Clay Oven Indian Cuisine

I love the food, the service and decor. Once I discovered this place, I went once every week or two and took new friends, so they would know about it. The quality of the meat is excellent, and the spices are glorious. The price is medium and well worth the quality.

First off, the food, coming from these very humble owners, is fantastic! They are extremely Celiac/allergy friendly, making gluten-free Roti/Naan from Gram flour; those worried about cross-contamination, they will work with you, even making it safe for the 1 part/million sensitive individual. They do have wine pairing for those that are interested. Reservations are highly recommended for weekends, as it is a smaller dining room area. While there, several people had called ahead for take-out. It is on the pricier side, but well worth the cost!

This wonderful restaurant has been run by the same family for over 30 years and is among the oldest restaurants in Irvine. By far the best meal I always have in Irvine, even Orange County. Ever changing specials, interesting wine and beer, and amazing service. Things you won't find in any other restaurant in the area. Highly recommended!

I'm a word: magnificent. Everything on the menu has depth and complexity without being over seasoned. A great value as we always get a second or even third meal from an order. This isn't quick service fare, but in the end is top notch unique quality dining at quick service rates. Holds its flavor and easily served at home. The weekly at home delivery menus are a delight, but standing any day menu is also amazing. I'm not being sappy when I say that love is a base ingredient in every dish. Try it you'll know what I mean.

Clay oven is hands down the best Indian food in Irvine. The owners and staff are incredibly kind. When I don’t know what to order l, they just take over and deliver a wonderful meal. I’ve never had a bad experience here and go out of my way to order from them when we have guests because they always love it. 10/10 a must try!!

Clay Oven has been my go-to for Indian cuisine for years, and so far they have never disappointed. Besides the tried-and-true dishes that everyone knows and loves they also always have specialty dishes on their menu, with some very interesting and hard-to-find options from time to time. Just look at their menu to see what they offer. In any case, I can strongly recommend Clay Oven for anyone looking for some of the best Indian food you can find in the area.

This place never disappoints. Everything is always just amazing. Their Swordfish Tandoori is a must. You've never had anything like it. If you like it a little spicy the Black Cobra Chicken is perfect. We've had just about everything on the menu and it's all been so yummy.

High end Indian food that definitely branches out. Not only is it the only Indian restaurant I've ever seen with beef on the menu, but even has bison, elk, and other exotic meats. They even have an impressive beer menu including a few incredibly delicious hard to find beers. My only complaint is that it was quite pricey, but the food was delicious. I'll probably still be back on occasion.

lissy donovan

Consistently the some of best quality food I have found in orange county. Lovely, kind people. Delightfully delicious meals. Creative cooking with lots of love in it. Fantastic. Can’t recommend highly enough.

Mike West

Clay Oven is by far the best Indian food our family has ever had. Nothing comes close to their quality and taste. Our favorite is the Chicken Tikka Masala. We’ve been dining here for years. Super friendly!

Elizabeth Smith

Treat yourself to an amazing meal from the nicest people on the planet. We have been going to Clay Oven for many years and have celebrated many major family events in their restaurant. When the pandemic hit, they regrouped and reconfigured, but never lost a beat in terms of quality, flavor and personal service. If you have not had the opportunity to enjoy Clay Oven's delicious food--we highly recommend you try it soon! Be sure to include an extra order of our family favorite--sour dough naan. You will be so happy you did!

Manny Kiesser

I'm a word: magnificent. Everything on the menu has depth and complexity without being over seasoned. A great value as we always get a second or even third meal from an order. This isn't quick service fare, but in the end is top notch unique quality dining at quick service rates. Holds its flavor and easily served at home. The weekly at home delivery menus are a delight, but standing any day menu is also amazing. I'm not being sappy when I say that love is a base ingredient in every dish. Try it you'll know what I mean.

Lauren Maxwell

Clay oven is hands down the best Indian food in Irvine. The owners and staff are incredibly kind. When I don’t know what to order l, they just take over and deliver a wonderful meal. I’ve never had a bad experience here and go out of my way to order from them when we have guests because they always love it. 10/10 a must try!!

Gregory Haase

This place never disappoints. Everything is always just amazing. Their Swordfish Tandoori is a must. You've never had anything like it. If you like it a little spicy the Black Cobra Chicken is perfect. We've had just about everything on the menu and it's all been so yummy.

Sebastiaan van Doornspeek

Clay Oven has been my go-to for Indian cuisine for years, and so far they have never disappointed. Besides the tried-and-true dishes that everyone knows and loves they also always have specialty dishes on their menu, with some very interesting and hard-to-find options from time to time. Just look at their menu to see what they offer. In any case, I can strongly recommend Clay Oven for anyone looking for some of the best Indian food you can find in the area.

Timothy Talley

First off, the food, coming from these very humble owners, is fantastic! They are extremely Celiac/allergy friendly, making gluten-free Roti/Naan from Gram flour; those worried about cross-contamination, they will work with you, even making it safe for the 1 part/million sensitive individual. They do have wine pairing for those that are interested. Reservations are highly recommended for weekends, as it is a smaller dining room area. While there, several people had called ahead for take-out. It is on the pricier side, but well worth the cost!

