great service. Best lamb curry i've ever had! owner/waiter was extremely helpful and more than willing to answer all my questions. also gave me A free desert and juice drink just so i could try them! read more

Original Indian Kitchen - Great atmosphere - Indian Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

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Went with a colleague for lunch buffet last week. Arrived early and the place was quite empty. So we get to eat the first/fresh food out of the kitchen. I like it that way. The items were all tasty and the variety they offer for $6.99 buffet is awesome. The guy who waited on us was constantly checking on us and was very attentive. The place was decent (not much decoration though). Place did not smell bad or anything like some reviewers mentioned. This is the first time I ever reviewed a restaurant; I am from India and can tell this is authentic Indian food. I was writing this so other folks can check them out while the price is still 6.99 for lunch buffet. read more

Good food, casual. The naan bread was a must get. Tried the lamb curry and chicken vindaloo. The lamb curry gets five stars, the chicken not so much due to the fat not trimmed off. I don't claim to be an expert on Indian food so take this with a grain of salt. However, the staff was very friendly and it's evident they're doing their best to bring authentic Indian food to tempe. read more

Original Indian Kitchen - Indian Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

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We found the food to be very tasty and it came at a good pace. The service was truly awesome. We had samosas appetizer, veggie korma, chicken tikka masala, rice and garlic nan. We would go back regularly if we lived here. We found it based on the address and not by visually spotting the restaurant. It is In a shopping center and the restaurant/sign isn't visible once we were in the parking lot. It was tucked behind an animal hospital. Price was rightly for the quantity and quality of the food. read more

Only tried the buffet and it was OK at best. Definitely not the worst. The service was pretty good but to be honest the place looks like a health hazard. The dishes are all pretty mild and watered down tasting on the buffet. For the price of $6.99. It's worth it for a quick bite though. read more

Since moving to AZ, we've tried four or five Indian restaurants in different parts of the valley, but this is our favorite by far. Note: we've only eaten here for dinner, cannot comment on their buffet. Their vegetable pakoras are the best I've ever had, period. After living in the Bay Area, Chicago, and NYC, this is the highest compliment I can give. Their naan (always steaming and smoldering when it comes to the table) and palak paneer are similarly exceptional. Everything comes to the table deliciously fresh. For some reason, the restaurant is rarely very busy when we've been. In fact, the first time we went we were the only customers. Didn't stop us from having an absolutely delicious meal! Service was great, as you might expect. read more

This is BY FAR the best Indian food restaurant in Tempe. The Tandoori Chicken Saag is my ultimate favorite but their Lamb Saag is great as well as their Lamb Korma, Lamb Rogan Josh, Tandoori Chicken, Chicken Tikka Masala ... ok, I could go on but, I'll spare you. For appetizers - try their Samosa Chaat - it's so fresh and flavorful. I saw someone else comment that their tomato soup wasn't good and I highly disagree! It too is super fresh and flavorful. It's definitely on the spicy side so that may be why it wasn't up their alley. I've been frequenting Nandini since it was Royal Taj (so for about 3 years now) and I've never been disappointed in the food or service (both are just wonderful). I've tried other Indian restaurants in the area and not one holds a candle to Nandini's level of cuisine. I started out being afraid of spice and have moved up to preferring my dishes "Indian Spicy." Thanks, Nandini! read more

FANtastic! This review is for take out. I ordered Aloo Gobi (with a slight modification that they were HAPPY to accommodate)). They allowed me to order at the bar and I asked if I could wait in my car and they said "absolutely" and offered to take it out to me. They brought it out within minutes! When I got home I was happy to see that the portions were large and the food was piping hot! The rice was yummy and fluffy! The garlic nann was great! Aloo Gobi was superb! I was VERY happy with the food and the entire experience. read more

This restaurant has been a family favorite for years, even when it was under different management and called the Royal Taj. The service is great, atmosphere is friendly and the food is delicious. We always order too much so we can enjoy leftovers the next day. The buffet is great. We often take advantage of Groupon and Entertainment offers and they never give us trouble. My son returned from a 6-month stay in India and couldn't wait to get back to Tempe and dine with us at some of the local Indian restaurants. This one is his favorite, for all the reasons I listed above. We went there last night and, as always, enjoyed the experience. We'll be back again soon! read more

I happened to be in the neighborhood last night (1-14-2016) and was driving past when I noticed Nandini. I really enjoy Indian food, so I decided to stop in and give it a try. Best decision possible!!! I have lived overseas and have tasted authentic food from many different regions. I must admit, this is the best Indian food I have had in the US! No kidding! I had the Chicken Tikka, spicy (of course ^,^)... Unbelievable! Also, the nan was amazing! If you happen to be in the area and are a lover of authentic cuisine, give this place a go! Absolutely worth it! Albeit, a bit pricey by the end. Worth it ^,^ read more

