My wife and I have experienced numerous Indian / Himalayan restaurants from San Francisco to Santa Rosa and Darbar is by far the best one. The all you can eat lunch buffet has a lot of delicious variety. The selection can change on a daily basis. My wife is vegetarian and we love all the vegetarian choices. Today, some on my favorite items in the buffet were the tandoori chicken and the vegetable curry. The papadam and the chutneys are really good. What separates Darbar's chutney from others is the flavor and the thickness (while other restaurants water their chutneys down). This is one example of the attention to details the makes this my go to for this cuisine. The folks working there are friendly and provide good customer service. The restaurant is spacious and ample to seat parties large and small. They also have a private room that folks can set up a private party. I look forward to returning:) read more

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cavernous space.....ok service Water service : I felt like I had to walk across the empty restaurant to get more! Clean: yes Noisy: not really Ambiance: meh. Price: kinda high compared to Yeti (also in Santa Rosa) Food: meat was quite tough, questionably ok as we both were gassy immediately after. flavorless (kinda brushed over w/ some sort of sauce). not memorable. Would I recommend or return: neither. read more

What a great deal! For little more than the cost of a gourmet sandwich, you can enjoy a wonderful buffet if yummy Indian food. This restaurant is a great addition to the downtown Santa Rosa dining scene. read more

Darbar Kitchen is located on the 4th Street in close proximity to the Old Courthouse Square, has ample paid street parking outside. It being one of the newer Indian/Nepali Restaurants in town, we decided to give the buffet a try for a Thanksgiving meal. We were promptly seated, we preferred the booth. I can vouch for the Yogurt with Veggies (Raita), Samosas, papad, rice pudding (kheer). They tasted great, I repeated each one. For the other food options (I am vegetarian), my Indian food palate and cravings were left craving for more. The veggies -both were heavily cauliflower based and with similar flavour, not much tasteful. Dal had a strong garlic taste. Palak paneer was made in a different style, though away from the traditional recipe but it was nice tasting. The yogurt fruit dessert was not much picked, I too tasted, but wasn't impressed. We tried the Taj Mahal Lager beer, it is very good, a must try. The restaurant is huge, clean, servers are attentive, buffet is well placed and served at ideal temperatures (both hot and cold). Over all for a vegetarian meal, it was Quite an Average Experience. I may want to keep to ordering an a la carte meal in case we plan to visit again. read more

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Buffet was fire mango lassi was perfect the staff were up and beyond with service. Thank you will be back read more

Darbar Kitchen - We work Hard so we needed a good lunch - Indian Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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I have food allergies that aren't always easy to accommodate but we were able to order 2 dishes I could eat. I can't have onion or garlic or cauliflower (low fodmap diet) and we ordered the coconut lamb and a chickpea tomato dish. It was so rich and filling! Don't be fooled by the small portions- it was a decadent meal. read more

Darbar Kitchen - Indian Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

I was shocked at how much I liked the food! It was completely different then I expected in a good way! I loved the chili momos and the chow mien. We got 2 other dishes that we liked too. The flavors, spices and heat level all worked well and the service was really good too! The ambience was ok just a bit big in there for such a small set up. They need to bring in more tables or something maybe a full bar or something extra to complete the vibe.The bar bones are beautiful ..,its a great under rated gem thats fairly new. Check them out I recommend forsure! read more

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I came to try the lunch buffet. Did not disappoint. Everything was fresh, looked good, and was quite delicious. I always want mixed pickle and theirs is perfect. Mango, tamarind and cilantro chutney also delicious. Rice cooked perfectly, tikka masala also perfect along with the many myriad dishes they offer for lunch. Perfect for vegetarians and vegans as well as omnivores. The buffet was clean which is always appreciated. The place is very spacious with an impressive bar, beautiful wood floors, large beautiful windows, high ceilings and lovely staff. Looking forward to returning with family. read more

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A new lunch favorite. A very large building and spacious inside. They have a lunch buffet near the center of the room. They rotate dishes available, ranging from curries with chicken or lamb to vegetable dishes, to grilled chicken. I usually don't like tandoori chicken because the places I've had it the chicken has been very dry, but their tandoori chicken is one of the best I've had. They always have nann and rice. Taking a star off for issues with payments. They mistakenly double charged me and it was a real hassle working with them to get it refunded. read more

