The Spice Merchant in Newtownabbey

So good! Delicious came super early which is a huge big yes!

Lovely setting and location which perhaps is linked to the v average review score I am giving. We expected a lot more from this place, the food overall was just so-so and didn't really taste like proper Indian food for some reason. Fish starter was overcooked and main dishes weren't especially flavoursome, making it underwhelming overall. Best thing we had was the samosa as part of a mixed platter, which tasted homemade. It is a nice setting and staff were friendly/nice, so a mixed bag overall.

Great curry, lovely staff. Lots of vegetarian options poori is great.

This is my first visit and just loved it :) Amazing food !!! Fabulous and quick service!!! Highly recommended!! Will surely visit again :)

Really good attentive and friendly service, the food was amazing! Liking the decor and music too. Recommend.!!!

Really great place. Excellent vibe, food was really good, something different to the usual Indian restaurants.

Tried it yesterday. Lively spot. Will return very soon. Fab if u like it hot.

Absolutely amazing food , service was outstanding and great value for money. One of the best restaurants.

Lovely friendly restaurant with fantastic food , service was excellent, highly recommended most definitely will be going back.

Food is really good and came out really quickly! 5 star for sure.

Love this restaurant ! It’s friendly with wonderful service 🌈🙏🏽fabulous food.

Lamb was cooked perfect and sauces excellent madras/ butter chicken 👌🏻

Great atmosphere and Fingerliciousssssssss food served and cooked by wonderful staff.

went as a treat for my daughters birthday. defo recomend to any one.!!food was amazing and staff were great.!!

Service is excellent, it is a clean and classy restaurant. Food is freshly made and The Prices are very reasonable. A must visit for lunch or dinner.

Great service , lovely atmosphere - will be back:!

I've only ever had delivery from here but the food tasted great and was hot when delivered

very tasty I highly recommend. It's even nicer sitting in, very friendly staff.

Looks like the driver threw my food about the garden before I got it. Containers all busted and all the food was in the bag. Everything was covered in sauce and poppadoms all smashed to tiny pieces. This used to be my favourite Indian but tonight was a disgrace. 4 meals completely ruined. Photos submitted to just eat.

This indian is a new find, Love it! So nice to sit in also! Reasonable prices!

Delievery was on time. Food was ok but not the usual standards. Naan bread was bery thin and extremely over done.

The food was excellent, the service was top-notch, and the atmosphere was lovely. I thoroughly enjoyed the delicious food and the exceptional service from the staff. I look forward to returning in the future.

Waited 2 hours for a delivery to greenisland ( a 10 minute drive away ) was told the order left the shop 45 minutes ago... great food but would advise not to order delivery.

I ordered at 6.20 and it didn’t arrive til nearly 7.45. Estimated delivery was 7-7.20. It was almost cold. The food was just ok after waiting for so long

Went for a meal with the family, as usual in the Spice Merchant we had really good food, good service and some great recommendations from the menu by our waiter Warren.

Food is over 1 hour late and everything is cold. Called 3 times and told on the third time was told the order has now just been sent 50 minutes after it should have been delivered.

We live not far from here but always tend to go to the Kinara as the food is exceptional. Friends have recommended it so we thought we would give it a go. My husband loves Indian food 😋 and the kids had bought him a voucher for his birthday. As we had friends round we decided to opt for a carryout. Hubby went down to order with said voucher but the manager (male) on duty queried the voucher stating it wasn't theirs... it clearly was .branding etc was very clear and obvious. Proceeded to completely humiliate him in front of a very busy Saturday evening restaurant to the point where another staff member intervened and accepted the voucher...unfortunately by that stage the damage was done . Our friends called an hour later to pick up the carry out and it couldn't be found anywhere . Eventually found it on the counter (cold) .. The female staff mwmber apologised profusely offering a free meal etc but really by that stage it was the last thing we wanted. She offered a full refund if we returned the following day which we did. Same manager same attitude no apology more rudeness in front of a packed restaurant .. husband demanded a full refund in the end that was received. Never ever again will we be back .. such a shame as we regularly frequent the bureau sipster kinara whose etc with none of this rudeness .. IMHO Kinara is better by a mile with none of the attitude 😒

Chicken 65 very mild. Ordered garlic chilli chicken tikka masala to be served 'extra hot' and with green chillis, unfortunately very mild as well and no chillis, found a sharp bone in my chicken in this dish. Had some flies buzz around my table, this was a bit of a turnoff.

