It was too quiet just me n roomate and the bar maid..but very clean and bar maiden very polite n friendly.. would go back again when busyer..
Ronald Pompey
Great Drinks pool table
Clara Sorrell
Owner doesn't keep up
denise farrell
Enjoyed myself
Marc G.
This WAS a great place for genuine SOUTHERN Indian cuisine. Alas and alack -- it is long closed -- having morphed into a sports tavern.
Dr. S.
I'll rank this place second best after Karavalli in Latham, NY. The Indian food is excellent both takeout and eat-in. They are good at South Indian cuisine (dosas, uttappas, idlis etc) but have managed to do justice to Notrh Indian type dishes as well! A must have is the Chicken tikka masala, it's the creamiest Ive ever had and any of the dosas, a south Indian speciality! The weekend buffets are also very varied and tasty, definitely worth the prices (about $15/person for the buffet).
Karla T.
My rating reflects a 5 for the food and a 3 (2.5 maybe?) for the setting/decor. Everything was clean and presentable, just not warm and inviting. Hours: Open till 10:00 pm most nights, even Monday! Price: Entrees are approximately $10 - $14 The food was so good and the service was very friendly!
Myrzzy T.
Argh, I knew I should have just gone somewhere else, but I was starving and this was on my way home so picking up food was super easy. I first tried this place over a year ago and the food really seemed just mediocre at the time - but I decided to give it another chance last week, and was let down once again. My shahi paneer, while medium spicy just as I had requested, was RIDICULOUSLY salty. My kidneys were dying afterwards, to the point where I drank at least 3 giant glasses of water (and I hate water with a passion, but I was seriously that thirsty, plus, there are so many damn calories in shahi paneer I couldn't justify drinking anything with calories at that point). Vegetable samosas - also salty - how does this happen?? My attempts to drown out the saltiness with the sauces was hindered by how thick they both were, I felt like I needed a spoon to eat the sauce with, which definitely gave me pause. Also, I'm pretty sure they overcharged me for these, but I was so tired when I picked up the food that I didn't feel like arguing over a dollar difference. Garlic naan. Unremarkable. Lots of garlic, which I like. Thin and greasy though, which I really don't. Maybe eating there would be a better option than getting takeout, but at this point I really don't think I'll bother. Bottom line: in my experience there are definitely several other Indian restaurants in the area that are far more worthy of your time and money. From now on, I'll be going to one of those, or getting my Indian fix in Boston or NYC.
Stephanie M.
The best Indian Restaurant in the Capital Region. Not overpriced, attentive staff, and the best new dinner option-a mini buffet. They have one with six different vegetarian options (chef's choice) and one with meat options instead. I felt like a queen with all the little bowls on a huge sliver platter. It hit the spot on a night when I wasn't sure what I wanted to order. And, it included a bowl of dessert, too! All for something like $12.99. Weekend and weekday brunch is also great, many different selections, sometimes unusual ones, too. They always include a little something extra such as a mango lassi or appetizer for free with the buffet purchase.
Sean L.
With 7 indian restaurantes in albany proper alone, there is a lot of competition. Having been to all seven (and probably 20 indian places state wide), Royal India definitely stands out as the best. I have had buffet and sit-down dinner, and have never been dissapointed. Each dish has a distinct and deep flavor. I don't have a favorite because everything is good. Try: chicken tiki masala, aloo ghobi, navratan korma, malai kofta, palak paneer, dahl mahkini. The only point of criticism, is that the one waiter is essentially mute. Im not sure if its because he doesn't speak english well, or what?
The food was excellent, although on our visit there this past Saturday night, the place was almost empty. Our waiter was efficient but was entirely non-chatty to point of almost being rude. I had chicken saag and we got the vegetable medley as an app and both were well made and presented. My dad got some kind of royal rice dish that was huge, although the presentation was something to be desired since it looked like it was cooked in a round tin and then just jumped onto the plate and had maintained that shape. But everyone reported their food good and the prices are reasonable so I'll be going back, assuming the place survives.
Unmesh K.
