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I'm a huge fan of Shalimar Restaurant and have been since I was in college. Upon the recommendation from a friend in college, I came here a handful of times. You order at the counter, pick your table, and they bring your food.
Forward 4 years later and I came here since me and my honey were craving Indian food. I remembered this place and it so happen to be down the street from his place. It's not the fanciest restaurant, but I feel these type of establishment have the best food. You order quickly, tell them where you're sitting and presto! Your meal is served.
We ordered Chicken Tikka Masala & Saab (w/ chicken) - spinach & chicken along with 2 huge pieces of naan bread. It was so good and so spicy! The naan bread is fresh and hot off of the clay oven. You set your own table and fetch your own pitcher of water. It's a no-fuss kind of place!
I'm definitely a fan and hope to come back! This place can super busy so be prepared to wait. And they also have free masala tea - I love it!
Cheers!
I'm definitely going to have to come back and check it out again. My first experience was disappointing. We had high expectations for this highly rated and attended place. It was also recommended by a coworker.
Part of the problem is that I didn't read enough reviews to get the fact that this is not a nice Saturday night dinner out. In fact, it's pretty insane: crowded and super busy. It would have been better to prepare oneself beforehand.
Beyond the insanity, I wasn't too impressed with the food. The bones didn't bother me because I think it adds flavor and they were large which made picking (or spitting ) them out pretty easy.
However, why did all of the curry sauces seem to taste the same? We ordered a goat curry dish which was pretty good. Also, lamb gosht and saag paneer. After eating the three together, the level of grease seemed to make all of the flavors run together. The meat was tender. It was generally flavorful, just all the same flavor.
The naan, as everyone has mentioned, was the star here. It seems like we should have ordered different dishes. I think we ended up with a few somewhat similar things. Dal would have offset the others, I think.
We'll go back and try again, but it's 3 stars, if that, for now.
I was sooo STOKED to try this Shalimar as their other locations in SF (Jones and Polk) have been my favorite for years now thanks to my sis.
We came the other week with a group of friends and I was surprised to see how crowded the restaurant was at almost 8pm. We grabbed a table and took turns ordering at the counter. The hectic nature of their ordering system made me a bit skeptical if the food was actually going to get to our table--but by the end of the night, everything was delivered--albeit it took some reminders.
The bf and I ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala, Kabli chana, and Garlic Naan. When our dished arrived I was a bit concerned because it didn't look like how the SF locations prepared their items. A few bites in and I was disappointed. This isn't MY Shalimar. :( The Tikka Masala was SUPER oily and the chicken was a bit dry. I also don't think the Chicken had enough time in the marinade as the flavor didn't seep through. The Kabli chana was pretty tasty and was what I remembered it to be. The Naan was ok but came out cold.
I'm wondering if it was just an off night because of the rave reviews this location has received. But at the end of it all, if I'm in the South Bay, I'll stick to New Indian Cuisine in Willow Glen. However, if I'm in SF, Shalimar will still have my heart.
After a full day of moving, my friend takes me to this place and orders a variety of naan, chicken tikka, and beef jarz...something, orka, and 3 sodas which came out to be about $30. You walk in and order at the cashier after looking at their paper menu. Then go to a table that you plan to eat at (or just wait at the side for take out) the wait was not long at all, just about 5 minutes after we sat. Food was pretty good, I especially liked dipping the garlic naan into the beef and orka dish. Definately filling and well worth coming back.
What a dive! Definitely nothing to look at from the outside, nor the inside. But the constant crowds either waiting in line or for a table to clear up must indicate that only deliciousness is coming out of that kitchen!
Kind of like a fast-food-but-not type of place: you order and pay (cash only) at the counter, but you help yourself with utensils and seating, and they'll bring the food to you. But hopefully you come here with at least another person or order to-go because an empty seat wasn't left empty for more than 5 seconds here!
Luckily our group of 7 didn't have to wait long for a table. Once I got a handle of how things are done here, I took a moment to look over their newspaper-sized one page menu. With so many other diners already feasting on their meals with fresh-baked naan, the smell of Indian spices surrounding me, the line at the counter getting longer and longer, I couldn't help but feel rushed and pressured to order something outstanding so I can understand what all the hype was about here! But I went with something basic. I figure if the basics are good, then their more special entrees must be amazing, right? So I had the tandoori chicken, a side of basmati rice and plain naan.
