Historically significant for Houston. A decades old…read moreinstitution and, for many, their first experience of the food of North India. Curries don't necessarily photograph great so I'll just post two photos. Consider the lunch buffet for your first visit. Mickey Kapoor is known for his humorous observations on the sign outside. Great staff and service. Lovely music snd ambience.

Our go-to Indian restaurant in the area. Have had almost everything on the menu and never been…read moredisappointed. Our favorite dishes are the chicken tiki masala, chicken Biryani, or the butter chicken if we're feeling bad. Most items come with nice side of cucumber salad that is refreshing. The samosas are great also, and everything heats up well for leftovers. The staff is nice and welcoming

As I am a picky eater and this is my first time trying Indian food ever in life, I was quite…read moreimpressed with the portion size and taste of my order. Since this was my first time, I decided to try a kid's meal: Chicken Tikka Curry Bowl. It was dressed in mild masala curry over basmati rice. The meal also included their freshly made strawberry rose and mango lemonade. The service was great. I appreciate the cashier being patient with me and offering recommendations such as a side of the garlic naan to go with the entree.

Just want to be careful with this place on what you order all appetizers (chicken & veg pakoras,…read moresamosa chaat)felt they were cooked a day before and were stale. portion, quality and price is decent but would not say its fair. Loved their sweet lassi, beyond keema biryani but had too many peas and portion was too small for $17 beyond keema had too many potatoes and peas which impacted the flavor iced chai was horrible and the tea was curdled(spoiled) Will not go back or recommend there are other good restaurants that have good quality, taste and portion for beyond keema biryanis like Monks(heights)

Amazing place for your Indian cravings. First time visiting Houston, and we got the paneer butter…read moremasala, side of rice, garlic naan, and crispy manchurian. Everything was wonderful. We went home and ate the leftovers for dinner. Inside the service is also pretty good. Nice people, warm and welcoming atmosphere. The tables were pretty clean and we didn't need a ressy to dine in. Would definitely try other items on their menu next time we visit.

This place had some highs and lows. It took a while for someone to acknowledge us and take our…read moreorder at the front, which wasn't the best first impression. The food had good flavor, but it was much greasier than I'm used to for this cuisine. I also felt the portions could have been a bit larger considering the price, as it seemed expensive for what was served.

I picked up an order of Chicken Madras here last night bc it's on my top 3 right after the Butter…read moreChicken and Chicken Tikka Masala meals I usually get here. They always made this curry really good in overall taste, texture, gravy base, spices, etc. I first had it in either 2017 or 2018 at the original Rice Village spot and always made it a top option there ever since. It was really delicious, not too sour, not too loose. It had a right amount of oil, herbs n spice aromas and full of tender chicken too. It's an onion gravy, not creamy, but still so satisfying and exciting. Great, welcoming, friendly service as well.

I used to go to Shiva from when they were in the Rice Village location. While the location is…read moresmaller, I was happy to find the quality is still the same high standard. The interior is decorated tastefully and the service is friendly and timely. The space is utilized smartly, with plenty of seating available. The dishes taste wonderful, and are considerate of palates that may not be able to tolerate extreme spice levels, like me. The dishes are rich and flavorful, with my personal favorites being saag paneer and chicken tikka masala. A nice place for some great Indian food!

We had the best experience for a date night! We got the lychee ceviche, prawn Manchurian toast and…read morevegetable seekh kabob. All were good but the prawn toast was the best! For dinner, we got the butter chicken experience, dal musaafer and paneer rizala. All were good but I liked the paneer rizala the best. We got naan and rice (both basmati and carmelized onion to share!) For desert, I would highly recommend the rasmalai and gulab!

What a wonderful experience we had with the family…read more As we took the elevator to the second floor to the reception area, I noticed right way I think I stepped into a different world. The reception area was small and almost claustrophobic, but very ornate. There were a few chairs for you to wait. We didn't wait long, probably less than a minute. As the hostess lead us into the main dinning area, I was shocked on how big the place was (it reminding me of the big meat market restaurants in NYC). The first room was bright from the outside sunlight, almost like an outside cafe. Our table was in a different area, where it was a little darker and decorated a lot differently from the previous room. As I looked around, there were other sections at this restaurant that kind of represented different places. The section we sat in had a very long table...which I'm guessing can host a very big family or corporate party. It sat right next to the open kitchen. Our waitress, Yaretzy, was very nice. She explained how the owners traveled to the different states of India and want to share that experience at Musaafer. Yaretzy would provide an explanation for each dish. Some of them were mixed/put together table side. Everything was delicious, and not too spicy. Musaafer is fine dining, so it's not something we can do ever weekend. But we will be back. Getting here was a little tricky if you are not familiar with the area. The restaurant is located in the Galleria. The entrance to Musaafer is on the first floor inside the mall, down the hallway closest to Saks Fifth Ave on the right (if facing Saks). You will need to take the private elevator to the second floor or walk up the stairs. There is valet parking if you prefer to do that. I think there is a small parking lot in front of the restaurant that might be free, but we went into the underground Purple garage. If you park right after going down the ramp into the Purple garage, you will see an elevator into Saks Fifth Ave, which you take up and walk outside with a short walk to Musaafer. The only problem with what we did was when Saks closes, we couldn't take that elevator back down. There were stairs back down to the purple garage, but it stank! There had to be another elevator that will take you into the mall.

