also, they have incredible Gulab Jamun for dessert! OH, and if you’re in the mood for some Indo-​Chinese, don’t miss the Chili Chicken. It’s better than the chicken 65 in my humble opinion.
But, then, I realized something. When Wegmans comes, will they push Zaika out?! Wegman’s people/​CEOs/​Bigwigs, if you are reading this. SAVE ZAIKA. I will shop at your store if I know Zaika is still there there! Just like build around it or something…

I tried this place a long while ago when it was still new. The food was good, but it upset my belly a little bit.
I avoided it for awhile, naturally, but I was impressed with the reviews here on Unilocal that raved about it and thought I might as well give it a second chance. Especially with a mean Indian food craving that had been haunting me for a few weeks.
Well I am very happy I did not get discouraged by that first visit. I’ve been back twice in the last few weeks and am always greeted warmly and attended to with fast service. The food has been tasty and I have belly has been happy after eating both times recently.
Lemon rice? So delicious! Curries and meats? Also delicious. Warm, fresh naan? My only sadness is that I always run out of naan before I run out of curry.
Did I see a little flyer advertising fried dough? I believe I did! Didn’t try it yet, but good to note.

Try this. Really good food and very good quantity.
This place is one of the best place in Boston. :)

This is in a MALL food court, so please adjust your expectations accordingly.
That said, the food is very, very good and priced reasonably. I was also asked whether I wanted «mild /​medium /​spicy», which was a first for me at a food court.
Service is EXCELLENT, the server (owner?) clearly wanted us to come back. We will certainly do that.

I like the foods over there! It is tasty and good price! Little bit oily!
My favorite is lamb biriani! It is hot and spicy and made with basmati rice.

What can I say? I rarely frequent Meadow Glenn because it’s a dead end mall. Yet, grabbing lunch at Zaika is refreshing. The owner is an honest man who walked me through the menu and the combinations available this afternoon. Aside from taking my order, he went beyond and asked me how my weekend was. Given how slow this mall is on any given day of the week, there is no excuse for poor service.
And the food is simply superb! Not the best Indian food I’ve had in the North Shore but far from the worst! The lemon rice was citrus-​y and spiced well along with the chicken tikka masala and saag paneer. The curry was neither cold nor coagulated. Very good signs given my experience at Taste of India. (I still have nightmares.)
Such a generous portion of 2 combos under $ 9. I’m hooked!
My only regret is not ordering a drink after being asked. I’ve heard how great the mango lassi is so I’m sure I’ve missed out.
Next time I’ll order something fresh from the menu. I have a feeling something that is made-​to-​order will be even more delicious.

Absolutely delicious, fresh, pure! Meat, when included, is top quality! A gem!!!
Worth a special trip!

There are other Indian restaurants in the area? After discovering Zaika about a year ago on a brief trip to the mall, I wouldn’t even know. I can’t believe my wife and I continue going back to a not-​so-​great mall FOR quick service Indian but that’s exactly what we have been doing. It has become someone of an inside joke that it is a Friday night date place very close to home.
The service is top notch and the owner recognizes us each and every time we are there. They will give you samples of anything that you want to try as some of the items do rotate. I once went in to take some of their food to a party and after a few puzzling looks, they were willing to work with me to get it packed in to-​go containers for the amount that I needed, very accommodating.
I don’t know if they just got done milking the cow to make the chicken tikka misala with but the cream they use is some of the best on the planet. I could quite literally drink this stuff until it made me sick. By far the best I have ever tasted. The saag paneer is my second favorite and consistently spiced well and full of cheese cubes in every bite. You can choose from either lemon or tomato rice, a very nice touch. Each meal comes with naan, probably the most disappointing item they serve as sometimes it can be a little tough until you soak it in some of the masala sauce I mentioned before that is so spectacular.
Don’t forget to get a mango lassi along with some gulab jamun for dessert to round out your meal. Just make sure you eat the gulab while it is still warm, spongy and decadent. Everything they do here is spectacular and I wish them nothing but the best as they compete with crappy Chinese food across the way and little traffic inside a very boring mall. Open more locations, please!

I grew up eating homemade Indian food, thus my standards for Indian food are very different than most people.
I have to say that this is good Indian food. If you want a more true-​to-​India taste, I’d recommend ordering off of the menu rather than getting the buffet food. That’s how I went, and I loved it. I tried chicken 65 and goat biriyani and loved both! Will definitely be coming back soon.

