My family and I embarked on a day trip from the Bay Area to Sacramento during Ramadan and decided to stop by Shalimar for a to-go meal on our way back. Our anticipation for delicious Pakistani cuisine heightened our excitement, despite the slightly higher-than-expected prices.We ordered a variety of dishes including naan, taigas, chicken tikka masala, malai chicken, seekh kebabs, Sindhi chicken baryani, and daal. Despite the empty restaurant, our food took around 20 minutes to prepare, which we understood since it was made fresh for us.Upon reaching home and breaking our fast, I eagerly dove into the chicken tikka masala and Sindhi chicken baryani. While the chicken tikka masala was flavorful albeit a bit oily, the baryani was a letdown. The rice lacked the authentic aroma and tasted more like white rice mixed with curry, leading to disappointment.However, the rest of the meal, including the naan, seekh kebabs, and daal, were decent, earning them a fair rating of 6 out of 10.Despite the shortcomings in some dishes, the overall experience at Shalimar offered glimpses of authentic Pakistani flavors. While a 3-star rating may seem generous, I believe there's room for improvement to match the expectations of discerning food enthusiasts.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
Raiyan
Mild Indian food.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 2
Sam
Awesome food and the staff was really
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Kebab
Naeemuddin Khawaja
A great place in Notomas close to the Sacramento airport. They have decent selection of BBQ, Veg and Non Veg Curies and Biryani dishes. The staff is very friendly and helpful. The best part is their prices, which are very reasonable for California.A must try place. If you love Desi food, you will not be disappointed. I will come again.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Nigham Cyril
Dry and mushy rice, dry chicken. Whoever thinks their food is good has lost their taste buds. Thats not Pakistani food , they ruining our reputation.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
John-Paul Kelada
Friendly service, delicious food. We got the benghan eggplant dish, the daal, and the okra with naan. Would definitely do again! Though was on the spicier side for the
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jonathan Hayes
This place is an obvious 5 stars. Most unique and authentic Pakistani Indian food in Sacramento by far. It’s an experience coming here and well worth the drive from anywhere in the greater Sacramento area.
jawed Haidari
I ordered nihari; it wasn’t good the meat wasn’t cooked probably, and it wasn’t the meat for nihari.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
naveed malik
Today, December 1 me and my son visited Shalimar restaurant in Sacramento. I’ve been going to this location for so many years. I personally know the owners but today when we went, we ordered one chicken thicker breast beef kebab., And as usual, we like Chicken kofta And when the food was served first I looked at naan And I called the gentleman who took an order I said what happened to your naan Not the usual ones he said oh, we don’t make them in tandoori Anyone we have this oven be used, so I said OK now I tasted Chicken kofta that taste awful so I called him again I said what’s going on you guys are not getting the same Shalimar food he said now we use our own recipes, so I said, what do you mean by you use your own recipes, just to let you know in the past they used to go to Fremont location and pick up all the food from there and they will serve you over here, only Fresh food item was the barbecue, which they will make it in that restaurant, but all the salan Items were picking up from the Fremont location so now they must have some of dispute So I asked the owner. He said it was a hassle for us to go all the way to Fremont but you were doing that for last so many years personally, I would not go in Sacramento location because you’re paying for the food which was taste Good just to let people know that they are not part of the original Shalimar restaurant anymore. Please do not waste your money.Parking: Not good
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Murgh Boti Tandoori, Kabobs
Omar Mendez-Palacios
walked in and no one said hi. Was confused on if we sat ourselves or if we wait to be seated . He found a kiosk to order our food. We were not done ordering when we noticed a man picking his nose, the cook stacked pots and pans, reusing them without washing them. And w third man scratching his behind. No one at this restaurant was washing their hands or wearing gloves. I forgot to mention the cook was eating and cooking at the same time. I hope he wasn’t trying the customers food before serving with unclean fingers. The rest of the restaurant around here are all pretty nasty as well. No one is clean here.
Let's start with the positive.Everything I ate from here was delicious. There was not a single bite that I did not enjoy. I will warn you that every dish we tried, the ones that ask for a spicy level, the ones without, and even the ones we asked for no spice, have a bleeding spice. It's a mild whisper of spicy, nothing even our weakest pasty skinned non spicy eat couldn't handle.To provide some additional context, my experience into Indian food is just the general stuff you can find around California. I have never been to India yet, and I haven't had the pleasure of experiencing that side of the world yet. Do with that, what you will.The only down marks I have have nothing to do with food, but with labeling. I ordered a sizable group and we struggled to connect person with food they ordered. (Might be my lack of familiarity with the food)
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Sindhi Chicken Biryani
sami qaiser
Best seekh kebab!!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chicken Kabob, Kabobs
Mark Waheed (Frugal Pickle)
Anybody who has rated the food as less than five stars just doesn't know what they're talking about. There is no Indian Pakistani restaurant with this level of authenticity and quality anywhere else in Sacramento. Period. The experience you will get here is identical to that which you could find at the most popular street food stalls and eateries on the streets of Pakistan.Yes, it is a very simple and modest setting, they seem to get most of their business from takeout, but I recommend you come here for the first time and dine in and enjoy some of their free authentic masala chai.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Mark W.
If you are looking for the most authentic Pakistani style food in Sacramento, stop! You have found it here.Sure, it may not be the most glamorous location, but the preparation techniques and seasoning is identical to that which you will find on the streets of Pakistan cities. Anybody who actually knows the food scene here in Sacramento will have to admit-- there is no better place than this.