1 hour for delivery on a Sunday evening was a bit much!

Ordered a collection. Was told it would be 20mins. 45 mins later I was down for it and it wasn’t ready. Not good. The whole point of ordering to collect is so that it is ready within the time you are told.

Ordered via just eat. Two hours after ordering the food it arrived. Some items were cold, chicken tikka in one curry was just bog standard plain chicken. Karahi curry tasted like carrot soup. Very disappointed, have visited the restaurant on several occasions and didn't expect this level of service. Two hours is too late to wait for a two person meal costing £45

Terrible service, our order was 2 hours late and the food was cold when it arrived.

Super spot. Food is amazing... The chef who made my garlic naan tonight isn't the best looking chap, but he can certainly make a super garlic naan 🤣

Nothing wrong with the driver at all. The restaurant refused to give me money back after waiting over an hour for my food. The excuse was driver stuck in traffic when I only live 3 minutes away. No traffic what so ever! Very poor from the restaurant and feel sorry for these drivers working hard but get no recognition for their work!

Food lacked flavour, hard to imagine how a chef could do that to Indian food. Ordered just 2 starters and 1 was wrong, came with mayonnaise instead of sweet chilli sauce. Main chicken dish was hard and came with an unpleasant tasting sauce, didn’t taste like any spinach I’ve had before. Couldn’t eat it. Really bad food all round, tasteless or horrible.

Would like to see sides able to be added with main dishes for a meal deal rather than having to pay full price as an add on. Food is good. I’ve asked for an extra with something and it’s been done no extra charge! Great service to get a returning customer! Always sort any issues promptly too.

My drink order was wrong and not corrected when requested both by the delivery man and also the restaurant when I phoned up. Disappointing for the price.

Nice food but pity they charge you for poppadoms and dips , most restaurants put them down on table free before you order starters / mains , just felt a bit miserable when you spend £80 and expect to pay extra for poppadoms

Absolutely lovely as always highly recommended

Highly recommended. Dear owner too!

Never again disgusting experience my partner is vegetarian and ordered vegetarian jalfrazi with pilau rice and garlic nan bread I opted for King prawn dansak also with pilau rice our meal arrived at table my partner's jalfrezi was loaded with chicken had to go back to the chef the rice was disgusting it was stuck together in clumps it looked and tasted like uncle Ben's microwave rice on both dishes my prawns were so hard not king prawns I couldn't swallow them once chewed the bill amounted to just over £60 we both adore Indian food but this was extremely poor the waitress kept coming too our table constantly asking if our meal was OK and noticed our meal was hardly touched then commented that if she brings the meals back to chef he would want to know what was wrong we politely excused ourselves paid the bill and won't be back.

Went to this lovely restaurant last week and we were very impressed by the service especially Niamh. We really enjoyed the meal all the dishes were very authentic and tasty , would highly recommend

Visited here sat 22 June 2024. Staff extremely friendly and pleasant. Food excellent. We were made to feel very welcome. Would definitely recommend.