Short version - the food is good. My girlfriend, who is not Indian, thought the food was excellent and would probably have given it 5 stars. I thought the food was good too. It was definitely one of the best ones I've had in a while. Will definitely go back. Long version - This is the first Indian place my girlfriend and I have been to in Albany and the food was good. I'm from India and I thought the food tasted authentic. We split Samosas for the appetizer. She then had the masala dosa. It was crispy though the filling was a little spicy for her taste. But she really enjoyed it. For around $8 it's a great deal. The sambar and cocount chutney that came with it were delicious. I had the paneer makhani and it was creamy and delicious. We also had a couple of naans - a plain one and a paneer naan (highly recommended). The total bill came to around $35. In addition to having the standard dishes that people asociate with Indian restaurants (most of which are North Indian), Royal India also has a number of South Indian dishes (dosa being one of them) and I'm willing to bet they are made correctly because the people who run it are from Southern India (a state called Kerala.) I'm from Kerala too so I had a pleasent conversation with the server in my native language. I'd also recommend trying out something from their seafood section (fish molee or fish curry are good choices) since kerala cuisine is well known for it.
Ticia G.
after reading the rave reviews of this place and after having been here when it was a semi-gangsta club where i got patted down the one time i came here to see my brother spin, i was curious. especially as i have been feeling let down by the indian restaurants around albany lately. i was Very pleased. after ignoring the obvious cheesy nightclub air that still hangs about the restaurant, we were seated in the mirror lined back room. i have to say that i like that idea, it lent a feeling of roominess and light to the room that otherwise would have felt closed in and dowdy (the pictures were all haphazardly hung at various angles around the room). our sever was very friendly and efficient. i loved the starting app they gave us to munch on while we perused the menu and enjoyed the attentiveness to our water glasses. i decided to try the mulligatawny and was Oh So Pleased. david and i split it and every bite was a delicous as the one preceeding it. the naan was light and fresh. the dishes were all very tasty and we had enough left over for lunch. all in all, i would say this is a really nice place to go with great service. the only drawback (but not enough to drop a star) was the prices. the dishes were around $12.95 each. at least $3 more than any other place in albany. still, worth the trip and worth coming back. - just ignore the broken down cars in the lot. they are only a diversion.
Daniel B.
Bless you Cynthia. Not only was the food at this place was awesome, but our waiter was incredibly generous to boot. Came with the family, and what can I say, the little one is a charmer. I think some people are tickled to see a cute little blonde white baby at an indian restaurant. So our waiter kept on bringing Little B. small bites to eat. A pakora here, a gulab jamin there, some mango pudding. It was crazy. Turns out that there was a big party coming in later that night, and the kitchen was making lots of extra food. I thought the Dosa crepe was awsome. I was less thrilled about the filling. But it was still tasty, and I agree about the coconut goo and the sambar. So happy about this place. So so happy. Gotta get back and try more stuff. Think that eating warming indian spices here will be critical for making it through the winter. Plus it will keep my house from smelling of curry. All good things.
Cynthia C.
Central Ave never ceases to amaze. I should just go into all the restaurants on Central Ave that look like I'd never want to go into them. This place follows the Albany modus operandi: Looks like a dump on the outside, astonishingly tasty on the inside. It's a lot like Van's Vietnamese Restaurant except it's Indian food. To my surprise, they had dosas, my favorite, and litmus test for Indian restaurants. I had the Mysore dosa and, again to my surprise, it was one of the better dosas I've had. It was even better than many I've had in Silicon Valley, especially since thing have gone way downhill back west. The dosa was HUGE and not greasy at all, delectably crispy, the potato filling nice and spicy. Only $6.50. We continued the pancake theme with a hot chili uttapam which was also super good. The coconut paste thing accompanying both the uttapam and the dosa was also one of the best renditions I have had and not colored a gicky green like most of them are. The sambar was nice too. We also had vegetable biryani, really nice and spicy in a lovely way. Also saag paneer, which I think was the best saag paneer I had anywhere. After sampling just about all the mediocre Indian food in Albany, it was a fantastic treat to encounter this place, which is hands down the best I've had in Albany so far. However, I haven't tried Karavalli yet which my friend says is the absolute best anywhere. The cooks at Royal India understand the art of Indian spices, and know what individual spices enhance the ingredients of each dish. At the mediocre Indian restaurants, everything tastes the same no matter what you get. Tip, we asked for everything SPICY. She asked us how spicy and we said SPICY. Even the papadams were really good. Not overdone like a lot of them you get, but perfectly done and ivory colored. The icing on the cake? A huge parking lot !!!!! Yay!