Leave it to Unilocal to convince me there’s a reason to venture forth in to Meadow Glen Mall. Ugh, just saying the name gives me the willies.
But sure enough, within its ample food court (Panda Express, Dunks, the empty shell of a Friendly’s gone by, Old Country Buffet which isn’t even in the food court), shines a neon orange beacon of hope. Zaika, be thy name.
Eight bucks nets you a two entrée special, so when you can’t decide what preparation of chicken you want, you won’t have to. For me, it was the much-​lauded tikka masala, and the mysterious Chicken 65, which is now the name of my nephew’s garage band. He’s three, by the way. You’ll also get an ample helping of rice (go lemon) and naan.
With the rich, spiced entrees at Guru serving as my gold standard, Zaika ran a solid race. The tikka masala is more autumnal in spice (nutmeg, cinnamon) and tangy in base, with a decent amount of mostly dark meat chicken, while the 65 is a take on (and a stab at) Panda’s Orange Chicken, lightly fried with peppers and onions, and glazed with a sweet and spicy sauce. It was a half hour away from closing, and this dish was obviously in the hot bed for a while — the flavor’s fine, but it was dryyyyyyy. Naan is naan, and theirs is naan. They also dished me a sample of their gajar halwa — carrot, raisin and cashew dessert, perhaps poached in ghee.
For the price, Zaika is going to be the best option in the Glen, and served with much more interest and customer appreciation than anywhere on the Everett/​Medford stretch of Route 16. It won’t sit heavy, and you’ll get more than a meal’s worth for under $ 10. It’s not Guru the Caterer, but it works.
3.5 bumped up to accommodate for the end-​of-​night situation. Definitely worth a return visit.

I’ve ordered take out from Zaika twice now. Their food is delicious. I’ve had their Baingan Bhartha, Chicken Saag, Chicken Tikka Masala and Saag Paneer and all of them were very well made. It tastes quite fresh and I am looking forward to my leftovers!
The owner and the person at the counter are extremely nice. I cannot wait to go back and get my next meal there.

Chicken Zaika and Chicken 65 are my gotos. Fantastic price for what often becomes two whole meals.
Service is impeccable– they hand out samples and great recommendations.

Zaika in the ghetto Glen Mall food court is an excellent choice for the amount of food: price ratio. I feel like a lot of sit-​in Indian restaurants in the area charge $ 12+ for tiny entrée portions, and it’s just not satisfying. Zaika, on the other hand, piles it on when you order a combo. They have a couple options: 1 side + rice, 2 sides + rice + naan, or 3 sides + rice. I went with the double and got chicken tikka masala and chole (chickpeas) with lemon rice. Everything was delicious! The sauce for the chicken tikka masala was really creamy but had layers of flavor to it. The lemon rice is so good, nice and fluffy like a pilaf. They have plenty of other vegetarian + meat options available in the steamers if you order as a combo, but they also do an a la carte where you order individual dishes off the menu.
The veggie samosas are great too! I love love samosas so I’m always happy to find good ones. They’re $ 1.25/each or 3 for $ 3.50 (get three, obvs). Mango lassi is nicely balanced with the sweet mango and tangy buttermilk – definitely recommended.
The guys here are super sweet. For my first time at Zaika they let me have samples of each dish and also gave me a sample of their gajar halwa (carrot dessert). I’d recommend Zaika to anyone that wants a lot of tasty Indian food for cheap and doesn’t mind eating in a food court.

For Indian food found in the Meadow Glenn Mall’s meager food court, this is pretty fantastic considering where you are.
This is in a mall food court, so not an ideal date spot or good for a night out but I found that it is perfect for take out on my way home. The chicken tikka masala was good as was the chana masala. They also served something called 66 chicken, which was a sweet and spicy lightly fried chicken, also good.
The mango lassi was on par with the best. The owner was also nice enough to give me a free dessert, I forget the name but it was carrot based.

I can’t believe people are lining up for crappy Panda Express when right across it is Zaika! This food court restaurant is definitely a hidden gem within the Meadow Glen Mall. I eat a lot of Indian food and from what I have tasted at Zaika, they make their food fresh. I can see from the outside that they have a real Tandoori oven in the back, so you know for sure that they make their naan bread on the spot.
I absolutely love their rice, naan and chicken tikka masala. Their naan is fluffy and cooked perfectly. Perfect bread to dip into their tikka masala sauce.
Chicken Tikka Masala= the BEST tikka masala sauce I have ever had in the Boston area. There’s a touch of sweetness to it and just the right amount of creaminess and spice. I can drink a vat of this sauce if they let me.
Chicken Zaika= reminds me of Filipino Chicken afritada which is a chicken stew with veggies. I loved the chicken to vegetable proportion. If you want something healthier than creamy tikka masala, then definitely get the Chicken Zaika.
Chicken 65= it’s like an Indian Sweet and Sour chicken but with more complex spice flavors. If you’re craving sweet and sour, pick this one instead of going to nasty Panda Express. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Tandoori Chicken= moist and perfect amount of tandoori spices permeating throughout the tender morsels of meat. I finally found an Indian restaurant in Boston that doesn’t serve super dry chicken!
Goat Biryani= this was one of their specials and it is a meal on its own. Rice mixed with spices and goat meat. The meat was tender and melt in your mouth goodness. You have to like goat meat to enjoy this dish and if you do, definitely try this one. Goat is pretty much like lamb, but a bit fattier and it has a little bit more tendon (which is my favorite part of any kind of meat).
Mango pudding= delicious dessert and my husband loved it! He ate his share and my share so next time, I’m getting three or four because he inhaled this dessert like Garfield inhales lasagna.