Food was pretty good. Service was fare. Biggest issues were the cocktails and my beer having ice in it. Id return but wouldn't order any drinks. read more

Varsha Indian Kitchen - Gluten-Free Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

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Fast, tasty, and reasonable prices. LIKES: my two buddies and I shared a bunch of appetizers including the butter chicken wings, fish pakora (amazing!), Indian tater tots, nan, and salmon. The food was seasoned to perfection and it tasted super good. We ordered the Indian donuts for dessert and they gave us a nice way to end the meal with some sugar. Our waitress was helpful with suggestions and the ambience was not overly formal but casual and relaxing. We even got a 10% off deal for checking in! DISLIKES: The Indian donuts only came with two small donuts. It would've been nice to have three or four. I didn't mind that this place offered Asian fusion options but some people prefer places that only serve traditional Indian food. I didn't consider that a big deal because everything they prepared was really tasty. read more

Varsha Indian Kitchen - Great ambience. Great food. - Gluten-Free Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

The food served in this restaurant is, at best, comparable to cafeteria Indian food. There was no authenticity nor even an attempt to create dishes vaguely similar to the subcontinent. The pakora batter was visibly old and lumpy and the crust was black not brown or light brown. The chutney they gave accompanying the samosas was funny, it was neither tamarind nor mint, it was tikka masala curry. It did not go with the pakoras and was just a lazy substitute for chutney. The 5$ naan was also too small for the 5$ price. The service was extremely slow because the restuarant served the skipthedishes delivery driver with his orders over the seated in-house guests. Being on main government road and charging the amount they do for food, It isnt unreasonable to expect to be served within 20-25 mins and before skipthedishes orders. My fish curry was served after 40 mins of waiting My waitress was really nice though. read more

We had the Chicken Lababdar, which was good - actually really good. Then we had naan chicken tikka/tandoor warp which was also good - nice smoky taste due to the naan being roasted in the tandoor. I would have given 5-stars, but they lose a star because both the drinks (sweet lassi and some other fruity drink) were really below par -- avoid the beverages and go for the food read more

Wow, this place is so delicious!!! The butter chicken was finger licking good! You won't regret coming here. Also, the somosas come with a sauce ive never had and it's so tasty! read more

What Fiona said below exept for the lamb curry, disappointingly watery. Sorry to see the addition of American food to the menu as well, "waters down" what used to be a great Indian food restaurant. read more

Super long wait and when it was empty. Poor service and no acknowledgement. Food okay but some of the dishes were not good value. Mains looking like appies. read more

Butter chicken is tasty but skimpy serving for the price. Worst part is the service. Very slow and unmotivated. We went in the middle of the day in the middle of the week - place was empty and it still took 30 minutes for our butter chicken. Hearing good things about Royal Spice so will have to check the out for comparison on our next visit. read more

I'm no expert on Indian food but I can say the butter chicken curry was amazing. Had to do takeout but will try to get back for seated service. read more

Updating my previous review. 2 weeks onward no partial refund or contact of any kind for the food that was left off my order. If you want to actually get the good you lay for don't order from this place. read more

Went with friends for US for my wife's bday dinner. Table of 6, ordered variety of food and of course naan which were all very good. Main issue was incredibly poor service. Waiter was cold and standoffish. Eventually brought our food and never returned to inquire on meal or clean table. After a fairly long wait had to ask for to go containers and foil for bread. Again after a wait he brought containers but no foil. Never returned and we saw him wait on others and appeared to be ignoring us. Then he sat at counter to eat ! Eventually went to another server to ask for check and foil. She was also quite unfriendly. The process of checking out was a good 45 minutes of waiting. Won't go back read more

We stopped in at Varsha for lunch. It was delightful! Nice fusion menu, good food, friendly service. We shared a Bollywood lamb burger -- tasty burger, so-soft bun, very good masala fries -- and delicious all gobi, spiced just right. Nice selection of beverages, including some BC beers. This is a very good Ndian fusion place, informal and welcming. If I lived in Victoria, I'd be a regular! read more