Unlike my other friends who mainly ordered chicken tikka masala and naan, and who's food came out in less than 10 minutes, my entire order was the last to arrive, nearing the end of everyone else's meal. But in the meantime, my friend Erik W. was kind enough to share his beef kebabs and two orders of garlic naan with me. He even let me dip the bread into his CTM sauce (well, I just did it without asking, but I don't think he minded). The beef kebabs had an interesting taste like no other kebabs I've tried before. I liked it. The CTM sauce was much more buttery/oily than what I'm used to, but great flavor.
And can I just say that the naan breads are HUGE! Practically double the size of what I'm used to seeing at other Indian places. The garlic naan is a MUST for garlic lovers! Whole pieces of garlic baked into this bread of warm, soft, fresh-out-of-the-oven deliciousness.
When my chicken came out piping hot, I forgot how long I had to wait for it. And let me tell you...the chicken was so moist! Moistest chicken breast I've had in a long time. And spicy, too! The rice had the authentic flavor I was looking for, and it was a great compliment to the chicken.
Be careful though: unlike some places, they don't ask you your preferred spice level. Heck, they don't have time to customize orders! They had a line at the counter that didn't go away throughout our entire meal!
This is definitely a quick and inexpensive place for dinner. I heard the lunch crowd is way worse than the dinner crowd. The downside is that you feel a bit rushed to finish your food since people are standing around waiting for tables to clear up. But if I lived in the area, I would definitely be ordering out from this place often!
The food here is out of this world. It really tastes good. The place on the other hand is a bit scary. There are bunch of men in the kitchen kooking food. The ordering system is pretty wacky because you have to order first and do not pay. Then they will bring you the food. Then you stand in line again to pay. What the ........?
Anyhow, not a very clean looking place but the food is amazing. Service sucks but for some reason I would still go back.
OWNER WAS SO RUDE! TRIED TO KICK US OUT BEFORE WE WERE DONE EATING! Food was decent. Took my parents to try Indian food for the first time. It was a busy Friday night but before we even finished eating the guy who I think was the owner asked us to leave b/c others were waiting. We told him we weren't done yet and 5 minutes later he came back and was rude to my mom telling her that he had people waiting and we needed to leave. When he came back a 3rd time, that put me over the edge and I ended up yelling/arguing w/ him.
We were paying customers trying to enjoy our dinner! We weren't loitering or sitting around chit-chatting. We were finishing up our dinner and waiting for the chai tea b/c they ran out...we got our food just before 8 and we left at 830, we were only sitting there for 30 minutes!
Because we were treated so horribly, I would never go there again or recommend it to anyone. The food was not worth the way we were treated.
So pretty much i would go there every other day. Omg the food is so original defitnely not white washed. Customer service is really nice, and quick. The food is cheap and a great quality. I would recommend the famous CTM, and garlic naan. You could feed 3 people with only 20
I eat at ethnic restaurants that have people of the same ethnicity in there. Does that make me racist?
You know it's true, you never see Chinese people eating at PF Chang's. Cuz it's not really Chinese food.
I knew Shalimar had to have good Indian food when my Indian friend introduced me to the restaurant. The place is packed full of Indian people. That can only mean one thing, they have real Indian food. And it's off the hook.
Tandoori cheicken legs are best or chicken breast as well.
It's one of those places where I feel the urge to visit every few months - "craving shalimar, wanna go?" sort of feeling, but then I'm not necessarily wowed every time! :) And yet, I'll probably continue to crave it... and visit every now and then.
This place should get the indian award of awesome.
1. Excellent quality meats and dishes
2. Service is rather quick
3. Traditional north indian/pakistani food that
My family comes here as do my relatives. When we want real deal meals that will put me to sleep later in the day, this is the place to go.
Try the kheer! You will love it.
A great place to get tasty and inexpensive Indian food. It reminds me of Biryani House in Berkeley, but perhaps slightly better quality. A bit out of the way for me normally, but a friend was running errands in Fremont today, so we met up for here for dinner.
We arrived at 5:30pm on Sunday, basically right when they opened. After looking at the menu for a bit, we ordered at the front and got a table. By the time we left, the placed was packed!
CTM - Good, pretty basic fare. Nothing special, but not bad either. Fortunately, I've never had any bad CTM before.