Only reason I gave 4 stars is because butter chicken was only listed on the kid's menu, and I was too dumb to ask for it. In Santa Rosa for another appointment and wanted something different. Yelp showed me a place with a $19.99 lunch buffet, and it was 10 minutes away. Good Gravy! I am glad I live in Humboldt where a traffic jam is 4 cars showing up at the same time at an intersection! 15 or so minutes later I arrived at a large green park with an amazing sculpture. Found parking, found restaurant. Beautiful space! Caught my breath upon entry at the beautiful color on the walls and the ceiling seemed to go on forever. Seated at a booth,I was brought 2 sauces and some thin crispy corn chip looking things along with water. Delightful. A cilantro dice and tamarind. The crispy thing was so good. I ended up getting artichoke pakora and chicken and mushroom curry, medium heat. I hadn't eaten rice in weeks, so I did have a bit, and the curry was perfect. I am glad I didn't finish it, because I want it again. Staff was super supportive and friendly. Looking forward to coming back! read more

Darbar Kitchen - Chicken mushroom - Indian Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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There's been a buzz going on about Darbar that I've been hearing about along with a feed on NextDoor popping up on how it was the best service and best food! Of course, I had to come check it out! Located in the KRESS building where the old Mary's Pizza Shack used to be, Darbar is serving up lunchtime buffet, take out, and dinner. I came for their $19.99 Lunch Buffet that comes with a soft drink. Arriving shortly at noon, we were told to sit anywhere. I ordered a Masala Chai Tea ($3.99, is not included in the lunch buffet price). Interior was huge with side booths to the left and tables in the center of the restaurant. I feel they could fit more tables since part of the restaurant looked overly empty. There's bar seating to the right. The buffet consists of 14 different dishes ranging from vegetable pakora, chili chicken, coconut tofu, butter chicken, tandoori chicken, rice pudding etc. There were a variety of dishes for both meat lovers and vegans alike with many dishes that are vegan & gluten free. Dishes are all sit out on steaming hot metal trays without covers. (Be aware people do not put the utensils back down on the plates in front of the trays after they grab their food thus the utensils can get HOT, I burned my fingers) Refills are a bit slow especially the butter naan. FOOD: It was very good, a wide variety of dishes mixed with the famous staples that most people like including the butter chicken & tandoori chicken. I thought the food was catered to more of the western taste (mild, not spicy at all and dishes tend to trend towards the saltier side). Even so, it did not discourage me because it was fresh, good priced, and all the Indian flavors we love! Service: We were sadly the only table that was not offered water upon sitting. I had to ask for water. The coke & masala chai was slow to arrive, about halfway towards our meal. Service was OK, we had our plates cleared already when we got back after our first round. Would like more of a consistent service especially when it's just drinks and plate clearing. Overall, I do recommend Darbar because you just can't beat the price for all you can eat especially if you're a fan of Indian food. You gotta stop by to check it out for yourself! I enjoyed it and would certainly be back in the future! read more

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This new spot in downtown Santa Rosa has been getting some nice reviews. We came on a Sunday when the Farmer's Market was going on so we parked down the street several blocks away. It was a nice opportunity to see what new stores and restaurants are on 4th Street. I was very impressed as soon as we walked in. It is quite spacious, with tall ceilings and everything looked clean and bright We were seated at a comfortable booth but there are tables in the center of the restaurant with good space between them. There were a couple employees to help us get settled. We wanted to try their buffet to get a taste of some of their dishes but if you prefer, you can order off the menu. At the front of the buffet line, they offer fresh greens with chunks of cucumber and carrots on the side. They offer a nice selection of dishes. My favorite were the papadums (light, thin, crispy chips) and the dal makhana (lentils). I was not paying close enough attention to the food labels. I got the lamb vindaloo mixed up with the mushroom chicken. I don't eat lamb but I accidentally did today. I was a bit suspicious when I cut the meat and wondered why the "chicken" was so dark. My mistake. I will pay closer attention to the labels next time. They provided a carrot dessert as well. My husband tried it and he said it was a refreshing combination of flavors. I noticed many groups of people coming in after us for an even later lunch. The majority headed to the buffet. Employees keep a watchful eye on the chafing dishes and they refill as necessary. The servers are friendly when they come by to check on you or bus your plate. Overall, a very nice lunch buffet with tasty dishes to sample. read more