My husband and I are always looking for a good Indian buffet and we def found one! Fresh, delicious, and a friendly staff! read more

Original Indian Kitchen - Delicious!!!! - Indian Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Amazing buffet! Went on a Sunday late afternoon around 1:45. Chai tea and mango beverages included along with garlic naan. Chicken tikka and the potato masala were both excellent! Costs a little more on the weekend but after tip under $30 for 2 and full the rest of the day! Very friendly staff and ice cold water served (which means a lot to me, can't stand room temp water) Will go back. read more

I've been eyeing this restaurant for a while. So happy I stopped in. Phenomenal buffet. For $10 at lunch time just can't be beat. Awesome Curry tikka masala and tandoori chicken and they have those deep fried vegetables. read more

I have been to many Indian Restaurants, this is the best one I've ever been to. So fortunate to have stumbled upon it since the place I was planning to go was closed. Great tasting food and reasonable prices. read more

My favorite place for Indian food. An unassuming place with terrific food and great service. The Channa Marsala is my favorite and they make it perfectly. Eat it with some garlic naan and its magic. :) read more

Best Indian food in all of Phoenix! We love to come here and study for finals! The food is so fresh and aromatic. The chai is perfect. The owner is so kind. He treats you like family and like an honored guest. It is so clean and well maintained. It's our go-to Indian place in the valley! read more

Disappointed had dinner here overpriced for amount of food you get. 2 stars at best. Taste, texture and quality of both chicken dishes was below average meat. Got here at 4:45 no sign in door. Went to internet and found out they do not open til 5. Please put hours on door. Employees sitting in truck parked in front they did not open until 5:02 today. Them while I am eating employee behind front counter eating with mouth open who Is working. Restaurant 101 customers should not see employees eating. read more

I called before I went and was told the buffet was open on Sundays for $11.99. I called at 5pm on Sunday and also had a bunch of other buffet questions answered such as them having cheese on the side and also selling paneer, ect. Never once did the guy on the phone say the buffet ends at 2pm. I feel upset that I wasted my gas at a time I was extremely hungry just to go to a place that was trying to over charge me for a little plate instead of giving me the buffet they told me they would have. When I got there and confronted the guy about it, he said I never asked about what time the buffet was during. Why do I have to ask? Why didn't he just tell me. Why did he say "we have buffet on saturday and sunday for $11.99" and not specify a time in the process. I don't appreciate the bait and switch. It is not professional and makes me never want to come here again. To avoid this issue maybe the owner of the establishment should specify the buffet hours under his hours of operations on the restaurant's yelp page. If you want a buffet go somewhere else. You won't be getting that here even if they tell you you will on the phone. Can't be trusted for nothing. read more

Wonderful customer service very on top of our needs and made us feel comfortable. Food was very flavorful, yet a bit pricer then what I had expected. read more

Original Indian Kitchen - First time trying Indian food, food was very flavorful. Customer service was wonderful very on top of our needs. - Indian Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

This food is straight legendary. The Naan bread is soft and delicious. I got the spiciest chicken and it was so good. I highly recommend!

Picked up an order to go. Early evening, inside was very quiet and clean. The aroma of wonderful Indian food filled the air as I walked in and instantly greeted. Went to the bar to pay, also immediately greeted and the gentleman who helped me was very nice. After paying, the food was promptly brought out to me from the kitchen. Portions were appropriate and the food was excellent. Food was nicely packed and still very hot after the 10 minute drive home. We ordered the chicken masala, vindaloo and naan. Both entrees were some of the best we've had in the SE valley. Cannot wait to go back. read more

I loveee hot food and can handle a lot of varieties if spicy but their spicy literally burned my throat and intestine as I swallowed each bite. I felt the heat sitting in my stomach after I ate. Beware lol read more

I was really excited to go here but it was really disappointing. Service was not great, they were not very friendly. Food was not good at all. Very bland. I would not reccommend this restautant. Only nice thing was the Naan bread. read more