T K

We celebrated a birthday here during the lunch hour. The food and service were outstanding...not your 'average' Indian food, but truly a unique, creative dining exlerience, with a daily lunch plate menu! Try the mesquite-grilled avocados, with garlic naan! This was a winner with the group..we will be back!!

Misha Novini

High end Indian food that definitely branches out. Not only is it the only Indian restaurant I've ever seen with beef on the menu, but even has bison, elk, and other exotic meats. They even have an impressive beer menu including a few incredibly delicious hard to find beers. My only complaint is that it was quite pricey, but the food was delicious. I'll probably still be back on occasion.

Kelly Hawkins

This wonderful restaurant has been run by the same family for over 30 years and is among the oldest restaurants in Irvine. By far the best meal I always have in Irvine, even Orange County. Ever changing specials, interesting wine and beer, and amazing service. Things you won't find in any other restaurant in the area. Highly recommended!

Laurel Sternberg

I love the food, the service and decor. Once I discovered this place, I went once every week or two and took new friends, so they would know about it. The quality of the meat is excellent, and the spices are glorious. The price is medium and well worth the quality.

Food was amazing! Service was fantastic. Not your typical experience when dining in an ethnic restaurant. Wide menu accommodating all palates and diets. Worth checking out if you're craving some tasty food.

Amir Khan

Food was amazing! Service was fantastic. Not your typical experience when dining in an ethnic restaurant. Wide menu accommodating all palates and diets. Worth checking out if you're craving some tasty food.

My friend raved about this place but I thought it was just alright. Prices are pretty high for semi standard dishes. Tika masala was tasty but portion is small. Ribs, Eggplant and cauliflower were decent but nothing exciting. The shrimp in mango sauce was unique but very small portion. Might try several other places before coming back.

Stefanie Ziller

My friend raved about this place but I thought it was just alright. Prices are pretty high for semi standard dishes. Tika masala was tasty but portion is small. Ribs, Eggplant and cauliflower were decent but nothing exciting. The shrimp in mango sauce was unique but very small portion. Might try several other places before coming back.

The food is way overpriced and not for good reason. A pint sized chicken tikka massala is not worth $22. Especially not when it’s too sour to eat because too much lemon was added. Food was not worth the price. I will not be ordering from here again. There are better tasting affordable options out there.

Melisa Ashrafy

The food is way overpriced and not for good reason. A pint sized chicken tikka massala is not worth $22. Especially not when it’s too sour to eat because too much lemon was added. Food was not worth the price. I will not be ordering from here again. There are better tasting affordable options out there.

The owner told me to shut up! Why because I asked a large group of 18 women to be quiet as I could not even hear my dining partner speak to me from the loud and rude party. And when I asked them to talk lower they become louder and then the owner comes out and tells me not to threaten them. How dare he say this to me as they should have been the one he talked to. This owner only wants money. The other small group next to me left without ordering and also complain to the owner and he doesn’t do anything to quiet the large group down. The owner also cheats with very small portions of dishes and charges $25 or more for a 1/2 size meal that should cost $10 dollars. This owner is no good and cheating customers. I will never go back to this place after this rude owner treated me with disrespect. I suggest you should review your video of your restaurant again and ask yourself why the other customers left your restaurant after what you said to me for your own recollection as to what really happened. Stop the lies and cover up.

We ordered food from this hotel for our company and we were served very small portions of food and worse still, the vegetarian dishes were stale. The baingan bharta had gone bad several days ago. Two of my co-workers ate it and immediately complained of the rancid smell. They were vomiting and we had to close the lid of the dish as the foul smell was overpowering. Needless to say we complained to the hotel but it was ignored. We also complained to Orange County.

Kedar Patwardhan

We ordered food from this hotel for our company and we were served very small portions of food and worse still, the vegetarian dishes were stale. The baingan bharta had gone bad several days ago. Two of my co-workers ate it and immediately complained of the rancid smell. They were vomiting and we had to close the lid of the dish as the foul smell was overpowering. Needless to say we complained to the hotel but it was ignored. We also complained to Orange County.

Michael Black

The owner told me to shut up! Why because I asked a large group of 18 women to be quiet as I could not even hear my dining partner speak to me from the loud and rude party. And when I asked them to talk lower they become louder and then the owner comes out and tells me not to threaten them. How dare he say this to me as they should have been the one he talked to. This owner only wants money. The other small group next to me left without ordering and also complain to the owner and he doesn’t do anything to quiet the large group down. The owner also cheats with very small portions of dishes and charges $25 or more for a 1/2 size meal that should cost $10 dollars. This owner is no good and cheating customers. I will never go back to this place after this rude owner treated me with disrespect. I suggest you should review your video of your restaurant again and ask yourself why the other customers left your restaurant after what you said to me for your own recollection as to what really happened. Stop the lies and cover up.