This my favorite restaurant in Bloomington hands down. I come here every time I am around the area and it never disappoints. I didn't even know that they had buffet during lunch hours .... A decent buffet ... one of the best I tried in my life read more

Best food in bloomington by a large margin. Everything is good. Good service and vibes.

Delicious food. Service usually good. Parking can be a challenge, expect to park at least a block away and walk over. Still giving 5 stars on the strength of the food even though one time I made a reservation for 6 people and they then took a huge group that evening (or the huge group just showed up?) and couldn't honor our reservation. Would give them more than 5 stars if the service could reach consistently great. read more

Without a doubt a must try if you are in town since the food is fresh and well-seasoned.

I was looking forward to dining here because of all of the reviews and it was recommended by a family friend. But when calling for a reservation someone repeatedly picked up and hung up! Our team thought to try 1 last time and a gentleman answered YELLING - stop calling bc he thought this was a prank caller. I was floored! We continued with making the reservation because we felt bad at this stress he must've been under to answer like this. But at the end of the call as we were still speaking he hung up again! Everyone has a bad day! And if at any point he would have apologize for the lack of professionalism, I would even bother with this review. But since this was a VERY important dinner we didn't wanna risk a poor experience and had to find some where else to dine. Hopefully a different system or a hostess will be put in place as no one should have to experience this when simply making a reservation. **still giving 2 vs 1stars just to gracious to a small business** read more

My wife and I have always liked Afghan food and the food at Samira was very good. Nice ambience and the waitress was very attentive. Highly recommended. read more

Absolutely loved my dinner at Samira! I never had Afghan food before and it was delicious. I had the dumplings, which were incredible and beautifully presented. Upon placing my dinner order, my friend and I had complimentary eggplant which was a little too heavy on the garlic, but still good. The atmosphere isn't particularly great and the restaurant could use a facelift but the place is busy and the food is wonderful. read more

Very friendly and welcoming service. Delicious food, with healthy, well-paired ingredients, and satisfying portions. read more

Samira Restaurant - Chicken Kebaab - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Have a Greek salad and hummus for dinner. Nice combination with a nice red wine. I would highly recommend this place if you're happy to be lost in Bloomington, Indiana Very busy so take your time. The service was a bit slow but the place was full so can't complain about that but I was surprised to see cilantro in the Greek salad Went back a second time. Was in town for business and was not disappointed. Took the waitresses recommendation. It was an excellent lamb dish. I would highly recommend read more

I never expected to like Afghan food, but Samira is delicious. Although the "waiting area" is a bit cramped and the hostess was busy running around the restaurant, there seemed to be an order to the chaos of Friday night dinner. There is a fair amount of seating for a small restaurant. It's a very open structure, so don't expect privacy or elbow room if you're in a large group. However, the wait staff were courteous, attentive, and efficient, despite how busy they were. We were very impressed with the the entire experience, from the pleasant decor to the stellar food to the lower-than-expected bill. My girlfriend ordered the Chicken Manto (dumplings with spicy tomato sauce and yogurt sauce over basmati rice), while I got Namounna (a sampler consisting of spinach and baked turnip, butternut squash, and eggplant with the same sauces). Right away, the waiter brought us complimentary bread and spiced, grilled eggplant that were both delicious. The salads were more like entrees than sides. Very fresh with lots of cilantro (which we love, but some may not). It seemed like we waited a while for our entrees, but the first two courses left us more than satisfied to wait. The entrees themselves were equally large and tasted amazing. We both agreed that the sauces really elevated everything. I also loved the combination of savory eggplant with sweet butternut squash. It was almost like a veggie dessert. TLDR; we really enjoyed the food, service, and atmosphere at Samira. I would highly recommend it if you are looking for a nicer dinner in Bloomington, and we will definitely be going again! read more

Samira Restaurant - Namounna sampler w/ spinach and baked turnip, butternut squash, and eggplant covered in a spicy tomato sauce and yogurt dressing. - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

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Bread and oil tasted great, the soup was amazing and I can't stop craving my entree!!! I want to go back so badly and the only thing keeping me from coming here 24/7 is the fact that my pocket book couldn't afford it. But it does have me checking to see if they have lunch specials lol Also, our server was amazing!!!! read more

Samira Restaurant - Samarok Lawang with chicken - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

My favorite restaurant in Town so far, Vegetarian friendly. Buffet don't have too much options but everything tastes wonderful. read more

Samira Restaurant - Lamb Kebaab - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

