The Oven

The Oven, like other ethnic restaurants in Lincoln, suffers from being too expensive. While the food is good, the prices wouldn’t fly in cities that have actual competition when it comes to ethnic offerings. Here in Lincoln they can get away with charging exorbitant prices for food but in larger metropolitan or more diverse cities it would have to drastically change its prices. Food is good not great, portions are much too small, and definitely not worth a $ 50 tab for two.

I love the spices and flavor, especially when take-​out is so close to home. The wait times, correct order, and phone answering are hit and miss. The last few times we have ordered, the naan is wrong, the additional rice not included, or phone off the hook. :(

The ambiance is nice and the servers are friendly and prompt. The food at The Oven is ok. There isn’t a lot of depth of flavor to most of the dishes, so you get things like the vindaloo and it is very spicy but not necessarily complex. Other dishes such as the regular curries and the naan are fine, but again the flavors aren’t particularly enticing. The mulligatawny is good and the salad is made of deeper greens which I strongly prefer over iceberg lettuce. The bar selection at this location is very disappointing particularly if you are used to the options at the downtown location. The wine selection at the downtown location is a large part of what makes the experience, and without that the food doesn’t necessarily stand on its own. In sum, this Indian food will do in a pinch but there are better flavor profiles to be found elsewhere.

The hubby and I went on a whim to The Oven for dinner at 6pm because it was close and because we had not had Indian in a while. It was busy but there was no wait yet; there was a small wait by the time we left. The atmosphere is very new and modern. The lighting was dim, making the ambiance vibe more so for a romantic dinner… although there were plenty of families with small children dining as well.
The hostess was very professional and courteous as was our server. We ordered garlic naan, chicken tikka korma and chicken tikki kadai. Both entrees came with soup or salad, we both opted for the salad. The salad came with a mustard style dressing, it was interesting and tangy. The garlic naan was amazing but all warm carbs are pretty much heavenly. I loved the dipping sauce that accompanied the naan. The entrees came out not long after we finished our salads and naan. Both were really good.
All around, everything was very pleasant but nothing was standout.

Delicious food and a nice respite from the hustle and bustle of the day… compared with other Indian restaurants, right amount of spice… food quality was high… even the shrimp was great especially surprising given the central US location! The fennel after dinner hit the spot!

In Lincoln for business for the week. Time to try out another place to eat.
I have not had Indian food in over a decade so since this place was so close to the hotel plus a 10% discount for hotel patrons, I thought to myself «why not»…
I will start with the bad! Whatever that stuff is at the hostess stand in the canister with the spoon in it has got to be the worst substance I have ever put in my mouth. The person I was with said it was supposed to settle your stomach or cleanse your palate or something. Well since it had a spoon in it and he put some in his hand, I figured I would do the same. BAD IDEA!!! It was like eating potpourri or air freshener. I am now thinking my friend was winding me up and did not ever actually put it in his mouth… The joke is on me… HA HA!!!
So anyway, even tho I have not had Indian food in a very long time this place was very good! The location is easy to get too. The ambiance was very nice. Very comfortable. The wait staff was very attentive and answered all of my questions. I can see this being a nice place for a date. Dimly lit and decorated very nicely.
The food was GREAT! I had the Chicken Vindaloo because I asked the waitress for a spicy recommendation… It came with rice. I ordered Naan and it came with a mint chutney. VERY GOOD! The main dish was HOT!!! By the time, I was done I was hallucinating and could not really feel my mouth anymore! Awesome! It really was very good and very full of flavor! The prices are very reasonable for the amount of food you get. I actually took some back to the hotel room to eat later this week if the notion hits me.
I will go back here again…
But trust me… don’t eat the air fresher at the hostess table…

The Oven is one of our favorite restaurants in Lincoln. We always have had an excellent experience. Our only downfall is that we love one dish so much (safed maas) that we rarely branch out and try other things. Seriously… the lamb is so tender and the sauce divine. We also love the Mullagatawny soup. Pretty sure I would happily eat that every day!
I wish it weren’t quite so expensive. It is worth it… but we just don’t come as often as we would like.

I have never had a bad experience here! The food is always fantastic and the service is great. I prefer this one over the one in the Haymarket because it’s less crowded and parking is a breeze. Prices are very reasonable. 2 entrees and 2 types of Naan can easily be done for $ 35 which makes it a treat we can have more often. I loved trying the sampler which had lots of different types of veggie curries. Great place and great for date night. Highly recommend the chicken tikka korma, soup and spinach Naan.

Would love to be able to comment on the food, but we drove all the way here to find the restaurant closed an hour before the posted closing time on a Sunday. No explanation, no sign – just closed. Very disappointing. Won’t be returning.

The food was excellent. Loved the naan and the mint chutney. Unfortunately, the service was very slow. Go for the food and if you don’t mind spending a looooooong time waiting for a server.

This restaurant is really good! I am gluten-​free and vegan and try to make sure that before I say a restaurant is good, I have found several dishes that I can eat and that they are indeed without compromise. And truly, this food is delicious. The mulligatawny soup, aloo gobi, bengan bearta, aloo chole, and bombay dal are my favorites. Try them!