Tandoori lamb chops - Mmm, nicely seasoned and super tender.
Palak paneer - Another standard dish that was pretty good.
"King of curries" - I forgot the full name, but the menu described it as king of curries and it was the first one listed under curries. Pretty good.
We ordered another chicken curry dish, but also forgot the name. Was delicious though, and the chicken melted right off the bone. mmmm
Grand total per person with two naans, rice, two mango lassis, two chais = $10. Wow, such a great deal!
Our plates seemed a bit dirty, so we all wiped them with napkins. Mine seemed ok, but some of my friends actually had kinda dirty plates. You might want to wipe yours with a napkin while you wait.
There were some flies/bugs around inside and later I found one had fallen onto my plate. I wiped it a few more times with a napkin and it was good as clean.
The bathroom is kinda gross, but has a granite counter top!? Weird.
Come early and with lots of friends so you can sample lots of dishes. :P
Shalimar is Pakistani food, as real as it can get outside the country. If you don't like oil, meat or carbs, don't go! It takes me days to recover- it's that intense, but I love it!
The chicken Biriyani is mostly chicken, not much rice, in a nice turn around from the norm. The roasted meats are as good as you'll find anywhere, any cuisine. The nan is huge and perfect. The Dal is unlike any other I've tasted in this area- yellow split pea, not mashed up, heavy on the cinnamon- a must! The lambchops are good too. the Bengan Bharta is good, but it's good other places too. Tea is included, and you help yourself to tamirind and mint sauces in ketchup bottles.
/thge Fremont shalimar is a bit more atmospheric with the paintings of Lahore, but the food is about the same. SHABASH!
BAD DRIVERS ABOUND - BEWARE, THE AREA IS NOT SAFE!!!
Food is great but my, the place seems to attract the worst, most stupid drivers around! Even if the food is great, I will not come back to this place! There are too many incidents and in almost all of my visits to this place! Tonight, I've had enough!
One stupid driver in a minivan deliberately spilled coffee on my car windshield! This after he blocked the road waiting for a parking without any consideration of cars not being able to pass! I was behind him and had no space to let the opposite traffic pass so I blinked my lights to request for space and no, he wouldn't move. Finally, I honked at him (a very brief honk!) and that's when he got pissed, gave me the finger sign, approached me and verbally harrassed me! And then, he spilled my car with coffee! good thing my kid caught his license plate so beware of this man! silver gray minivan with plate 5URD62_
The restaurant did not even stop or prevent this man from harrassing me! A lady in the other restaurant nearby told me there's usually a traffic altercation in the area between the various Indian drivers visiting the place and the police is usually called. Apparently, a fight broke out just last week!
So even if food is great, it is NOT worth it if they cannot make the place safe! Something needs to be done!
I'm sure I'm not the only one who has encountered these rude, inconsiderate and stupid drivers in this area! NO MORE!
Love love love this place. The prices are good, the food is fantastic. The service is alright, the place is ALWAYS busy so the staff tends to rush you but it's well worth it. The only thing that gives this place 4 out of 5 stars is the bathroom. Ick. My only guess (hope) is that the bathroom is gross because they are always slamming busy.
The first that I went to this restaurant was an invitation from a friend for the last 6 years. Boy, I really enjoyed the tandoori chicken, chicken tikka marsala and the lamb chops. Also their regular and garlic naan were also delicious.
Before their interior and ambience was too dull and very hot because of their tandoori charcoal ovens, and no ac or electric fans were non-existent.
Then I came today on late September 2009, their interior changed with few paintings filled with Indian and Pakistani famous buildings, 3 Zagat Awards from 2006, 2007 and 2008 filled with good reviews about their authenticity of their menu, food and culture. But there were no ac or electric fans. You can only smell the smokes coming from the ovens. Probably that won't change.
As for the food, it is really good and you just want more. I am not kidding. I always get the charcoal oven chicken( breast or leg), lamb or beef. And other selections are good too.
They offer free chai, and water. They serve mango lassi, canned sodas, water for beverages. This place is best for take -out whenever this place is crowded on lunch rush hour or on the weekends. So whenever you want a craving of Indian and Pakistani foods, you can call them. And then you can pick it up after 15 to 20 minutes later to avoid the crowds.
A restaurant where I can go back because it is available in Fremont and close to where I live compared to Pakwan.