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3.5 the food was somewhat salty. I liked the chicken marsala and papadums (crunchy chips) out of the whole lot. Free drink. Got the ice tea. Wish they had free chai tea. I'm going to change my tag line to be "the non salty gal". They have the condiments. The service was nice and friendly. They came to clear our plates. I'm used to eating tandoori chicken legs. These were chicken chunks. No samosas. Sorry, this is not the buffet that I imagined. I had the lentils and chutney. I tried the glazed carrots and coconut green beans. I guess I never had any of these. This is a hugh place. There's booths. read more

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I came here to see what all the hype was about. We came here for the lunch buffet, and honestly, the food was ok. It was not the best Indian food I have ever had. I will say that my in-laws are Indian so I kind of have high expectations. I don't know if it's because we came kind of at the time that they were about to end the lunch buffet because the buffet platters were kind of close to getting empty. However, for me personally, the food kind of lacked flavor even the curry wasn't as flavorful and the naan we got was not warm. Also, the buffet doesn't tell you every single ingredient in the food, which became a problem for us because my boyfriend ended up getting an allergic reaction to something we ate here. At that point, we were just in a hurry to get out of there and get him some medicine so we didn't stay for long. We were literally in and out within like 20 minutes. Since you are paying $20 for a buffet I personally would have expected a lot of variety and I found that there was not that much variety for what we paid for. Maybe like 8 different platters. Anyways, given the allergic reaction, we just kind of ran out of there and I didn't get to take any pictures. It was definitely cool to try, but I don't think I'd be back. read more

Came for their lunch buffet and left stuffed! There was a great variety of vegetarian and some meat options. Impressed they had so much gluten free options. The flavors were terrific in all but the dal. The dal was a bit tasteless and runny. The meat options included tandoori chicken, lamb vindaloo, chicken tiki marsala and many vegetarian options. All for $19.90. The mango lasi was great as were the papadums (best ever). There's salad sides and rice pudding too. Very large clean space. Will definitely be back. read more

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Best to go order from Santa Rosa in a long, long time. My plating presentation isn't the best... Forgot to take pictures till later. I was wowed. It's been a while since I've been wowed. The last time I had Nepalese food this good was when Pamposh was around in the beginning before they changed things up. That was over 15 years ago. Cardamom was in several dishes. Their medium to hot level was just right... Enough to taste and enjoy each mouthful. These people really know how to cook. Worth the cost. Everyone in my family enjoyed the dishes. Chicken was cooked perfectly... Even in the chicken fried rice. Nothing was overcooked. I can't wait to try their other dishes. Vegetable momo, baingan bharta, and chicken curry were the best dishes I had. Dang, it was a party in my mouth! read more

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So happy this place now resides in downtown Santa Rosa! Darbar Kitchen has recently opened up on fourth street in the old 'Mary's Pizza Shack' location. Being downtown you'll find plenty of parking everywhere from street parking, parking lots, or nearby parking garages. Inside is huge, lots of seating. I visited in a weekday for lunch. They run a lunch buffet during this time. When I entered I was greeted quickly and given the lowdown on the dining situation. My friend and I grabbed a table to drop our things off at and headed over to the buffet. They had many options, vegetarian dishes, meat dishes, a salad, dessert, naan, all the good stuff! It all smelled very delicious to start. I filled my plate and we took a seat. Everything I ate was so good! The coconut green beans and palak paneer was very flavorful! Naan was fresh! The little artichoke pakora was crispy and great accompanied with the chutney. Overall everything was perfect, I would've gone back for seconds if I wasn't already filled up! $20 for a plate and a plate of solid food at that, I have no complaints! I look forward to visiting again during dinner hours! read more