When it comes to picking out dinner, there is one thing my husband and I can agree on… indian food! Mmm, naan naan naan. I’ve heard The Oven (the downtown location) is expensive and the service rude and since we already liked two other indian restaurants, I never made it a point to go here.
But, they now have this location and it’s much closer than any of the other places so we thought we’d give it a shot. We went late (8 p.m.) on a Friday. There were very few people there, which my husband really prefers. The décor was classy, we were seated quickly, and from the maitre de to the waiter, the service was fantastic!
My husband ordered the tandoori chicken, his usual. And I had a mixed tandoori entrée. We both had the soup, which is spicier than I expected but equally delicious, and of course, naan with mint chutney. It came out scorching hot and melted in our mouths. I love this stuff! It lacked seasoning, and I’ve had some that is, at the very least, salted, but it was still delicious.
Our meals came quickly and the food was great. We will get the tandoori chicken again. I think it was a little bit dry and well (almost too much so) seasoned, but it was very satisfactory and we will be back. Prices were also comparable to other locations around town.

I wouldn’t give even a single star for this restaurant as food was really terrible. Garlic powder on naan is just the worst thing I ever tasted in my life. Canned tomato purée on all curries and terribly tasting soggy appetisers. Nothing seems to be freshly made in this restaurant. I wouldn’t suggest this place for authentic Indian food.

Eat the Tandoori chicken! It’s delicious! I love everything about this place!

I docked a star because my server had trouble understanding what we were ordering, however, the food was delish! We ordered a few different appetizers and the lentil soup was great. Plenty left to bring home for lunch the next day!!!

Excellent food and quick service. We had exactly one hour for a date while our son slept his early evening nap in this infant carrier. Just finished when he woke up. I recommend the LAMB TIKKA MADRAS.

Still one of my favorite places to go with my wife in Lincoln, either location.

Americanized Indian Flavor — therefore the food was bland. Where did the spice in the Indian Food go? I use to love The Oven, now it has moved down on my list of places to eat in Lincoln.
Ordered the following:
+ Rose Lassi — to me, it tasted like «rose water» instead of «rose lassi»
+ chicken tikka korma and it was suppose to be spicy. It was more of a tomato paste then what korma is suppose to taste like.
+ chicken bhutan — and it too lacked the authentic taste; too much coconut milk
+ Roti and Naan — Roti was good and Onion Naan good
+ fried shrimp appetizer, was overcooked and burnt
I have lived in India and eaten Indian food in bigger cities — so I am familiar with the Indian Flavor.
The service was good — nothing spectacular — the atmosphere was busy — the wait was 30 – 45 mins however, not worth it for me.
So if you are looking for Americanized Indian — this is the place for you. Something more authentic, look elsewhere. Plenty of parking and no devices if you have to wait. There is a waiting area that would seat 7 total as well as a full bar.

The Oven in south Lincoln continues the tradition of great Indian food found in their Omaha and Haymarket locations. The resturant is smaller but very open and more up-​scale than the Haymarket in my opinion and I love their out-​door seating when the weather is nice in Nebraska.
I love their breads and Mullitgauny soup (sorry about my spelling) and their Nan and Papado breads are excellent… but sometimes the Papado isn’t as fresh as others. The soup is spicy. My first choice of a dish is the Chicken Tika Korma (it is a little spicy) and the second is the Chicken Mogali — Please given them a try. The food is consistent. Service can vary.
Also, they take the Passport card that allows you to get a free entre.

My husband and I decided to give The Oven a try last night after a Husker game. We didn’t get there until late (they are open until 10:30 pm) and were greeted and sat at our table promptly. The ambience is beautiful and classy and the restaurant was very quiet even though there were two other parties of couples having drinks and talking. Several of the employees were sitting at the bar having a glass of wine and our waitress seemed like she would rather be sitting with them than waiting on us.
We attempted to order the mixed appetizer but were told the fryer was already turned off. We were very disappointed as it had been a long day and we were extremely hungry. My husband ordered the lamb tikka madras and I the Chicken jalfrazie. We ordered some garlic naan to go along with our soup that came with dinner.
I’m not sure what the soup way, seemed to be some sort of creamed type soup but it was served with a dollup of rice in the middle and a lemon garnish. Adding the lemon juice made it phenominal and the garlic naan was the perfect amount of crispness and the mint chutney was absolutely amazing.
Our dinner arrived quickly and was served with plenty of rice. My husbands dish only had five or six pieces of lamb but was very flavorful. My dish had large pieces of green and red peppers, tomatoes, and onions and several pieces of chicken. Both were very mild on spice level as we are used to being able to pick our level of heat with the indian restaurants we frequent. My dish was large in portions, but I had to share with my husband because his wasn’t enough to satisfy his hunger.
The food was great, we will definitely give it another try to see if we have a waitress that seems less pre-​occupied and hopefully be able to try the appetizers as well.