Came here for my mom's 60th birthday celebration with a group of 11 individuals. The interior was…read morebeautiful, and we were seated immediately after using the valet parking. I will say that the service was very good. They were patient with our communication, indecision, and even helped specifically make menu items for certain dietary restrictions (no onion and garlic). The prices, especially for the quantity are exorbitant. They also brought out a small dessert to share for the birthday. Overall, everything tasted okay. It was not a memorable meal at all tastewise, so I would not rush back here again. However, I was not particularly disappointed in any dish either. My family does not often go to fine dining restaurants, so this was more for the experience than anything, and that part did live up to the standards. The papadum nachos were fun and a good appetizer. The palak chaat was also good, but could have used some more chutney to make it less dry. Portions for the goat cheese salad were really small and underwhelming. Most of the curries were again, just okay. The biryani and suprisingly, the bhindi, were my most favorite dishes, and the naan was warm and soft. I will not be rushing back to this restaurant anytime soon, but could consider on occasion.

This rating and review is solely on the afternoon tea. As far as my thoughts on the…read moremeals/restaurant food, I still stand by my previous review. Eventhough the Chai was so bad last time that I figured I wouldn't even come back for afternoon tea, we came back for afternoon tea. But it really was only bc we had credits to use from the Chase credit card deal and this was one of the covered places. The chai did not taste like soap this time, thankfully. It was actually very close to how my parents make it. So I liked it and had like 3 cups of it. The food was pretty good except for dessert. But even that didn't bother me too much just bc by that point I was stuffed and I add sugar to my chai. I got the gluten free afternoon tea. It was good mostly. The scone was really good. The cucumber sandwich was very bland and the curried crab was fishy and bland. The deviled egg was too mustard-y. And the desserts were all bad, maybe frozen and just not good tasting (there were 3 small ones). We got there at 1:15 and we were seated in the back, pretty far from the harpist. Our server was kind of rude and seemed swamped.

Pondicheri is always a favorite! The vibes are just right, comfortable, vibrant, eclectic with a…read morestrong sense of modern Indian culture. I love how much south Indian food is on the menu, and most tastes homemade. Service was friendly, knowledge about the menu, and responsive. We'll keep coming back! Validated arking is in the garage but be sure to scan the QR code in the restaurant to check in for parking - helpful to get your license plate number to check in.

Haven't been here for awhile and I can see food hasn't improved much…read more This time we ordered the lamb chops and got very disappointed since most of it are fat and got charged $38 for 3 pieces of poor quality meat. I understand the cost for the business but honestly it should be removed from the menu since you can't deliver the quality on it. The Thalis wasn't good neither The only good dish was the alleppey shrimp. There is not much of a service since we get everything on ourselves from plates, to silverware to water.

I have been eating here for 40 years! Amazing food and great…read moreservice. The staff is top notch.

This restaurant has good reviews and good stars but that is not the experience I had today. I went…read moreat 1:15 on a Saturday afternoon. For 1:15 the steam tables weren't sufficiently stocked. I barely had any lamb, which is what I liked the best of course. I will say the mint chutney and the raitta were both very tasty. The pakora was crumbles. Only one dal option and no chana, not much vegetable selection (cabbage and potatoes, mediocre). There was only one rice option and it was just rice and peas. Not really seasoned. I found a lot of things under seasoned. Not under-salted, under seasoned. Not enough green cardamom, cinnamon, the big flavor spices. There were a lot of gentlemen working who all looked and acted like they had been there for years. I cannot say that they were friendly to me. They were friendly to patrons who were obvious regular customers. I would say I felt like I was tolerated but not welcomed. Finally - it was too expensive. It was weekend lunch and it was expensive. I did order one of the funny interesting cocktails and had the buffet for one. I barely escaped with tax and tip just under $40. That's too expensive.

Monk's has officially become our Houston tradition. We drive in from San Antonio, and this is a…read morenon-negotiable stop for us every single time. Honestly, every dish we've ever tried here has been fantastic--it hits exactly the right spots. The Flavor Profile: A quick heads-up for those seeking "authentic" traditional Chinese--this isn't it. This is the Indianized version of Chinese food (Indo-Chinese), so prepare for bold spices and a serious kick. If you grew up loving those specific flavors, Monk's is the gold standard. The Verdict: The heat is on point, the portions are great, and the flavors are nostalgic and bold. It's the kind of meal we look forward to all the way down I-10. Truly a gem for anyone who appreciates the spicy, savory fusion of Desi Chinese!

Where spices, spice…read more Service: 5/5 Quick and friendly. Ambiance: 4/5 When I looked up the restaurant, I didn't realize it was only for takeout. I walked in and the spices were spicing so much so that I started sneezing. I asked if maybe the dining area was through some door, but no there is no dine in. It's a small space with a register and seats to wait for your order or you can wait in your car. Food: 4/5 Chicken Tikka Masala it was creamy and velvety, I'm not a big fan of tomato but know is a core part of it, which I did distinguish the taste in this order that I haven't usually tasted in others. The garlic naan had good flavor however it was a bit tough and crunchy when biting into it. Which wasn't my favorite, but got the job done to dip into the sauce.

Must try if you're in Houston. Great customer service and prices. Highly authentic and great…read morevariety.

We stopped by this food truck on a Friday afternoon as a family to grab some quick tacos. The food…read moretruck was parked in a lot, and since it was pretty quiet when we went, we got our food super fast. The service was really nice, making it an easy pick-up spot overall. The barbacoa was by far my favorite! It was flavorful and tender! I also thought their al pastor was really good, which says a lot because I feel like most places struggle to get that flavor right. I wasn't as much of a fan of the fajita meat (it came as little steak bites, which was different), though my husband actually liked it. Just a heads up for anyone visiting: make sure you bring cash!