Superb first takeaway. So tasty, hot and fresh.. can't wait to try the restaurant soon

I am normally very critical of Indian restaurants, mostly because I can cook similar dishes. Their quality is good. The chutney is of better quality and taste. There are several vegetarian options available. The vegetarian main course was well prepared and flavoursome. Their Gulab Jamun is just about OK, it would be better to serve them warm with ice cream. Overall, a good quality restaurant, with several vegetarian choices and flavoursome food. Clean, good quality table and chairs. Good service.

chicken was dry and tough, delivered cold, fish mix was soggy, overall quality is grim for the price first and last time ordering from here

Food was soggy and half cold when it arrived, naan bread was stale and tasteless

I recently dined at this Indian restaurant and was thoroughly disappointed. Most of the dishes I tried lacked flavor and were very bland. The mixed meat platter, in particular, was a major letdown as the meats seemed old and were full of artificial colors. Although there were one or two decent options, like the karahi paneer and naan bread, they couldn't make up for the overall poor quality of the food. Out of the five dishes we ordered, we couldn't eat more than a spoonful of at least two of them.

first order from the spice merchant and it was really delicious. not the cheapest indian takeaway but the quality exceeds many in the area. I had the jalfrezi (Chicken tikka) with separate pilau rice. the chicken was very tender and good sized chunks. the sauce was medium spiced and very tasty with loads of cut peppers. I enjoyed it so much I will be booking a table for the sit in very soon and can't wait to try the Himalayan green curry.

lovely hot spice in Madras. Good portion size for the price!

First time trying a Karahi and it was lovely. Recommend this place for a great meal.

Had the veg rogan josh. Veg cut up into micro pieces, apart from some chic peas, which was very disappointing. It looked like left overs, the veg was so small you couldn't tell what it was. The sauce was very hot, too hot for a rogan josh. Indian meals aren't a cheap carry out so I might order elsewhere in future. I also rang up to ask if they had paneer to which they said they would add it, it wasn't added.

Always pleased & food very good esp korma

Delicious food, good portion size with plenty of meat in the dish (much better than some other vendors) and on time. Just a shame that it was just warm enough to eat, given that we live half a mile away, but I guess that's why we have microwaves.

Wasn’t as spicy as usual or, I’m getting used to the spice at last 😂. Either way a really tasty meal with loads to go around. Delivered really quick by a very friendly fella. Already looking forward to the next meal and might even try something with more spice as planning this for my birthday dinner and can’t wait.

Food hot, fresh and flavourful. Staff very friendly and welcoming. Price point is reasonable and we will definitely go again. If you have a food allergy or GF intolerance you’re well covered with their menu which is very clear. Was fairly quiet for a Friday evening but might of got busier later due to the nice weather.

One of the top spots to dine in Newtownabbey! The food is top-notch and the service is excellent. I would definitely suggest trying out this restaurant—it's truly fantastic.

The food is delicious, the staff is accommodating, and the prices are affordable.

Always delicious, best Indian restaurant in all of Northern Ireland

to be top-notch, the food is consistently delicious, fresh, and reasonably priced! The staff is incredibly friendly and down-to-earth—we truly appreciate them all. ❤️

Stunning food. Attentive service, with a smile.

Couldn’t recommend this place anymore than I can, amazing food and amazing service.

Good quality Indian food, especially for a takeaway/delivery.

Visited on strength of reviews and did not disappoint, would recommend booking as lucky to get a table, service 5* followed by genuine flavoursome food, large portions so order wisely. Definitely the place of choice

Been coming here for years and the food and the service just gets better every time weather your with family friends or with your partner, everyone is Friendly and welcoming the atmosphere id just right

We have visited this place many times with our family for meals, and once again, we were very pleased with our experience! The food was wonderfully fresh and flavorful. The service at the restaurant was top-notch—our table was promptly cleared, and our water glasses were always filled without having to ask. The staff was friendly and attentive.

We always come here as the food is always exceptional! Brilliant value for money, quick friendly service

Excellent food and 5* service Tonight we went for mums birthday and all the staff made her night memorable We will definitely be going again soon.

Still the best....great service,great food and a great price. Our favourite place

Great evening. Our waiter was fantastic - made us feel at home and kept us in the loop. The food was delicious, and all the staff were super friendly. I'd say it's good value for money. Would definitely recommend.

