A chance encounter gave me the opportunity to sample Choolaah's fare before their grand opening coming up on November 28th, and I was very thankful for that chance after looking back on the visit!
The manager I encountered was incredibly kind and had good service in mind throughout the entire experience. She showed the open windows that looked into the kitchen to allow guests a chance to view the cooking ovens in action along with their walk-in refrigerators and freezers to get an idea of the quality of ingredients in use before any order could be placed.
After giving me a quick overview of the menu, I picked the Tikka Masala bowl with chicken and a side order of Wheat Naan. I was given a buzzer and told the food would take about 3-5 mintues to prepare and pick up later from the side counter (similarly to Panera's buzzer-based pickup system). The service was much quicker than that expectation, but the place also wasn't open yet either!
Always having regular Naan at any sit-down Indian restaurant that I have been to previously, I wasn't sure what to expect with the Wheat Naan nor did I have anything to compare the quality towards having been a first-time try, but I was very pleased with the taste. The bowl was also delicious and the fresh ingredients were apparent in the flavor. I was given the option to make it spicier, but turned that down for my first try. The default spiciness was a great level for me, but I worry that Indian-food newbies might be turned off from it if they don't know what to expect.
The only constructive criticism I could come up with was a lack of sauce in the bowl compared to other Tikka Masala orders that I've had at other restaurants, but it is only a less-than-minor concern at best. The price was definitely closer to a sit-down restaurant than to a quick-serve joint on the scale of fast-casual restaurants, but I don't think they'll have a problem with justifying the prices as long as they can continue to keep the quality of the food high into their opening and regular business. I'll still be planning to head there again my first day back in the office following their opening on the 28th!