Great apps and the lunch sized main courses were generous. There's a reason this place is still here and the other Indian place is gone, not only did this one win the literal shootout but they also make the best Indian dishes in this area. Worth a stop for sure. read more

As with many other reviewers, I agree this is the best place in Cincy for Indian food. Tried multiple dishes over the years and have never disliked a single one. They're good about getting the spice right. It isn't cheap, but price seems fair for what you get. Service has always been friendly as well. read more

The food is so good I Dream about it every night and I also love the wonderful service in the Super Clean and a Beautiful ambiance and i love it read more

I've been going here for over 20 years and it has always been my favorite Indian food in town. Stopped tonight and was completely unimpressed by the food, which was so disappointing. No flavor and lots of oil. Service was ok, staff friendly. Building looks the same as it did in the 90's. C*vid plexiglass still up between the booths... read more

THE BEST!!! I love ambar! It's a little pricier than other Indian restaurants around but it's so worth it! The tikka everything is great! Their spice scale is always one point- if you get a level 3, it's a level 3, not a 6, or a 1. The service is always super super sweet! I highly recommend getting take out and enjoying during a movie night or family night- they are just so good. I just ate and I'm wanting more just typing this review! read more

No doubt the BEST in Cincinnati. Thank you for not compromising your quality. Other Indian restaurants around the area have been consistently slipping. It's unfortunate. But you also hit it out of the park in terms of the tenderness of your chicken tikka and the flavors in all of your dishes. Thank you! read more

Our favorite is Chicken Vindaloo and Bharta (egg plants). Chicken Tikka dish has a generous portion and can be shared. The meat is juicy and delicious. Prompt service and parking in the back is very helpful in this part of Clifton near University of Cincinnati and number of hospitals. It is easy to miss the parking alley which is right before the restaurant if you are coming from the University. Yum! read more

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I think this place serves one of the best indian food I have tasted in USA. We drive all the way from Columbus to Cincinnati just to have lunch or dinner here. Love the Chicken Tikka Masala, Saag Paneer and Garlic naan. read more

I've been to Ambar many times over the years, but it's been a while since my last trip. This time it was just ok. I had the chicken tikka masala, my go-to there, and this time it came out lukewarm and bland. It seemed rushed. I'm hoping this was a fluke and will revise my review on the next trip if it's back to its usual form. read more

Ambar India Restaurant - Indian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Small place, smells are great. Food very very good. Service with a smile., Had Saag Paneer and it was so good. The rose water lassi was wonderful!! Naan is always a great choice!! read more

Love it. Love it. Love it. We order for lunch at work quite often. With delivery they make it a breeze. I've also ordered for business meetings. Never been disappointed. Love the naan. Any flavor. read more

Never had a bad experience. Ambar is reliable and delicious, and will always be my fav place for Indian

Always a good choice. Entrees are shareable and I always leave with leftovers! My partner and I get two different vegetarian entrees (matter paneer is my favorite) and we both leave with yummy leftovers. read more

I went for the Saag Paneer and it did not disappoint. Ate so fast I forgot to take a picture. Service is fast and food was hot even once I made it home. It's a little pricey but definitely worth it as the portions are quite large. May be my new go to place. It also helps that they have a private parking lot in the back on a busy street in Clifton. read more

Whenever we are in Cincinnati, and feel like Indian food, this is our place. This was the first place I ever tried Indian food, which is one of my favorite cuisines. The service was good and the food perfect. I have had a lot of Indian food since my first time here over 20 years ago, but I still think this is some of the best I've had. read more

Couple months in Cincinnati, I was yet to try a good Indian spot not too far away from the University area. Heard a lot of my American friends rave about this place. One went to the extent of saying his White (sorry it is relevant here) parents eat at this place 3-4 times a week!! Came In with neutral expectations and went out highly pleased! Food- Appetizers: Indians usually look down upon vegetable pakoras/ fritters when presented with the opportunity of choosing between paneer or meat one's. Trust me on this one- Vegetable pakoras are bomb! Literally the size of a shot put each, I got 4 in a serving. Chaat papri - wasn't blown away but decent. Samosa's are awesome!!! I usually remove the filling and eat just the crust (savage!) but it's soooooo good! Main course- Chicken tikka masala is as good as it gets, comes with plenty of rice. Chilly chicken can be worked upon, paneer jalfrezi - I don't have words! - If you're not a fan of chilly in your food like me then stick to a spice level of 2 since some meals here can get a bit too spicy. Drinks- Chai is exceptional, very close to BrijMohan's. Not too sweet, wonderfully spiced with cardamom- get the special tea instead of regular for the authenticity. Mango shake or lassi- you can taste good mango in it, not the tinned puree kinds. They carry good collection of Indian beers as well. Ambiance and service- Cozy but also pretty standard. Service has always been on point. Quick, attentive and courteous. Have own parking lot. read more