This is the sister store to the ones in San Francisco. This is luxurious compared to the one in San Francisco.
They are an excellent value. You can easily feed two people for $16. I haven't eaten their more expensive dishes.
Be aware that the food is oily and it's an order at counter, pay cash only at end.
Also, don't get put off by the brusque treatment by the main guy (with the beard) -- that's just his seriousness about being efficient. He's not like the Soup Nazi...
Looking for a legit indian dive without the "gringo" influence? Well I was, and I believe I've come close to gold. Let me lay the evidence, and you be the jury.
1. Walking in, the first thing you notice on a Sunday afternoon, is the joint is packed with indian families. No matter what ethnic restaurant you go to, if the immigrants find this place worth crowding and waiting in line for, you have instant legit brownie points there.
2. The dishes are great. No crazy explosions of pepper balls or foreign spices that make you shout "SHALIMAR!". Just straight up good marsala, curry dishes, rice dishes, and naan. I would say that the naan is smaller than other indian places I've been to, but just as fresh and yummy.
3. Good indian onion-topped-with-juice-y stuff side dishes. We watched the regulars fill their plates with this stuff with spritzes of lemon juice and other spices in a bottle. It was a nice complement to any spice or flavor-saturated dish you need to wash down with some familiar crunch. Kinda like kimchi with your main stew dish at a korean restaurant. mmm...kimchi...
Verdict?
I was sold after #1.
This place was delicious! Perhaps I don't come from a land of delicious Indian food, but I really enjoyed Shalimar. The self-service is a little confusing at first, but adds to the feel of authenticity. When my boyfriend and I went, we were the only two non-Indian/Pakistani people in the room.
Definitely try the mango lassi.
I'm glad I read a few yelps prior to coming here so that I would understand the ordering system, otherwise I would have been totally pissed about the service.
1) Find your seat
2) Grab your menu at the counter
3) Order your food at the counter
4) Grab your condiments, sauce bottles are in the fridge, water pitchers and drinks are in the fridge, and cups are at the counter.
5) Pay when you order or after your meal
The tandoori chicken was very good, it had the tandoori oven taste to it. The Chicken Masala (butter chicken) was amazing, I wish i had some right now as a matter of fact. The spinach w/ cheese was good except for the big cheese bits. The chick peas were average at best. The Naan and garlic Naan was awesome. The rice was rice, nothing spectacular.
Great food w/ no frills service.
Ate there for the first time a few nights ago with my wonderful daughter. We both love Indian food....and we think we have had some good Indian food around the bay area.
BUT...this place was really better than we had hoped. The chicken tiki masala that everyone raved about was o.k., not quite the killer dish we had hoped for.
However, the goat was so good it nearly made us weep. Sweet Jesus was it good.
We also had the spinach / potato dish that was very spicy and the best we have ever had.
Garlic nan was wonderful....but spinach / potato on garlic nan dipped in the goat sauce....with onions and lemon juice on top....OH MY GOODNESS.
We left there reeking of goodness.
When I got home my wife said she could smell me from 30 feet away.
Ignore these whiners on this site who think they are going to the Ritz and expect linen service and a waiter.
This is very standard for a restaurant of this sort. Order your food like a big boy....( all by yourself ) then sit your behind down and have the best dinner for $10 bucks you could ever hope to have.
Oily? Yes! IT'S INDIAN FOOD PEOPLE!!!!!
HOT ??? OH YEAH.
NOISY?? YOU BETCHA!!
Service? Please. They bring you your food in record time and then they are busy doing the same thing for the throngs of people there.
You want service? Go to S.F. and pay hundreds of dollars to have some waiter fawn over you.
Want killer food at a killer price?
Grow up and come into this place.
Another yelp-er let down on my short trip to the bay.
Food: Me and my GF ordered the garlic naan, regular naan, chicken tikka masala, chicken korma, and tandoori chicken. The naans were excellent, fluffy and crispy. The chicken tikka masala was a little underwhelming. It was covered in oil, and the flavor was not there. You could taste that the flavor was trying to tickle your taste buds, but it fell short and couldn't make it past that barrier into the awesomely mouthgasmic flavor region. Same went for the chicken korma. It was all a little too bland. The tandoori chicken was pretty good though, we got the breast piece, but felt that there wasn't enough meat.