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We tried Samira on the recommendation of a friend. Food was overall just okay. We got the veggie pasta combo and the veggie special. Flavors were good but could have been much better. The best part of the meal was the grilled eggplant with garlic that they bring at the beginning... that was SO good. Service was unfortunately bad, especially for the price of the meal. We were mostly ignored the whole meal, waters never refilled. Waiter would walk away while talking to us. Ambiance was nice, however. read more

Samira Restaurant - Vegetarian Combination Pasta, Vegetarian Special - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Very impressed! I was craving vegetables and so we decided to try Samira's. Not at all crowded early (6pm) on a Wednesday evening. Comfortable restaurant, nice ambiance. We started with the Baba Ganouj appetizer, which was excellent. Very smooth texture and great flavor. Better than we have had at other local restaurants. My partner ordered the lentil soup and really enjoyed it. For our entree we shared a shrimp salad. It was certainly large enough to share, with eight grilled shrimp on a skewer. Very good dressing and everything fresh and well chopped. No giant pieces of lettuce. Our dessert was Mahalabia, which is an incredible milk pudding made with cardamom. We had never had anything like it, and it was the perfect end to our wonderful meal. Service was excellent. Attentive without being cloying. A terrific meal, we look forward to many more visits to Samira's. read more

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Great food !! 1st time customer, we will be back. We had super service with and knowledgeable a server. read more

Came to Samira's the first night I moved to Bloomington and boy was I happy with the food here. This is a pretty big restaurant located in the heart of Bloomington, not too far from IU. Once seated and post ordering we were given eggplant with some olive oil and pepper flakes. This is a standard dish they give to all customers on the house and must I say it was good! We ended up ordering: * lamb kabobs - this was really good- I felt that the meat was very tender and juicy and came with lots of rice. We were also given a lentil soup in the beginning and this was extremely flavorful and yummy as well * shrimp & chicken kabobs - I tried the shrimp kabobs from my fathers order and this was really yummy as well! The shrimp was fresh and was perfectly crispy and tender! Overall, really yummy spot and worth coming to to try the food! read more

Delicious food!! Fast service. Be aware though that Saturday they are only open 5-9pm. Yelp says 11-3pm. We drove an hour for lunch and had to wait until 5pm. There was already a line at 4:50pm to get in. Highly recommend. read more

This restaurant is one of the best in Bloomington! The food is superb and the presentation is the best bar none. Cozy and elegant environment. Must stop by, if you're a vegetarian there are plenty of vegan options and if you love meat order kebab! read more

Worst service I've EVER experienced and I was the only person eating in the restaurant. Food is great but all workers stand around and do nothing. I had to go to the kitchen to ask for water and then had to go again to the kitchen to ask for the check..ONLY customer! read more

Prior to this meal, I had reached an agreement to buy two plots of land from local farmers Eric and Paul. After negotiating for hours, we finally came to an arrangement that was beneficial for both parties. To celebrate and give thanks we decided to go to Samira. Let me tell you, I was pleasantly surprised. Me and my new friends ordered the hummus and grilled eggplant to start. The hummus was delicious, and I found the eggplant palatable. For my entree, I ordered the lamb and chicken kebab. They brought my meat out on a stick. I didn't know what to do so I just started eating. Next thing you know, my plate was empty! The lamb and chicken was juicy and tender. This might be the best meat in all of Bloomington. While I give this restaurant 4 stars, this is an incredible HIGH 4 STAR RATING. This meal helped me expand my ever growing Hanis palate. For that, I am forever grateful. God Bless America and God Bless Food! read more

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I could write a great review but all the others have covered it. I have spent close to 3 years in Afghanistan and this is the most original Afghan cuisine I have had in the USA. This is the real deal! It is amazing what can be found nestled in middle of the USA. Update- returned to Bloomington for work and this was the first place I came...nothing has changed...silk awesome food! read more

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White table cloths, impeccable appointments, and excellent food; this eatery is owner occupied for a Guarantee of service and attention to detail. Semira is one of my top two recommendations for visitors who stay in my Airbnb, or visit our Venue Art Gallery. Unless you must, Don't plan to rush through this experience, or be put off by a more formal environment... This is an excellent location to Be in the center of downtown, well fed with memorable taste delights, and Cared for With an old world European feel. You guessed it, this is my "feel good" place! read more

The food is not college kid friendly with the lowest plate costing $20 It is extremely ridiculous. Not that it's unaffordable to me it's just not worth the price. The soup they force you to buy with the rice and chicken kabob tastes horrible and extremely aged it's probably made in the morning in a big batch and served all day. The chicken is extremely dry and the serving is very small for poor quality chicken. They also take 1 hour just to bring out the a plate of rice and chicken how long could it possibly take to make rice and chicken I can cook it quicker at home. The only good thing about this restaurant is they have free complimentary bread that is stale with some old oil. The free complimentary eggplant also tastes nasty and I love eggplant. They seem to be always late with everything even cleaning the table when restaurant is empty! I will never come here again as they don't seem to have much respect for their customers and think their customers worlds revolves around them. I overall think the problem is with all the staff and not a waiter issue read more