It was too quiet just me n roomate and the bar maid..but very clean and bar maiden very polite n friendly.. would go back again when busyer..
Great Drinks pool table
Owner doesn't keep up
Enjoyed myself
This WAS a great place for genuine SOUTHERN Indian cuisine. Alas and alack -- it is long closed -- having morphed into a sports tavern.
I'll rank this place second best after Karavalli in Latham, NY. The Indian food is excellent both takeout and eat-in. They are good at South Indian cuisine (dosas, uttappas, idlis etc) but have managed to do justice to Notrh Indian type dishes as well! A must have is the Chicken tikka masala, it's the creamiest Ive ever had and any of the dosas, a south Indian speciality! The weekend buffets are also very varied and tasty, definitely worth the prices (about $15/person for the buffet).
My rating reflects a 5 for the food and a 3 (2.5 maybe?) for the setting/decor. Everything was clean and presentable, just not warm and inviting. Hours: Open till 10:00 pm most nights, even Monday! Price: Entrees are approximately $10 - $14 The food was so good and the service was very friendly!
Argh, I knew I should have just gone somewhere else, but I was starving and this was on my way home so picking up food was super easy. I first tried this place over a year ago and the food really seemed just mediocre at the time - but I decided to give it another chance last week, and was let down once again. My shahi paneer, while medium spicy just as I had requested, was RIDICULOUSLY salty. My kidneys were dying afterwards, to the point where I drank at least 3 giant glasses of water (and I hate water with a passion, but I was seriously that thirsty, plus, there are so many damn calories in shahi paneer I couldn't justify drinking anything with calories at that point). Vegetable samosas - also salty - how does this happen?? My attempts to drown out the saltiness with the sauces was hindered by how thick they both were, I felt like I needed a spoon to eat the sauce with, which definitely gave me pause. Also, I'm pretty sure they overcharged me for these, but I was so tired when I picked up the food that I didn't feel like arguing over a dollar difference. Garlic naan. Unremarkable. Lots of garlic, which I like. Thin and greasy though, which I really don't. Maybe eating there would be a better option than getting takeout, but at this point I really don't think I'll bother. Bottom line: in my experience there are definitely several other Indian restaurants in the area that are far more worthy of your time and money. From now on, I'll be going to one of those, or getting my Indian fix in Boston or NYC.
The best Indian Restaurant in the Capital Region. Not overpriced, attentive staff, and the best new dinner option-a mini buffet. They have one with six different vegetarian options (chef's choice) and one with meat options instead. I felt like a queen with all the little bowls on a huge sliver platter. It hit the spot on a night when I wasn't sure what I wanted to order. And, it included a bowl of dessert, too! All for something like $12.99. Weekend and weekday brunch is also great, many different selections, sometimes unusual ones, too. They always include a little something extra such as a mango lassi or appetizer for free with the buffet purchase.
With 7 indian restaurantes in albany proper alone, there is a lot of competition. Having been to all seven (and probably 20 indian places state wide), Royal India definitely stands out as the best. I have had buffet and sit-down dinner, and have never been dissapointed. Each dish has a distinct and deep flavor. I don't have a favorite because everything is good. Try: chicken tiki masala, aloo ghobi, navratan korma, malai kofta, palak paneer, dahl mahkini. The only point of criticism, is that the one waiter is essentially mute. Im not sure if its because he doesn't speak english well, or what?
Restaurantji Recommends
The food was excellent, although on our visit there this past Saturday night, the place was almost empty. Our waiter was efficient but was entirely non-chatty to point of almost being rude. I had chicken saag and we got the vegetable medley as an app and both were well made and presented. My dad got some kind of royal rice dish that was huge, although the presentation was something to be desired since it looked like it was cooked in a round tin and then just jumped onto the plate and had maintained that shape. But everyone reported their food good and the prices are reasonable so I'll be going back, assuming the place survives.