Extremely overpriced with small, liquefied portions. Unexpected greediness with handling of rice, naan, and tea. I feel foolish and ashamed for having dined here. ## REGULAR MENU $13 for a very small, unimpressive dish of Palak Paneer. $2 for a very small boat of basmati rice. $2 for a single piece of naan (but cut-up, of course). $3.25 for child's size cup of Chai Tea. Analysis: ---- - Nandini's Paneer is very soupy, and more or less liquid. BAD. - There were about 8 1" Paneer (cheese cubes) immersed in the Palak (blended spinach and herbs). They tasted like they hadn't been cured long enough with the rennet to have any flavor. - You need rice or naan to eat Palak. And Nandini will gouge you for either, then take away both before you finish them leaving you the impression that you're going to get a refill. But no, the waiter just wants to take your food away before you've finished. Conclusion: --- DO NOT GO HERE. Try Curry Corner or Delhi Palace or anywhere else. Pehaps the positive reviews for Nandini come from people who all used a 50% Groupon, but fail to mention that they'd never come back and pay full price. ## FOR THOSE LIKING THEIR BUFFET I see people raving about their buffet in other reviews. Ridiculous. Try Delhi Palace on Rural and University for $10 and far, far, far better food. read more

My girlfriend and I order take out and dine in at this restaraunt regularly. Staff is always friendly and food is delicious! My gf had never tried indian food before, I introduced her to chicken tikka masala and she loved it, great dish for anyone new to Indian food. read more

This is authentic home made food! The best Indian food I've had, you can tell that this food is made with love. The chicken tikka masala is amazing so are the samosas and the tandori chicken. The also have plenty of vegetarian options as well. I definitely recommend coming here. read more

Excellent and potent flavors! The combination of garlic naan and various main dishes was fantastic! The food pairs great with an Indian beer even. Next time I stop by will be for the daily buffet from 11am-2pm to try a variety of dishes. read more

First time at Nandini, definitely won't be our last! Great food, friendly staff and awesome atmosphere!

I had carryout dinner from Nandini, and I picked up rather than delivery...so first..the packaging, EXCELLENT, the individual containers were all wrapped in plastic, no leaks...the food...my order was complete, hot and had correct condiments. The food was delish, I had aloo mattar, lamb tiki masala, basmati and the potato filled naan whose name escapes me... anyhow, all was well spiced, as I said hot, and the lamb was perfectly tender. I had never seen the restaurant before, as I had delivery the last time, and it's very nice, not large, however, not tiny...intimate...although it's in a strip mall, it had a nice ambiance and perfect lighting. All tables were set w/cloths and cloth napkins in a burgundy/gold theme...there was also a bar, which I didn't expect...a lovely gentleman was at the bar whom I received my order from...he attempted to refuse my tip, but I was faster, and out the door...haha, anyhow...try it, either dining in or carry out, I think you'll be pleased... read more

Just moved to the area so it was our first time at the restaurant. We ordered the Chicken Marsala and asked for recommendations. They were spot on. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone in the area or if you want something delicious. read more

I've been to a lot of Indian places all over the country and all over the world. I am pretty open to different flavors and interpretations of dishes but I have never had a worse Indian meal the here at Nandini. For starters the service was ok. Nothing great but nothing bad. We ordered a mango lassi and it was watery liquid so we Sent it back immediately. Next we ordered Butter chicken, lamb curry and paratha bread. The butter chicken sauce was manageable but the shredded chicken was ultra fatty and had bones. The lamb curry was utterly tasteless and beyond dry meat. The only part of the meal that was good was the paratha bread and the mint chutney. I highly advise anyone that sees the 4.5 stars DO NOT EAT HERE. Go to curry house or anywhere else. Very disappointing. read more

Updating my review based on owner's rigid, arrogant ,unacceptable attitude and inflexibility to improve based on customer feedback- If there was an option of giving ZERO STARS.. i would promptly do so..! Highly disappointed with the quality of indian food served here. First of all THIS IS NOT INDIAN FOOD GUYS .. BLAND,TASTELESS without any indian aroma whatsoever. I wonder how is this place even 4 stars..REALLY?? Stopped by this restaurant during a recent visit to AZ and i must say being an indian i wouldn't recommend this place at all for all who seek for good aromatic authentic indian food. First impression - THE PLACE SMELLS BAD. Second - biriyani is not cooked blandly in a rice cooker & left out on a buffet :) third - BAD & ARROGANT CUSTOMER. BEWARE!!! fourth - hate the food .. how can food be so BLAND & TASTELESS fifth - you guys are representing indian food here in states, do not give an wrong impression by justifying people like mild food. People appreciate good authentic food not hybrid ( TASTELESS ) one. Waste of money.. never would return to this place. read more

