Went to Gymkhana in Las Vegas recently after hearing so much hype, and honestly I just don’t get it.
Starting with the food. It was absolutely horrible for us. There was no real flavor at all, just an overwhelming amount of spice. And I say this as someone with an Indian palate. It wasn’t balanced or layered heat. It was simply spicy for the sake of being spicy. Even I couldn’t digest the food properly, which says a lot. Everything felt one dimensional and lacked depth, especially for a restaurant with this kind of reputation.
The service experience didn’t help either. We had made a reservation specifically for bar seating, but when we arrived the hostess told us it had been canceled. What made it worse was that she acted confused about how it happened and basically pretended not to know. It felt disingenuous and honestly like she was outright lying. There was no accountability and no real effort to fix the situation.
Overall the experience was mediocre at best. Between the overpoweringly spicy yet flavorless food and the awkward front of house situation, it really fell flat.
I genuinely do not understand the hype around Gymkhana. Maybe it works for some people, but for us it was a miss, especially given the price point and expectations.
Would not go back.
by Top_Pollution3636
10 Comments
I haven’t been there but I feel the same, the local Indian restaurant by me is excellent, how much better can it get? lol
100% Slow service, way overpriced, average food and it was loud as fuck inside. Also, the hostess was cold and unfriendly, couldn’t even muster a smile.
I’m a Vegas resident and we have MUCH better options for Indian cuisine off the strip for a fraction of the price. I was so excited to try Gymkhana, will never go back. Was really hoping it would be more like Dishoom in London. So sad.
Tbh the original Gymkhana is a bit overrated at 2 stars.
Prime Market in Jersey City is my bar for Indian food, and boy do restaurants struggle to beat it
I am confused; I am fairly certain Gymkhana Las Vegas doesn’t allow you to reserve bar seating? All bar seats were saved for walk-ins when I went last month. Also, what do you mean when you say that you are “someone with an Indian palate”? Are you Indian? Because I’m Indian and I enjoyed it. Think they’re still working out some kinks, but I very much enjoyed my experience there. I have lived in the Bay Area, Manhattan, London, and India so I’ve certainly not been starved of good indian food.
Edit: Also, I am rather confused by your assertion that the food was “spicy for the sake of being spicy”. We ordered almost everything on the menu and not one dish was spicy. And I’m someone who cannot tolerate spice for the life of me. Also, it’s weird that you say there was no real effort to fix the situation when you are quite literally sitting at the bar in these photos lol.
That’s because it’s in Vegas my man. Fine dining restaurants that expand into Vegas hotels always suck. Because Vegas sucks. Imagine trying to serve two Michelin star Indian food inside the god damn ARIA hotel on the strip. You can’t.
Gymkhana London is incredible and well deserved of their stars. One of the best culinary experiences I’ve had from top to bottom.
With that being said, as soon as I saw that they were opening this in Vegas, I immediately knew it was going to be total trash. Awful decision, and it should rub off on the brand as a whole.
Food looks like a standard Indian restaurant but that’s just going off the one photo.
Personally, I fall into the camp of those who were not impressed with the original Gymkhana, so I am not surprised that this is not great and it sounds like even quite based on your experience. I will definitely avoid!
Going this week. Will report back, and whether OP is full of it.
I’m not surprised by this. The direction of this group strikes me as prioritizing a ‘monetize’ phase.