Short version - the food is good. My girlfriend, who is not Indian, thought the food was excellent and would probably have given it 5 stars. I thought the food was good too. It was definitely one of the best ones I've had in a while. Will definitely go back. Long version - This is the first Indian place my girlfriend and I have been to in Albany and the food was good. I'm from India and I thought the food tasted authentic. We split Samosas for the appetizer. She then had the masala dosa. It was crispy though the filling was a little spicy for her taste. But she really enjoyed it. For around $8 it's a great deal. The sambar and cocount chutney that came with it were delicious. I had the paneer makhani and it was creamy and delicious. We also had a couple of naans - a plain one and a paneer naan (highly recommended). The total bill came to around $35. In addition to having the standard dishes that people asociate with Indian restaurants (most of which are North Indian), Royal India also has a number of South Indian dishes (dosa being one of them) and I'm willing to bet they are made correctly because the people who run it are from Southern India (a state called Kerala.) I'm from Kerala too so I had a pleasent conversation with the server in my native language. I'd also recommend trying out something from their seafood section (fish molee or fish curry are good choices) since kerala cuisine is well known for it.
after reading the rave reviews of this place and after having been here when it was a semi-gangsta club where i got patted down the one time i came here to see my brother spin, i was curious. especially as i have been feeling let down by the indian restaurants around albany lately. i was Very pleased. after ignoring the obvious cheesy nightclub air that still hangs about the restaurant, we were seated in the mirror lined back room. i have to say that i like that idea, it lent a feeling of roominess and light to the room that otherwise would have felt closed in and dowdy (the pictures were all haphazardly hung at various angles around the room). our sever was very friendly and efficient. i loved the starting app they gave us to munch on while we perused the menu and enjoyed the attentiveness to our water glasses. i decided to try the mulligatawny and was Oh So Pleased. david and i split it and every bite was a delicous as the one preceeding it. the naan was light and fresh. the dishes were all very tasty and we had enough left over for lunch. all in all, i would say this is a really nice place to go with great service. the only drawback (but not enough to drop a star) was the prices. the dishes were around $12.95 each. at least $3 more than any other place in albany. still, worth the trip and worth coming back. - just ignore the broken down cars in the lot. they are only a diversion.
Bless you Cynthia. Not only was the food at this place was awesome, but our waiter was incredibly generous to boot. Came with the family, and what can I say, the little one is a charmer. I think some people are tickled to see a cute little blonde white baby at an indian restaurant. So our waiter kept on bringing Little B. small bites to eat. A pakora here, a gulab jamin there, some mango pudding. It was crazy. Turns out that there was a big party coming in later that night, and the kitchen was making lots of extra food. I thought the Dosa crepe was awsome. I was less thrilled about the filling. But it was still tasty, and I agree about the coconut goo and the sambar. So happy about this place. So so happy. Gotta get back and try more stuff. Think that eating warming indian spices here will be critical for making it through the winter. Plus it will keep my house from smelling of curry. All good things.
Central Ave never ceases to amaze. I should just go into all the restaurants on Central Ave that look like I'd never want to go into them. This place follows the Albany modus operandi: Looks like a dump on the outside, astonishingly tasty on the inside. It's a lot like Van's Vietnamese Restaurant except it's Indian food. To my surprise, they had dosas, my favorite, and litmus test for Indian restaurants. I had the Mysore dosa and, again to my surprise, it was one of the better dosas I've had. It was even better than many I've had in Silicon Valley, especially since thing have gone way downhill back west. The dosa was HUGE and not greasy at all, delectably crispy, the potato filling nice and spicy. Only $6.50. We continued the pancake theme with a hot chili uttapam which was also super good. The coconut paste thing accompanying both the uttapam and the dosa was also one of the best renditions I have had and not colored a gicky green like most of them are. The sambar was nice too. We also had vegetable biryani, really nice and spicy in a lovely way. Also saag paneer, which I think was the best saag paneer I had anywhere. After sampling just about all the mediocre Indian food in Albany, it was a fantastic treat to encounter this place, which is hands down the best I've had in Albany so far. However, I haven't tried Karavalli yet which my friend says is the absolute best anywhere. The cooks at Royal India understand the art of Indian spices, and know what individual spices enhance the ingredients of each dish. At the mediocre Indian restaurants, everything tastes the same no matter what you get. Tip, we asked for everything SPICY. She asked us how spicy and we said SPICY. Even the papadams were really good. Not overdone like a lot of them you get, but perfectly done and ivory colored. The icing on the cake? A huge parking lot !!!!! Yay!