I loved eating here because they took "regular" western food and packed it to bursting with delicious Indian flavours. The Dodd family have a good concept that they pull off well. The room is casual and open, but still finds space for a few more private nooks. Also, the balcony gets good sun on sunny days. The food is eclectic, and clearly based on what the chef just loves to make from a variety of cultures. It all has an Indian edge though. The Bollywood style Burger brought me back to my childhood trips to little India in my hometown, both with the toppings and the paddy itself, which had spices throughout. If I were picky, I would say that it would have been nice to see some of the Dodd family there...quite a bit of the concept is built around the family (with family portraits on the walls and blurbs about them at the entrance and tables), and I wanted to meet these people. However, I did go on a Sunday afternoon, so I understand they can't be there all the time. Also, the spicy ketchup didn't do anything for me. It felt like a lot of heat with no flavour. I asked the server and she said they made it with sriracha, but I didn't taste any of the yummy chilli or other flavours of sriracha. Finally, there is room to improve the Masala fries, which had amazing texture, but no real spice or blended spice flavours. read more

Varsha Indian Kitchen - Salad, Chicken skewer, ginger soup. - Gluten-Free Near Me - Victoria, British Columbia

TL:DR - Casual yet upscale decor. Na'an was small but mighty. Pakora was perfectly fried and seasoned. Big winner of the night was the butter chicken, LITERALLY unbelievably moist and juicy. Came in with a food tour and this maybe the some of the best Indian food I've ever had. The restaurant itself is small, but has a very nice upscale feel to it. We got to try the na'an, butter chicken, and vegetable pakora. The na'an wasn't super thick in size, but even though it was a bit flatter, they still managed to make it fluffy taste and feel size. They were warm coming out to us and perfectly soft. The veggie pakora was also a winner, perfectly crispy with a green dipping sauce that had a great kick to it. The pakora was also dusted in a some sort of seasoning that added a great umami kick to it. Saving the best for last, the butter chicken was amazing. I love it when Indian give you a ton of sauce, cause I love to dip my na'an in it as I'm enjoying the chicken. On top of that, this is some of the most tender Indian chicken I've ever had. Most of time the butter chicken and chicken tikka masala chunks are dry as heck, but this so moist on in the inside it blows my mind. Next time I'm in town, I won't hesitate to come back for a full meal. read more

Great food and service! We ordered: Butter Chicken Samosas Chicken 250 And the curry of the day Just friggin delicious. We devoured every bite. read more

Food: decent Wait: ridiculous The wait staff doesn't have a good process for seating patrons. Their system of calling people is great in theory but waiting 10 minutes to see if a party shows up is frustrating for the those waiting. My friend and I waited 50 min for a table but consistently saw atleast 2 tables without patrons. But when anyone asked the answer was always 'a few more minutes.' The food wasn't worth the aggravation. Next time, we'll order take away. read more

I am a indian American came to Victoria island for a visit.. never felt this much racists in my life.. pls take care of customers.. the server who was assigned to our table she was so mean her name was Danica.. couldn't believe how she was treating us .. seriously though it's was a joke.. me and my husband was super hungry but food came super late that we had to take Togo.. even when we asked her to get check and give us Togo boxes she didn't.. some other sweet curly hair girl was nice enough to get us the boxes and bill.. this review is purely for the customer service:( she was so disrespectful .. I hate giving negative reviews but this place deserves a zero score.. disappointing read more

Sitting in a busy corner and has a bar in it. Good service and a lot of choices in curries. Ordered chicken curry and the flavour is really good, however the chicken can be more tender. Nann is super tasty and would love to have more! Cauliflower is okay. read more