If I could give this place a zero star then I would! The staff are misleading, rude and the food is ok but way too $$$$ for food that looks like what I feed my dog. We wanted to try a new restaurant and what a bad mistake this restaurant is. The staff treats women with less respect, the employees walk around with poor hygiene and like they hate their job. They let a homeless man walk around while people are eating. I am fine with the man getting water but at least don't have him come in every five minutes and make the guests feel out of place. When we ordered our food the server asked what bread we would like. I asked if it was included and didn't tell us how much it was extra. So when I got my bill they not only forgot about taking off the groupons but also pointed out rudely to me (a woman) that the fine print said one per table. I used to be a server and you never are rude to a customer nor do you charge them something without them knowing about it first. So the groupons were never used or given back. So a $20 dinner turned into a $50. WOSRT RESTAURANT EXPERIENCE EVER!!!! WATCH OUT FOR THEM CHARGING YOU WITHOUT YOUR KNOWLEDGE!!!!!! read more

I've never had anyone come after me for posting my experience on here, but it won't stop with this guy, he's abusive if you get on his bad side, everyone can make up their own mind. Here's his latest message to me: "Please be ready to get attacked if you try to be unreasonable.We also do not want to serve you if you are mistaking our hospitality our weakness or an olive branch. In fact customers like you hardly matters to any business as you do not want solution but your own ego satisfaction We dispatch more than ten to go orders everyday and have never received any such complaints.so your feedback is highly exaggeration and ridiculous.and now GOODBYE cry baby." -Satnam S. read more

This place has a new name and had a bit of a facelift on the interior (it's less drab and they actually let some light in through the windows), but the food is the same as when it was Royal Taj.... nothing too special. I came with a friend today for the lunch buffet (points for having the lunch buffet on the weekend). The buffet is decently sized, but doesn't have a good variety of meats (no lamb or goat... boo). None of the food was all that tasty, the tikka masala was kind of bland, the chicken vindaloo was slightly spicy, but the chicken was not high quality (connective tissue and all that jazz). It was nice that they had chai and mango lassi available as part of the buffet, but both were fairly bland as well... this place needs to spice their food up significantly. The redeeming quality was that it was fairly cheap (7$ for the buffet), but I still wouldn't go back because it just wasn't up to par with other Indian buffets in town, regardless of price. read more

The vegetarian and non vegetarian curries are very tasty. Garlic naan is awesome. Service is great. They serve champagne or coke as complimentary in buffets. But deserts are very bad. I am very disappointed with deserts. Not even single desert is satisfying. read more

Absolutely delicious and authentic. Service was good.....but the food! We will be coming back every time we are on this end of town. I've been looking for a great local Indian restaurant I can call home, and I just found it! read more

I have some groupon coupons/bucks so thought to visit this place for lunch on Saturday. First thing we hear from waiter is that they dont accept coupons for Lunch buffet. I said, i will order some food items and want to use the coupons. Again answer. NO. They will only accept between 05:00 PM to 08:00 PM. Well, its already 2:00 PM noon so i thought to try the lunch buffet instead of looking for some other place. Pakodi - You can play baseball with those pakodi. And i am sure your baseball bat will break if you play. So i dont suggest to try. Veg curries - Taste is good Non veg (chicken and Lamb) - 3 varieties are there. 1 smells like it is of yesterdays. Rice items - i dont know how to cook but i am sure i can cook far better than their cook. Soft drinks - They said softdrinks are free. I ordered for coke with ice. He brought coke without ice. And there is no carbonate in it. i drink it as water. Overall 2 out of 5 stars. I dont recommend this place for 2 reasons. 1) They dont accept groupon or any coupons in lunch timings. 2) Food is not really good to taste. read more

Second time coming to Nandini and was still impressed. They are friendly and have proper serving etiquette. The food is amazing! We ordered chicken curry, chicken tikki masala, and chicken vindaloo. It was my fathers and sisters first time coming and they already said they will be back! The serving sizes are big enough to split between two people if you order garlic naan or rice. read more

Original Indian Kitchen - Chicken tikki masala, chicken curry, chicken vindaloo. Garlic naan and rice - Indian Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

I came here for an early lunch with a friend, and boy was I surprised. Fellow Yelpers, you did me well. They have a lunch buffet that lasts until 2:30, and they even offered us champagne or mimosas included in the buffet price. A little early for alcohol, I declined; though a very nice touch. Their lunch buffet is very thorough for Indian cuisine. Although I'm not the Indian food expert, I know they had dishes like tandoori chicken, samosas, a few different curries, lamb and plenty of other options including fresh fruit and if I can remember correctly a salad. They also have spiced rice available and garlic naan that is served hot to your table. Make sure to ask for the naan though, as it is made to order versus being out at the buffet. My favorite of their items was one of the yellow curries, the samosas, and the spiced rice. Their tandoori chicken was also really good, but I feel like I've had better at similar mom and pop Indian restaurants. The service was stellar. You could tell that the gentleman serving us really did care about the/his business. And that's what really goes far in the restaurant industry. I will most definitely return for unlimited Indian food at around $11 or so a plate. read more