You can try homemade cheese, tandoori salmon and tikka masala at this Rexburg restaurant

REXBURG — A family-owned restaurant that focuses on traditional northern Indian food made from scratch is serving dishes to accommodate everyone’s needs. 

Masala Indian Cuisine,

located at 352 South 2nd West in Rexburg, is owned by husband-and-wife duo Jaideep “Jai” and Brittany Gill. It recently opened at the previous location for New Fong’s.

Jai said he’d made the menu not only for those who enjoy meat but also for those who are gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian. 

He’s no stranger to the restaurant business. Click here for a more in-depth look at his restaurant background. 

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One popular appetizer served at the cuisine is the chili-mili paneer.

“It’s homemade Indian cheese with a little bit of tomato, ginger and garlic glaze sauce on it,” Jai said. “You can take that sauce, and we can add it with shrimp or tofu if you are vegan, or we can do chicken.”

Customers can choose from spice levels of one through five, with one being mild and five being “on fire.” 

“Compare it (level five) to ghost peppers,” Jai said. 

There’s a tandoori entree that is uniquely made with salmon called the garlic-peppercorn maach. Jai said he likes the seafood and Indian combination. He is originally from Virginia Beach, where he was surrounded by seafood. 

“Maach is an Indian name for a fish, and it’s marinated with yogurt and garlic. It is grilled in our tandoor clay oven,” he said. “The only reason why I presented this dish is I am a big seafood person, and everybody loves this salmon. It really melts in your mouth. The flavors blend together. The marination is overnight with the fish.”

It is served with rice and Bombay potatoes too. 

Jai even serves a crab masala. It’s jumbo lump crab meat in a creamed tomato-fenugreek sauce served with rice. 

A classic dish you can’t go wrong with is the chicken tikka masala. 

“It’s one of the most popular dishes, most common dishes. It’s like the best way to break ice with Indian food is to introduce chicken tikka masala,” he said. “Tikka masala is a type of sauce, and we can substitute that protein for any other thing. Some people do vegetables, some do tofu, some do fish and some do lamb.”

Jai said the chicken marinates overnight so it can soak up all the spices. He grinds his spices in-house. 

“I don’t buy anything that’s already prepackaged or preboxed because I don’t really know what’s in it. I like to see what I put into my food, especially these days because people have a lot of allergy restrictions,” Jai said. 

There are tandoori breads called naan. They’re made in the clay oven, and the dough is made from scratch. The No. 1 seller is the garlic naan, made with fresh garlic and herbs, Jai said. 

The dessert offerings include Indian ice cream, rice pudding, a chocolate torte and more. Click here to view the entire menu. 

Jai added that the restaurant caters special events like weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and family gatherings. To book events, call (208) 851-5999. 

Check out Masala Indian Cuisine’s Facebook page here. 

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