Decided to try Varsha while on a visit to Victoria with a friend based on the 4.1 rating and a craving for Indian food. The restaurant was busy but we were sat quickly. Unfortunately, there was a rather large table next to us who were so loud (including yelling/screaming children running between the tables), which made it hard to have a conversation with my friend. Service was terrible. We were visited by a server only three times: (1) to order, (2) when our food was served, and (3) when we asked for our check. And we weren't the only ones with poor service: the table next to us was sat but a server never came by to take their order after 10-15 minutes so they just left (and they were also probably annoyed by the noise). The food was good and my Aloo Gobi had great flavor and spiciness. However, I found the naan a little greasy (I had to wash my hands afterward). Ultimately, I would not recommend Varsha unless it's for takeout. Definitely not worth dining in unless the service improves. read more

We ordered a ton of food. Best by far was the rosemary garlic nann, the butter-chicken and the pork belly nann. Would definitely come back.

Cool place. Nice food. Gorgeous view. Waitress was lovely. Reasonable prices. I'll go back for sure.

What a wonderfully tasty experience. The Palak Paneer was incredible, as was the Eggplant Bharta. Although polite and pleasant, the service was very slow and the general staff were not very knowledgeable about the dishes (this seems to be a theme that Varsha should really take note of.) The acting manager knew her stuff though. Mom's Chicken Curry was runny and the bone-in chicken sparse, it was tasty though. The parking situation, being downtown Victoria, is quite a challenge, however, if you're patient enough a spot will open up. One little head's up, is that the "CHILI CHICKEN" described as "Indo-Chinese at its best. Marinated chicken, bell peppers and onions tossed in a tangy chili sauce" turned out to be what looked like chicken nuggets, covered in what seemed to be chick-pea flour and deep fried, when we inquired as to whether we received the correct dish, we were informed that we had, I don't think so, I really think we received the "CHICKEN PAKORA, Tender chicken breast in chickpea batter. Fried and served with Varsha's chutney or Bollywood sauce." We completed the review and asked that this be changed on the menu, so be sure to know...in any event, the dish was tasty and filling. Overall though, I dreamed about the Palak Paneer and woke up this morning with a plan to go an collect some for lunch ! Lovely place, lovely atmosphere, unfortunately Varsha was not there last night as she was on her way to Hawaii for a very needed break. This small, cozy, casual place, with it's comfy bar is surely to become one of my regulars. Thanks all. read more

This not a typical Indian restaurant, it seemed a bit unauthentic to me. The waitress was very nice, service was good and they have Fat Tug on tap. So, why just 3 stars? The curry sauce was tasty but the lamb curry seemed like was precooked meat thrown in the curry sauce at the last minute and heated up. The lamb was tough and tasteless., it hadn't been steeped in the curry. There doesn't seem to be pots of curry cooking on a stove, the place doesn't even smell like a curry shop. I'd have given one or two stars for the curry but everything else was good (Naan, rice) so they get 3. Having said that I probably won't go back. read more

Service is very slow. They literally took 40mins to get our order of naan, curry, n pulav. Cauliflower 250 was the only thing good rest of food was ok. read more

Very cute Indian restaurant on the corner of Pandora. Didn't have a reservation but would recommend one. Started with the dip trio and veggie samosas. Both were very tasty. Shared the lamb curry and butter chicken. Both were excellent and full of flavor. Finished off with a mango/yogurt smoothie. yum yum. Cool vibe. read more

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We popped in here for a quick bite of late lunch. I must confess that I am often wary of Indian restaurants due to a disasterous outing to two separate and horrible eateries in my younger days. Places which in Australia we term 'chew-n-spew' due to the effect the one has upon the other. But this place is clean, modern, well laid out and inviting. The servers were very helpful and friendly and we wanted some samosas. I ordered Mum's vegetable samosas, my girl the buttered chicken samosas. The sauces were wonderful. The pastry on both types was a combination of light, crispy and flavorful and the fillings were absolutely sensational. If we have the opportunity in the future, we will be back. Truly great food. read more