Samira Restaurant - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Be careful visiting this place. I would give negative 5 stars on the service if I could. Food is average at best. Visited during the welcome week and so were cognizant of how busy things could be. Were very patient all along even though the servers were very inconsistent all along. Gave the menu but no one shows up to take the food order. Finally the food order was given but no sign of food or drinks until reminders. Then other parties who came after us, started getting their food before us. When asked, the server gave us quite an attitude. We saw several other parties complaining about their food and billing errors. This was not the only place we visited during the welcome week. Other places were overwhelmed too but nobody came close to being this bad. read more

First night in Bloomington for business trip. Ordered takeout based on good reviews and was not disappointed. I ordered the Combination Special (kebab, munta, and sambosa). All of these these were delicious. Great way to try a little of several things. Good value for the variety and amount of food. Came with rice, bread and soup or salad. I got salad and it was fabulous. There was also a little eggplant appetizer in my bag, but I was so full I didn't try it. If I weren't in a hotel I could have easily made two meals out of this. Staff was very helpful and very nice. Overall experience was wonderful. I may have to eat at Samira's again this week!!! read more

Absolutely delicious!! One thing that really got my attention was the appetizers that they right away which was absolutely amazing. The food took a little long but was well worth the wait because the main dish was unbelievably good. The atmosphere is very fancy and beautiful interior. Highly, highly recommend coming here. read more

Samira Restaurant - Lamb and Shrimp - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

We made a reservation four days in advance and we're given our choice of times. When we arrived, the waitress told us it was full and she had no idea how long the wait would be (she seemed quite clueless). Nothing about where to wait - she just left us standing in the doorway. I'm not sure what the point of making a reservation was. We would have certainly been willing to wait a while until somebody finished, but she had no idea (it was an hour before closing, so we weren't sure we would even get a table). We left and will not return. read more

Quick dinner during a work trip. Food was fantastic. I tried the Namounaa, Chicken Manto, and green tea. Couldn't finish but I would definitely come back and highly recommend it. read more

The food was fantastic!. As good or better than my favorite Afghan restaurant in Richmond, VA. So glad we tried Samira on our weekend in Bloomington! Even though our server was a little slow, we didn't mind because we weren't in a hurry. read more

I'd give this 5 stars except I don't know Afghani cuisine well enough to know if this was as good as it gets, but I and my family thought it was outstanding. We wanted to have a special Christmas Eve dinner and since this got such great Yelp reviews, and was open on Christmas Eve, we gave it a try. The decorations, the music, the waiters, the food -- everything was lovely. We sat in the window where we had a view of the holiday lights around the square. We made reservations a couple of days ahead of time and I'm glad we did. Even though the reservation was for when then opened at 5, there was a steady stream of people coming in and by 6 PM there was practically a line outside the door. One last thing, it's a good place to eat if some people in your group are vegetarian or vegan. There's a lot of meat on the menu, but an equally large section without meat. read more

Samira Restaurant - Dec. 24, 2018 after a delicious meal at Samira. - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Came here for a work party and was blown away!!!!!great food and great service. We will be putting Samir's in our rotation! Looking forward to taking my husband! read more

My favorite place in Bloomington. The food and service are always excellent. The Shalgham Pallao is my go-to entree. I was originally skeptical about paying for a baked turnip but it was not only filling but cooked/spiced to perfection. I've always walked away with leftovers. The appetizers and soups are also a must. Try the Namounaa. It's a delightful combination to sample. I must say, the only time I've been disappointed was the last time we visited. I'm giving them the benefit as it was the first day of opening after Covid. The food did not taste fresh, my dish was over seasoned with turmeric and as you can see from the pic, our order of Rosé tasted more like red wine mixed with Chardonnay. We told the waiter 3 times that it wasn't rosé(we've order it every time we've eaten there) and he still tried to convince us. I will return and update my rating based on my next experience. Hopefully it will return to normalcy with time. read more

Samira Restaurant - Wine and dine - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Liked their lunch! Everything served was fresh and tasty! Their bread is so delicious as well. I am not really satisfied with the baklava but that might be my personal taste! read more