Darbar Kitchen - Lunch buffet! - Indian Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Another great Indian restaurant in Santa Rosa! The atmosphere itself is super classy and feels like a nice fancy restaurant. I got naan and chicken tikka masala and made for a super hearty meal that lasted two days too! The staff were very friendly and helpful when I picked up my order. read more

The draw in for me was their lunch buffet. $19.99 all you can eat, a large selection of vegetarian and meat dishes. When at the buffet they explained the dishes and that the right side of the buffet was vegetarian and to the left meat / seafood. On the end was a sweet - carrot pudding. They have sodas, Lassi ( flavored yogurt like drink) beer and wine. The space is large with table / chairs and bench style sitting to one side. I went for the buffet to get an idea what my favorites were, so next time I'm going to order off their menu. My favorites were the tandoori chicken and coconut shrimp. Parking - well it's downtown parking, so if you get lucky you get a spot on the street near the restaurant, otherwise you'll need to find a lot. The staff was welcoming and were helpful explaining the options and answering questions. Nice add to downtown. read more

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wonderful Indian food. A culinary nirvana. The chef is very welcoming. Great atmosphere. Best Indian food in the North Bay,

We came here on a Sunday expecting to have some Chicken Tikka Masala but sadly it is not part of the buffet menu that day. The gulab jamun desert was a nice surprise though. We wish they would have the chicken tikka masala and gulab jamun as a staple part of their everyday buffet menu. Their location is walking distance from me and it would be lovely to walk around downtown after eating here on Sundays. read more

Having lived in Silicon Valley for nearly 50 years, we like to think we know a thing or two about Indian food. So, on a Saturday night, armed with a bottle of Sonoma County's finest Chardonnay, another of Oregon's Pinot Blanc, and a handful of glowing Nextdoor recommendations, we ventured into downtown Santa Rosa--not exactly the first place that comes to mind for authentic Indian/Nepalese cuisine. Parking was a miracle: right in front. A good omen, we decided (or, as we joked, "a dood Oman"). Inside, we were warmly greeted and shown to a lovely table with prime street-view action--great for people-watching and pretending to be restaurant critics. Then, the man himself, Tek (the owner), arrived at our table to uncork our first bottle. A $10 corkage fee? Not bad. Chilled glasses? Even better. If you're familiar with downtown, you might recognize this as the former home of Mary's Pizza Shack, but Tek has given the place a glow-up, creating a cozy yet modern dining space. We kicked things off with Gobi Manchurian, a crispy, mildly spiced cauliflower dish that immediately set a high bar. Then came the vegetable samosas--golden, flaky, and packed with flavor. At this point, we were in no rush, and thankfully, neither was the restaurant. The pacing was perfect. Next up: Tandoori Chicken. Tender, well-spiced, and generously portioned. We were beginning to see a pattern here--portion sizes were no joke. Did that stop us? Absolutely not. We powered on, ordering Chicken Tikka Masala, Lamb Tikka Masala, Palak Paneer, and, of course, Garlic Naan. Because when faced with great food, we apparently lose all sense of moderation. Everything was delicious. Service? Excellent. Ambiance? Just right for a relaxed and indulgent evening. And as an added bonus, we left with enough leftovers to ensure we wouldn't have to cook the next day. Would we come back? Absolutely. Next time, we might even exercise some self-control. (But probably not.) read more

Not impressed with the buffet. Tandoori chicken and chicken wings dry and tough. Sauced dishes overly sauced with little protein. Goat dish was tough & stringy. Overall selection limited. read more

Darbar is located in the former Mary's Pizza Shack and is an amazing addition to the Indian cuisine scene in Santa Rosa. You walk in to a spacious dining room that still retains some of the interior design of Mary's but is brighter and more welcoming. I came in for their lunch buffet and was told I could start the buffet and choose anywhere to sit. There were so many options for the buffet, but the standout dishes were the baingan bharta (eggplant), chicken saag, chicken tandoori, goat curry, and their samosas. The only slight letdown was their paneer tikka masala, which was slightly under salted for my tasting. As for service, I had to ask for a glass of water about 10 minutes into my meal and my dirty plates would still be on the table by the time I came back with a new plate. Not the biggest deal for me, but some more attentiveness would have been nice. Overall, I would come back as the food is fresh and for the most part delicious. For $19.99, it's an amazing value. read more

Our first time trying Darbar after our old favorites changed hands. Amazing experience! We met friends for dinner and everyone was thrilled with their meals. Very attentive service. Great interior and fun to window shop downtown before or after your meal. We will all be returning! read more

Delicious Nepali and Indian food great service and hospitality we all enjoyed. I strongly suggest to visit this amazing restaurant. read more

Darbar Kitchen - Indian Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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This is probably the best Indian restaurant in Sonoma County. Great atmosphere, food, and courteous staff.

