The best indian food I've ever had from a restaurant was from a truck stop in the middle of nowhere off I-80 in Nebraska.

That's because you can't beat home cooked meals.

Yeah, the same goes for Korean food. I think a lot of it has to do with the quality of produce. In the west produce is often picked before it's ripe because we have to ship it hundreds of miles. They also tend to change the spices and sweetness to accommodate western pallets.

That's my experience as well. The food my Pakistani friend cooks is amazing but when I order the same thing at a restaurant it looks delicious but it tastes like poking your tongue out the window. I guess restaurants has to cater to western palates to make money and many westoids have very low spice tolerance.

That may be more of a problem with the restaurants where you live. I live in San Antonio and we have dozens and dozens of exceptional Indian restaurants where everything feels like it's a home cooked meal. I definitely miss Diwali before the pandemic though. My old company had a lot of Indian workers and the spread of food they would bring in was always incredible.

I don't know what country you're in, but lots of Indians in the UK are actuall run by Bangladeshis and the food is a bit middling. Once you find a good one you become loyal.