My first time with Afghan food was a smashing success! Samira's was wonderful!! I was initially hesitant upon walking in, noting that it was much more "fancy" inside than I thought it would be...clearly a more romantic ambience. The server was professional and attentive. This is definitely not what you would call a "hole in the wall," but it was delicious! They start off your meal with a complimentary plate of eggplant and carrot swimming in oil and spices that you eat together with bread. The bread was nothing special on its own but that eggplant was POPPIN! Lentil soup was also pretty good, not the best lentil soup I've had but not too shabby. I had a fish dish (the name is on the photo) and it was great! Not sure what all it was seasoned with but it reminded me of fish I have had at Mediterranean restaurants. I was also glad to see that the fish came with several small sides...the piece of squash was awesome! The rice is also very good, not sure what the sauce that goes on top is made of but it was very good. My mom had the manto, which seem to be the Afghan incarnation of the ubiquitous dumpling of Eurasia. I was not as much of a fan of these, but she liked them. They weren't bad, just not great. My dad had a sampler platter with two kinds of meat (one in kabob form), both of which were very good. He also had a different kind of rice that was just as good if not better than mine. The superstar however was the Afghan version of the samosa! Hands down the BEST samosa (or samosa variant) I have ever had ANYWHERE! So delicious! I just wish we hadn't had to split the thing in three! They even top off the meal with some complimentary biscotti...yes, please! Overall I was on the verge of a 4 and a 5, but I opted for the 5 because the things that were good were VERY good. Also the server was super on top of it! read more

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Ok so maybe their actual menu items 'might' be good. But I will never know because they MADE us get the buffet! no option.It was Saturday night and we didn't even get an option, it was buffet or leave. I feel like it should be up to the customer if they want the buffet or to order off the menu! So we attempted the buffet. They were out of everything on the tiny buffet that there was! It was actually pretty sad and ridiculous! They were 3 empty metal containers (The entire time we were there, 45 minutes) . And they also had a couple other containers that only had sauce in them and nothing inside the sauce, so people had already fished out the meat. They said they were slammed in the kitchen and trying to fill it, here's a thought, don't make everyone get the buffet and you won't be slammed!They said that they would be bringing us bread, and a meat plate to our table. After waiting 24min for just our beers and 40 minutes for our bread, we decided we had had enough! We never did see this mysterious "meat plate" at our table. But from what I seen of other people getting it delivered, it was scampi at best! They were charging $25, yes I said $25! A person for the skimpy-sad buffet! It was ridiculous and we will never ever be back!! Like I said before, the menu could be absolutely amazing, and I will never get to know because they've ruined it for me. read more

Samira Restaurant - The tiny buffet, one empty container& the two red sauce items that had nothing in it but sauce! 1 was supposed to be chicken 1 lamb. =$25! - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

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My Fiance and I were in town for a weekend getaway and we were looking for some ethnic food to experiment with! We stumbled on in to Samira. The atmosphere is very classy and professional, and the food was delicious. I had the Aushak (Afghan Leek Dumplings) and it was very filling and flavorful. We left to head back on the town feeling filled and refreshed. Note 1: Oh the servers were so good. Very attentive, and seemingly excited! Note 2: This food will not weigh you down if you are in for a fun night. read more

If I had eaten at this restaurant first during my week's stay in Bloomington, I probably would not have gone anywhere else. This place was soooooo good. I can't wait to get back to Bloomington to eat here again. Trust me. read more

Samira Restaurant - Hen & Lamb Kabob with delicious Afghan rice. - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

The lunch buffet is a steal!!! $8 for AYCE M-F. From my place of work, getting here for lunch on the week is hard. I do wish that they had the buffet on weekends. I'd gladly pay $11+ for the AYCE on Sat/Sun. I have only been once but really want to go back. I'm not familiar with the dishes that were available so no specific comparisons with other restaurants. I will say that everything g I had was tasty and warm. I kept going back for 1 dish and forgot to leave room for dessert. There wasn't many dessert options but they were plenty of appetizers and entrees. I only had water but hear the tea there is divine. read more

Tip: call in your order if getting takeout The food was fantastic! I got the Namounaa and Samarok Lawang. Both dishes were some of the best food I've had in a long time. Only one star off for the customer service. While I was treated well, the person next to me had ordered online. The waiter was frustrated with that since they don't do online ordering (?) but they were mad at the wrong person and should have taken it up with whichever online service was used. read more

I had never been here before, but it was excellent. Upon arriving we received an eggplant appetizer that was on the house. It looked like nothing specific but the flavors made it a perfect preface to the meal. Salad and soup came next. For entrees, my boyfriend got the lamb kebab and it was cooked to perfection at medium. I got the Mantos, which are the stuffed dumplings. They were excellent as well! Perfectly cooked. The basmati rice was delicious. I definitely recommend and will be back. read more

Samira Restaurant - Afghan Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

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