Spicy& authentic curries...sit at the bar, enjoy a cold beer on draft while watching the game on a big screen. Large space with high ceilings. Excellent service. The staff goes above and beyond. Stand outs were the naan, goat curry, korma and tikka masala. I've been here twice once for my 50th birthday with my entire family and the other time as a solo diner. Highly recommend! read more

The buffet that was $20 per person had a surprising number of vegan options - yellow dal, papadum, salad greens, aloo beans, coconut vegetable stew. They were all super salty except for the aloo beans. It was all pretty greasy as well. The jeera rice and basmati rice were undercooked. Overall, an average experience. What annoyed me was when they asked for a tip. There was obviously no service offered during the buffet. Would definitely recommend going to a different restaurant if in the area. read more

Fine ambience and a large space in center of downtown. We tried the restaurant for the first time and found the food just edible. The buffet choices weren't so great for vegetarians with repeat vegetables. The naan was definitely good. The service was good and food was being replenished regularly. Worth a visit. read more

Took our grandson to the 'all you can eat' lunch buffet. It was perfect. Food was excellent, service was friendly and the space was beautiful. Did I mention the price? $20 each. read more

We really liked Darbar kitchen when it first opened. The food was really good, they honored special requests. The last few times we ate there the portions were smaller, a lot smaller than served at other Indian restaurants. We ordered the gobi mutter and there were very few vegetables, it was mostly a liquid, not even a sauce. Quite disappointing. read more

The food was delicious! I went on a Tuesday and they were really busy yet they were still very attentive and made sure we were taken care of. They even stopped by after the appetizers to let us know that our order for the main course was being taken care and would be out soon. My son went up to tell the server that he loved his meal after we paid and the server said he missed the best part which was desert and gave him gulab jamun to go. The best service with the tastiest meal. Thank you. We will be back soon. read more

This place is great! I love their extensive menu, and we are a household that chooses both vegan and meat-based dishes so there is something at Darbar Kitchen for any diet. The service was also good- they came and filled water on a regular basis and never felt rushed. Went for an early dinner on a Sunday, not yet busy. I would love to return and try their lunch buffet. read more

Nice big restaurant and clean. We had the buffet. Food quality isn't so great. It was ok. Service was also ok. Maybe they had an off day. I will give it another chance. read more

Great place. Great people. Great food. Great buffet. Great flavors. Great spices. Great order. Great cleanliness. Great quality. Great service. Great experience. read more

Came here for lunch buffet...we love Indian food, that said, for our taste, all the dishes, though tasty, lacked "punch or heat". The tandoori chicken is delicious. On our first trip to the buffet a lot of the dishes were just luke warm, including the naan bread. The second trip, everything was hot. There was only one dessert item out, soaked dough balls (read donut holes). It was EXTREMELY sweet, sickenly so. With tip the total, no drinks, was $51, 2 people. While we enjoyed the overall experience;clean, quiet, open, good service, etc., it won't become a regular visit. read more

Super friendly and attentive service, and very good Indian food. Something tells me this is an insanely great lunch place. Actually, the waiter told me. While dinners could use a little more attention, the lunch buffet is the star here. Downtown Santa Rosa is in desperate need of more dinner spots. We're glad to see this spot open! read more

The food and service was amazing. When we walked in we were concerned that there weren't many people in the big space. We were created by kind staff, who were attentive, and great. The food was amazing. I can't wait to try the lunch buffet. More people need to support this restaurant. read more

Maybe the best Indian buffet I've ever had!!! You can't beat the price either, unbelievable! The manger leads his staff with friendliness and attention. The building is also beautiful and spacious. read more

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