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Great brunch under 10 real authentic Indian food lots of different selections . Food was hot and very tasty Service was fast and efficient , I would definitely return . read more

Overpriced and underwhelming. There is nothing authentic about this place. The food, the space, the people who own and work there, all mediocre and unauthentic. read more

Very good! I love the vegetarian thali, but I really like everything. Always a good choice.

We've been to Ambar a few times and the food is delicious it's just that they have raised their prices so now it costs at least $20 per entree. It's too much money for a restaurant that isn't super well kept. A bill for 2 people comes to $70-$80 with an appetizer and tip, (no alcohol). read more

Very different than it used to be, sadly. At least I have memories.. Bland and not fresh. read more

Food was bland and overpriced compared to the other local Indian places. You're better off going to Dusmesh

The food was great and the spice level was exactly how I ordered it. Chicken Tikka Masala , saag choley, and garlic naan was fantastic. read more

This is one of my favorite Indian food restaurants in Cincinnati. I recently visited on a Wednesday evening. We were able to find parking in the small lot behind the building. The service was friendly and efficient throughout the whole experience. We ordered chicken tikka malsala, chicken saag paneer, and garlic naan. Both main courses were flavorful and will prepared. The spice level was just perfect (we did a spice level 3). Naan was the perfect addition to the meal. I will be back again (and again). read more

I've been coming here for over twenty years and until the past year or so it has been sublime. Twelve of those years I lived in Wisconsin, and it was always the highlight of a visit home to visit Ambar. I'd get old tasting chicken from other Indian restaurants, but never from here. Interestingly enough, there's been an explosion of other Indian places in the area, and I'm ready to take my business elsewhere. Their prices have gotten too high, and tonight the food was . . . bland. No spice, even though we've ordered a number three for years,l. Last night's chicken mahkani this was NOT spicy in the least. read more

My family and I have recently relocated to Cincinnati. Ambar is the second Indian restaurant we have tried since moving. It was recommended to us by multiple people and we decided we needed to try it. I ate Lamb Rogan Josh and Garlic Naan; they were equally delicious. However, I messed up and did not get it spicy. Next time I will for sure get a 4 or 5 spicy. My wife had Saag Paneer which was also delicious. The Paneer was so good! We can't wait to go back and try other dishes. read more

The most delicious food! We have been going here for years. The service is great. The ambiance is ok. (The bathroom is terrible.) But the food is so great you kinda forgive the rest. read more

When we looked up indian restaurants around, this is had a whooping 4.8stars. Well i would say 4.8 for serving DISSAPPOINTMENT! We ordered chicken biryani and vindaloo. But what we received was some rice mixed with curry and chicken peices put in them, with absolutely no taste, completely bland. With peas, raisins and pineapple, its not a biryani, but a kashmiri pulav. Dont even get me started on the vindaloo. Was a sour potato curry with hardly any chicken in it. Served with some sorta jeera rice that tasted terrible together. I am unaware of the history of this restaurant, but seems a lot like a expensive wanna be Indian restaurant with nothing Aunthentic or Indian in the food served. Very Disappointed! Me and my friend have been severly DEHYDRATED and gotten our Stomach upset. read more

We went here last night! I can say I never get sick of this place! I wish i lived close enough for them to deliver to me! We ended up getting the Aloo Tiki which is a deep fried potato and the chicken curry and it definitely did not disappoint. They also have different spice levels (1-6). I always go with the 6 and it's pretty spicy! read more

Whereas I do sympathize with local businesses during these times in pandemic, I do not think these businesses have the right to take advantage of the customers. Everyone on our table got food poisoning. Whole driving food, the hostess kept spilling food on us, on the table. Some items just tasted so bad, that I knew right away after tasting one spoonful that I was gonna get sick. They poured things out of a tin can and served it without even heating it. Why would you run. Restaurant if you just don't like running it? I won't say it didn't cross my mind to report this place for harmful quality food read more

Amazing service over the phone. When I arrived to pick up my take out order, I was greeted right away! My friend and I ordered chicken biryani and chicken vindaloo. Large portions and amazing taste! They do not hold back on flavor or spice level. Very affordable and delicious! Will be back :) read more

Food is usually good, have only been a handful of times. Quick service for evening orders. 7/10

Excellent food and service. Will definitely return someday when visiting the area. Naan is tasty. Chicken tikka masala is great. The sampler appetizer was really good too. read more

Ambar India Restaurant - Indian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

There isn't anything to say other than GO TO AMBAR!! The food is so good every single time.