Just ok. As the other reviews say, service is pretty slow. The pakora was good, naan was excellent. We had the paneer curry, and it wasn't very good. We wouldn't come back, but it wasn't terrible. read more

From bland tasting food to the waitress spilling butter chicken sauce all over my partner's new white jacket (and then NOT apologizing or offering to clean it up - yeah, seriously, that happened; I had to go to the bar and grab a rag for myself) -- Varsha Sips + Nosh house was one of the worst dining experiences we've ever had. The interior design is different and a bit funky, and the menu has its upsides - which is what original drew us in. However after waiting 40 minutes after ordering for our mediocre (at best) food to arrive, followed by the jacket incident, we will not be returning. Oh, and not to mention the HUGE party that was taking up half of the restaurant (which were the owners' - the Dodd's - family). Children running around and loud intoxicated party guests made us feel incredibly unwelcome - ESPECIALLY given that it was the owners who had this large party... guess they aren't too concerned? Stay away from Varsha. read more

This place was incredible. From the super helpful staff and really awesome decor, to really great tasting menu items. I'm pretty addicted to Indian food and hadn't had any in a few months. I was thrilled that their garlic naan is super tasty, and the special that night was paneer tikka masala, it was so delicious. I would come back and eat here every night if I were in Victoria. (And if that were an acceptable way to live my life haha) We also had the Gulab Jammun (sorry if that spelling is off!) for dessert, highly recommend! read more

The menu board on the street drew us in . . . . Varsha has a funky comfortable interior and nice patio for people watching. The menu entices with an East Indian fusion menu that combines curry flavours, pub food, small plates and tapas all with an interesting flavour twist; made it hard to choose. My partner's lamb burger with the works was flavourful and moist, on a brioche bun. Switching in yam fries for the usual was good value for 35 cents extra. He loved it. My pakora fish tacos and kale salad ($13.50) looked wonderful, with an East Indian inspired onion salsa. Flavour wise it was three-star. The salad was delicious for healthy. Unfortunately, a bite down hard on a fish bone in a taco wasn't a pleasant surprise. The server acted immediately with concern when shown and advised the chef. They responded appropriately . . . . Offering a free dessert (declined), with an explanation that the fish supplier is supposed to be providing cleaned and deboned fillets, so they will be taking it up with them and checking carefully the current stock. Ten percent was deducted from the bill and two coupons for $5 off of $20 spend per person offered for future use (though expiry date had past). I'm not a fish person really when it comes to bones, so I won't be taking it up. I feel for them as it wasn't really their fault; I'm hoping this is an anomaly. I might come back later as the menu is otherwise innovative and the vibe is cool . . . . read more

I love the idea of Varsha and decided to pop in for a bite (and maaayyyybe many several Sunday afternoon drinks). The service, from start to finish, was 5 star. Our server was sweet and attentive when she needed to be, but not so much that we felt stalked while we were bumming around drinking. Plus, she was wearing ali baba pants and those things are so much fun. The drink specials are ahhhmazing. Great prices and our server convinced us to try a 'shaft' (baileys and espresso over ice) which was totally the highlight of my Sunday. I wasn't all about the food here but perhaps I simply ordered the wrong thing. I had the fish tacos and found them slightly bland. My partner had a curry dish and from the tiny bite he agreed to share with me, I thought it was pretty good (he loooved it). Overall I would definitely go back. read more

It's got some pros & cons: Pro: food is tasty. Cons: service is spotty, not super attentive. Cons: a $14 bowl of butter chicken had exactly 7 chunks of chicken, not huge pieces either...that's $2 per piece. Should have had much more chicken for that price. Would probably not return since there are so many food choices in Victoria. Just an ok value. Spent $70 on dinner for 2, w/o drinks. Again, food is good...but wait times and service were not up to speed. read more