Just been for my twin brother and sister 35th birthday meal and the food absolutely spot on 😁 our waiter was very welcoming

Absolutely fantastic food especially Crispy Chilli Chicken and the customer service is great. The staff made everyone in the family feel very welcome!

Visited the restaurant tonight with my partner brilliant experience from entering to leaving. Friendly helpful staff and beautiful food we will recommend to others and definitely be back again

What a great place to eat. The menu is extensive and it is so difficult to choose as everything on the menu looks delicious

The food was exceptional with beautiful presentation and amazing flavours. If you enjoy spicy food, this is the place to be!

Lovely place with great staff and even better food!

it was first time going tonight Amazing food great service lovely team and welcoming the place is very clean and comfortable

Starters were good. Biryani was average and the coriander Nan was good.. Service is cool

Always great food and great service

the experience was amazing and my whole family enjoyed it! The portions were generous and the waiters were very friendly

Usually very good but very bland food tonight. Disappointing.

We went yesterday. The food was excellent.we tried the Lamb Pasanda.it was AMAZING

Been here loads of time's.. food is superb... excellent service from all staff .. restaurant always clean and welcoming with a good atmosphere.

Great Indian food in town…must visit if you’re visiting… I got the Chicken Tikka and it was great

Staff is very courteous. Food was amazing

My favorites are butter and chicken tikka masala, Always greeted with a smile and all the staff are kind.

Absolutely fell in love with everything on the menu!! Hands down the BEST!!

Very polite and kind service, food came fast, restaurant was quiet. Also very accommodating

This is my go-to place for Indian food, amazing selection and quick service, always great taste!

I visit this restaurant every week and this’s the best Indian restaurant ever clean and fresh food.

Beautiful food and delivery was speedy

Great food, great service! Staff are very hospitable!

Food is great value and served hot from the kitchen. Good quality food served up by nice friendly staff. Never had a bad meal

Excellent service & great food. I had Chicken Tikka Masala - tasty & I'd def recommend

Outstanding as always. I went there with my family. Servicing was good and food was quite delicious 😋. Will recommend to everyone. Thank you team

Best Indian restaurant in northern Ireland .brilliant food we got so far in northern Ireland lovely restaurant!

Visited on Friday night with friends and we couldn’t have chosen a better spot. Lovely food with great atmosphere and such friendly staff.

Good food as always been here many time no doubt with the quality and quantity are better than any other restaurant in Belfast. Must visit. Highly recommended

The restaurant had a warm and inviting atmosphere. The tables were nicely spaced, allowing for comfortable conversation. The walls were decorated with colorful tapestries depicting Indian scenes, adding a touch of cultural flair. Service: Our server was attentive and knowledgeable about the menu. They patiently explained the different Paneer dishes and was happy to accommodate our request for a specially prepared Indo-Chinese Manchurian starter. Food: Paneer Kadahi: I opted for the Paneer kadahi, a classic dish featuring cubes of soft paneer cheese simmered in a rich tomato,onion & butter gravy. The paneer was perfectly cooked, with a delightful texture that was both melt-in-your-mouth and slightly firm. The kadahi curry was bursting with flavor, a harmonious blend of all spices. It was served with a cheese chilli garlic naan, the perfect accompaniments for soaking up the delicious curry. Indo-Chinese Manchurian: We also tried the specially made on our request Indo-Chinese Manchurian. This dish featured a medley of colorful vegetables, including cauliflower, carrots, and green peppers, all coated in a light and flavorful sauce. The sauce had a delightful tanginess that was balanced with a Umami Taste. Overall Impression: This restaurant was a delightful discovery. The food was flavorful and beautifully presented, and the service was excellent. The willingness of the staff to accommodate our request for a special dish further enhanced the experience. I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a delicious and authentic Indian dining experience near Belfast.

Really poor meal today. Usually our favourite Indian takeaway, however today the nan bread was not fresh and neither was the rice. The chicken was cold and rubbery in both curry’s. The Bombay potato was mush and not the normal flavour. Really disappointed and will not be eating from here again.