Ive been here a few times and know it's one of the better Indian joints in town, The secret is to get the a la carte dishes , not the Thali plates. We had a group of 5 got a buch of good dishes, chicken tikka, salmon tikka,lamp vindiloo and sag paneer. These were all good. I mistakenly got the Ambar Thali special : Aloo tikki and pakora, chicken tandoori, lamb curry, dal, mater paneer, nan, rice,It did not seem cooked to order and seemed more like leftovers from lunch.... 2 dishes in a thick sauce, pretty unappetizing. Now I know.....next time. read more

For me Indian food is a easy place to review. Having tried multiple places and the obvious fact of being Indian, I get how certain dishes must taste to give it a passing grade in quality. This was the jest restaurant I hit up since I landed in cincy and the experience was pleasant. The location is out in Clifton but that specific area is not the most inviting - however once you park in the back, the garlic onion aroma lures you in through the front door! The ambience inside is quiet and small typical of what you see in small Indian restaurants. Having a spicy pallet I ordered Malai Kofta at spicy level 8 where the max is just up to 6. So this was going to be spicy!! I also ordered the onion naan. The dish came with a side of rice and I threw in an order of mango lassi. My sister had ordered the paneer makhani with garlic naan. Now usually the dishes have their own look and taste but here both out dishes had the same gravy color and consistency. Now the taste is what differentiated the dishes. The Kofta balls were spicy and you could definitely feel like it was level 8! Naans were great in its own taste and the lassi had a weird rose milk flavor at the very end. But glad I had it to help me cool down from all that spice! In all - great restaurant - good place to start off with when you are in the Clifton area! read more

Ambar India Restaurant - Malai kofta and paneer makhani - Indian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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I found this place to be clean, organized, well decorated, and the staff to be pleasant. The dishes are served promptly, and very tasty. I loved the naan! I have nothing but good to say about my experience here! read more

Ambar India Restaurant - Lamb Do Piaza- lamb smothered with tomatoes, onions, and spices. Served with Basmati rice. - Indian Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

Above average Indian cuisine in gaslight Clifton area. --- There are varying degrees of Indian food in cincinnati: there is the far left totally Americanized buffet style with no flavor to the far right brij mohan and ambar india is certainly on the more authentic side. I went with coworkers so we got the forever staple of all medical professionals chicken tikka masala as well as lamb vindaloo and saag paneer. The chicken tikka was great though my coworker ordered 0 spice so I'm sure the kitchen was pretty handcuffed. Saag paneer was surprisingly good as they don't bombard it with a ton of cream. Vindaloo was fine I do think it is a bit pricey for how much food you get but I will definitely go back read more

Really one of my favorite restaurants in Cincinnati! I was first introduced to Ambar at a school meeting which was catered by them. After my first taste of the Chicken Tiki Masala, I had to go to the restaruant myself! I always come here at around 7pm which I could imagine is their busiest time. However, the wait is never over 15 minutes because the customer turnover rate is pretty high. I've come to love this restaurant so much, that my boyfriend and I have dubbed a tiny two-seater near the corner as "our table." Somehow, of the 6 times we've been here in the past 3 months, we've ended up being seated at our table 5 times! The food is to die for! Our favorite, as mentioned earlier, is the Chicken Tiki Masala at a spicy level of 6 (highest level). The flavor is so rich and creamy. Also, we love the Chicken Saag, spicy level 6 as well. The nan is always nice and crispy and a great addition to the food we order. Oh yeah, another good thing about this place is that you get unlimited rice! We always ask for a second plate, which gives us just enough rice to also bring home with our leftovers. I give Ambar an A for Aaamazing! read more

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I've had lots of Indian food, and this is consistently among the best, if not the best, that I've ever had. Also, there was a slight hiccup with my most recent order, but the customer service was great, which is actually the reason I'm writing this review. The food's terrific, but I was just really impressed with how my little issue was handled and resolved. A great experience all around, thank you!! read more