We started with an order of the vegetable pakoras, which were very good. The Varsha chutney it came with was superb. Then came the Tandoori Platter: a great disappointment. The centre of the plate was mostly occupied by a very large red onion, cut decoratively in half and topped with a tiny mound of pickles. They had subbed the no-longer-available beef kebabs for deep-fried breaded shrimp (decidedly not tandoori). The amount of chicken and pepper was meagre, and certainly not cooked properly, or particularly good. The broccoli was soaked in a caustic mix of Dijon and cream. The vegetable pilau was mediocre, lacking in actual vegetables. This platter was very overpriced at $60. The service was good... when our server actually visited our table. Otherwise, she was busy waiting on half the restaurant (or more). I had to shout down her coworker (who was only serving two tables right beside ours) after waiting more than 40 minutes for any sort of contact with our server. This other server was less than enthusiastic to do anything for us, and I had a good portion of snarl and attitude to end my meal with. Not worth the price; service was inconsistent, slow, or quite rude; food was decent at best. No effort shown by the manager on duty to engage customers or help in any way, let alone rectify our situation. Will not be returning. read more

Great experience. My family was visiting so we gave this place a try. We were all very happy and satisfied with our orders. They have great vegan and gluten free options and are accommodating. Friendly and uplifted staff. The restaurant itself is very clean, is a nice layout with unique decor too! Impressed read more

Absolutely delicious samosas! We ordered both the butter chicken samosas and "mom's" version. The butter chicken samosa was good, but just meat filled with the sauce on the side, so there wasn't much complexity to it (I'm sure the butter chicken alone as a dish is fantastic, though). But the "mom's samosa", holy wow, they were AMAZING! Perfectly spiced and had just the right amount of heat. I never finish my meals, but ate every last bite! My husband is not a fan of Indian food, but he thoroughly enjoyed these. I also ordered the kachumber salad, which was very fresh and tasty. Wasn't a fan of the beer selection, but that definitely won't stop me from going back TODAY. It was nice being able to see into the kitchen...very clean, the staff presented well. Go try it! read more

We ate here two nights in a row because it was so delicious - literally "face in the plate" delicious! The down-side was the wait for the food, which appeared to be freshly made. I will visit again when I'm in the neighborhood! read more

For those who don't know Victoria, Gordi Dodd is local legend for his cheap-o adverts for his home furnishings store, as well as his good prices and services. My latest bed and sofa were brought there, and I've slept well on both. The restaurant takes over the corner that was home to Nando's (spicy roasted chicken, which I love, and everyone else seems to think is better done else where) and before that a conveyor Sushi place, where the conveyor was a large scale train-set. Varsha has a much better set up, with a series of small booths around the windows, bench seating for slightly bigger groups and set of tables one one side for parties. It's all clean lines, square edges, and certainly not the old British curry house. No flock wallpaper. It's modern, yet still relaxed with the bright prints and fabrics. The menu is not heavy on lists and lists of curries and meats and variations. It's doing comfort and quick plates with a Indian twist, not a full blown 3 course extravaganza. The stand out is the Masala fries. Served as poutine, where the gravy is butter chicken sauce, this is a fantastic combination. Though I would love to try it with paneer rather than curds. The spicy dust all over the fries makes them incredibly moreish, with a got crisp bite to the potato. Coupled with the gooey, creamy mess that the curds and sauce merge into, and you've got a winner. And I ate them with my friend who knows her poutine, and she ordered it many times. Full review here: http://victoria-in-person.blogspot.ca/2015/01/varsha-sips-and-nosh-house-downtown.html read more

Good food. Service is little slow but food is good! This place is high on demand, reserve ahead. read more

The food was inedible. My kabob was burnt to a black char. The salad was over dressed and our server was no good.

Both visits were underwhelming. They are not friendly. First time we visited the food was great but service was crap (especially by the owner Varsha who had an awful negative attitude), the second time we visited we ordered some of the same dishes and they brought out one of the dishes completely burnt (almost black). Varsha was sitting at the bar giving me terrible looks while I politely explained to the waitress that the order was burnt. You can find better service, food and prices elsewhere. Lots of options around Victoria. read more