Paro J.
A great place to eat delicious Indo/Pak food. Worth the time and money. Don't miss it, their chicken tikka is awesome
My family and I embarked on a day trip from the Bay Area to Sacramento during Ramadan and decided to stop by Shalimar for a to-go meal on our way back. Our anticipation for delicious Pakistani cuisine heightened our excitement, despite the slightly higher-than-expected prices.We ordered a variety of dishes including naan, taigas, chicken tikka masala, malai chicken, seekh kebabs, Sindhi chicken baryani, and daal. Despite the empty restaurant, our food took around 20 minutes to prepare, which we understood since it was made fresh for us.Upon reaching home and breaking our fast, I eagerly dove into the chicken tikka masala and Sindhi chicken baryani. While the chicken tikka masala was flavorful albeit a bit oily, the baryani was a letdown. The rice lacked the authentic aroma and tasted more like white rice mixed with curry, leading to disappointment.However, the rest of the meal, including the naan, seekh kebabs, and daal, were decent, earning them a fair rating of 6 out of 10.Despite the shortcomings in some dishes, the overall experience at Shalimar offered glimpses of authentic Pakistani flavors. While a 3-star rating may seem generous, I believe there's room for improvement to match the expectations of discerning food enthusiasts.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
Mild Indian food.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 2
Awesome food and the staff was really
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Kebab
A great place in Notomas close to the Sacramento airport. They have decent selection of BBQ, Veg and Non Veg Curies and Biryani dishes. The staff is very friendly and helpful. The best part is their prices, which are very reasonable for California.A must try place. If you love Desi food, you will not be disappointed. I will come again.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Dry and mushy rice, dry chicken. Whoever thinks their food is good has lost their taste buds. Thats not Pakistani food , they ruining our reputation.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Friendly service, delicious food. We got the benghan eggplant dish, the daal, and the okra with naan. Would definitely do again! Though was on the spicier side for the
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place is an obvious 5 stars. Most unique and authentic Pakistani Indian food in Sacramento by far. It’s an experience coming here and well worth the drive from anywhere in the greater Sacramento area.
I ordered nihari; it wasn’t good the meat wasn’t cooked probably, and it wasn’t the meat for nihari.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Today, December 1 me and my son visited Shalimar restaurant in Sacramento. I’ve been going to this location for so many years. I personally know the owners but today when we went, we ordered one chicken thicker breast beef kebab., And as usual, we like Chicken kofta And when the food was served first I looked at naan And I called the gentleman who took an order I said what happened to your naan Not the usual ones he said oh, we don’t make them in tandoori Anyone we have this oven be used, so I said OK now I tasted Chicken kofta that taste awful so I called him again I said what’s going on you guys are not getting the same Shalimar food he said now we use our own recipes, so I said, what do you mean by you use your own recipes, just to let you know in the past they used to go to Fremont location and pick up all the food from there and they will serve you over here, only Fresh food item was the barbecue, which they will make it in that restaurant, but all the salan Items were picking up from the Fremont location so now they must have some of dispute So I asked the owner. He said it was a hassle for us to go all the way to Fremont but you were doing that for last so many years personally, I would not go in Sacramento location because you’re paying for the food which was taste Good just to let people know that they are not part of the original Shalimar restaurant anymore. Please do not waste your money.Parking: Not good
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Recommended dishes: Murgh Boti Tandoori, Kabobs
walked in and no one said hi. Was confused on if we sat ourselves or if we wait to be seated . He found a kiosk to order our food. We were not done ordering when we noticed a man picking his nose, the cook stacked pots and pans, reusing them without washing them. And w third man scratching his behind. No one at this restaurant was washing their hands or wearing gloves. I forgot to mention the cook was eating and cooking at the same time. I hope he wasn’t trying the customers food before serving with unclean fingers. The rest of the restaurant around here are all pretty nasty as well. No one is clean here.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
Let's start with the positive.Everything I ate from here was delicious. There was not a single bite that I did not enjoy. I will warn you that every dish we tried, the ones that ask for a spicy level, the ones without, and even the ones we asked for no spice, have a bleeding spice. It's a mild whisper of spicy, nothing even our weakest pasty skinned non spicy eat couldn't handle.To provide some additional context, my experience into Indian food is just the general stuff you can find around California. I have never been to India yet, and I haven't had the pleasure of experiencing that side of the world yet. Do with that, what you will.The only down marks I have have nothing to do with food, but with labeling. I ordered a sizable group and we struggled to connect person with food they ordered. (Might be my lack of familiarity with the food)
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Sindhi Chicken Biryani
Best seekh kebab!!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chicken Kabob, Kabobs
Anybody who has rated the food as less than five stars just doesn't know what they're talking about. There is no Indian Pakistani restaurant with this level of authenticity and quality anywhere else in Sacramento. Period. The experience you will get here is identical to that which you could find at the most popular street food stalls and eateries on the streets of Pakistan.Yes, it is a very simple and modest setting, they seem to get most of their business from takeout, but I recommend you come here for the first time and dine in and enjoy some of their free authentic masala chai.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
If you are looking for the most authentic Pakistani style food in Sacramento, stop! You have found it here.Sure, it may not be the most glamorous location, but the preparation techniques and seasoning is identical to that which you will find on the streets of Pakistan cities. Anybody who actually knows the food scene here in Sacramento will have to admit-- there is no better place than this.
A great place to eat delicious Indo/Pak food. Worth the time and money. Don't miss it, their chicken tikka is awesome