A few weeks back, Neighbor Roy gave me a clipping from the Arizona Daily Star newspaper about their recommendations for local dining. On it was a mention of Indian Twist restaurant on East Camp Lowell in Tucson. I asked Roy if he wanted to try it and he said, “Whatever.” So we tried it on a Friday in late October 2022 although it was a bit of a hike from our homes in the Tucson Mountains.
After a 30-minute drive east, we arrived and immediately located a handicapped space in front of Indian Twist. We entered and the place was not crowded at noon o’clock. Don’t know when their busy time is. We were seated by a window so had a full view of the place. The overhead lighting appeared crowded, with lots of lights hanging from the ceiling in a cluster.
A pleasant young lady appeared shortly and announced that she would be our server. So far, so good. She brought us carafes of water and poured the water into our glasses. She then took our order for an appetizer. We ordered Tandoor Chicken. It came out quickly along with a basket of flat bread. The bread was unusual tasting. Can’t say what it tasted like but it was good.
The chicken appetizer was also very good, but there wasn’t much meat on the bones. Sad. Then we ordered our entrees. Roy ordered Lamb Achari: which was a combination of north Indian spices cooked in onion gravy with ginger ($16.95). I ordered their Lamb Tikka Masala: which was lamb cooked in a chefs special sauce with cream ($16.95).
It didn’t take long for our entrees to arrive at our table. I’ll let Roy tell you about his experience.
“This week we dined at the Indian Twist restaurant on East Camp Lowell. We were able to park outside the front of the restaurant. Upon entering, the restaurant was rather large, but there were few customers. We were promptly seated and menus were presented. We chose an appetizer of chicken sautéed with onions and, for a main dish, I chose lamb in a sauce, specifically asking for mild heat level. I also ordered my usual Tea, specified it to be black tea, many Indian restaurants serve tea with milk (a hang-over from British colonial days). This is the first time I have been rejected for my choice of black tea over white tea with milk–so I settled for water.
Our appetizer came in a plate still sizzling. My portion was well done. My main dish, a bowl of rice, and flat breads arrived–the portions were large.
My lamb dish was topped with an obvious large quantity of a rich but very hot sauce (from curry, I believe), I wondered how hot the other choices would be. By mixing the excellent rice with minimal sauce, I was able to finish part of the meal. The rest I took home.
Rating this restaurant presents some problems: Where we sat looked directly into the kitchen, I would suggest swing doors be installed to lower the noise level. Also, the quibble over the color of tea was needless. To the positive side, portions are large, and the staff was attentive, the mixed rating has to be 3 1/2 saguaros.”
My Lamb Masala was excellent. Unlike Roy’s experience, mine was not too spicy. The bowl of rice was also very good. Topped with the sauce that came with my lunch, it too was excellent. A TV over the cooking area showed images of Indian rappers dancing to unheard music. Thankfully, unheard. In fact, there was no background music at all. That made our conversation pleasant. Unlike Neighbor Roy, I rate Indian Twist four saguaros. Very good indeed. Try it, You’ll like it.
Indian Twist
4660 East Camp Lowell Drive, Tucson, Arizona 85712
520-495-5499