Service: pretty non-existent, but for the prices, and the busy nature of this place, who cares? Get your own drinks, silverware, plates, sauces, and order at the counter and wait for your food to come. Simple.
Overall, it was a decent meal. I'm fairly new to Indian/Pakistani food, so i don't really know if it was really supposed to be like that. Maybe other restaurants i have been to have just been adding extra flavor and kick into their dishes. All I know is that when i eat indian food, i want it do be flavor sensory overload, and that's not what i experienced here. I probably won't be back. I'll continue my search for excellent indian places in the bay area.
Two stars for how I really didn't like it. Three stars taking into consideration how I don't like Indian food unless it's really good, so it's like a handicapping re-imbursement. Going to India for work used to be my fat farm, I used to slim down every trip and come home svelte again. The basic middle-class restaurants served dishes so grease-laden that I would spend the first 10 minutes carefully dipping out spoonfuls of oil onto the saucer. The sauces were an amalgamation of flavors cooked down into a bland characterless slop. Vegetables were cooked until you were sure that they were really dead. So I'd only eat simple tandoori and plain naan. An Indian man once told me; "we have no tradition of restaurants, our good cooking is in the home. That is why our restaurants are not good." And it was true, the home-cooked food I had was good. But once a trip I would deal with the unpleasantness of cheating taxi-drivers after a hard day's work and go to a 5 star hotel to eat. The menu and preparations were varied. The flavors were incredible and distinct. Singing aromatic flavors. Delicious food. Truly among the world's great cuisines.
So at Shalimar I got the chicken tikka marsala, garlic naan, and mango lassi. The chicken marsala was exactly like what I used to get in India, greasy bland and enough to make going on a diet easy. The garlic naan was doughy and overstuffed with raw garlic. Was this the garlic-eater's challenge? It certainly didn't enhance the naan. The mango lassi had an artificial processed flavor and a metallic tang. And remembering how beautifully prepared Indian food can be, nope, only two stars.
Utter and complete chaos.
This place is jam-packed. And NOISY. The noise level is similar to being at a street faire while in a restaurant setting. It was teeming with people and didn't let up all night.
Surprisingly, we were seated quickly. We waited, waited, and waited, until we realized no one was coming to take our order. After flagging someone down they hurriedly informed us that we order with the cashier.
Okay, how were we supposed to know this??? Clearly all 700 people were regulars (not a huge exaggeration). Really, it was that packed. It was clear Fremont's entire Indian population eats at Shalimar. Definitely a good sign of the food we were about to sample.
No sooner had we sat down and our food arrived. Hot and steaming. The Tikka Masala was bubbly and glistening with oil. The naan aromatic and full of garlic flavor (a must-try). The rice was fluffy and seasoned well. And the Seek Kebab juicy, flavorful, and delicious. Basically, there's a reason why all these people were lining up to eat here: the food is THAT GOOD. The only disappointment was the tandoori chicken, hardly 'moist' as the menu described it. It was dry, bland, and not worth ordering.
As for atmosphere this place has a lot of it. It's noisy and crowded but something about it is strangely enjoyable. We felt like we'd been transported to India to one of the local food stalls. With the crowd, smells, sounds, delicious food and terrific (free) chai tea, this place is as authentic as you can get.
If you don't mind long lines, mobs of people, and not being able to hear yourself talk, Shalimar is the place for your Indian food fix.
The food was good but when the menu says #17 is "The king of curries... You will love it!" it should deliver. The dish is called Murghi Korma Shahi and it's... just OK. I've had tastier. They ran out of the fish special or is wasn't available, so unfortunately I cannot judge their fish curry.
The veggie dishes were good, though. We got the Mutter Paneer (peas and cheese) and the Bengen Bhujia (eggplant with onions and tomatoes). I'm not fond of peas or eggplant as a general rule, but the spices made these yummy.
Definitely get some naan and rice. The Shalimar Chawal rice is tasty but I'm pretty sure I've had better Indian rice elsewhere. I was impressed that the regular naan was not burned yet crisp in the center and flexibly soft around the edges. The Onion Kulcha was spicier than I anticipated and I wish the onions had been browned more.
Order at the cashier where there will be a huge paper menu. Bring a friend so someone grabs a table while the other orders since it's super busy. Food comes out hot in less than 10 minutes, and you either pay when you order or after you're done. Lots of Indian people and locals eating here and ordering takeout, so you won't find the service attentive (doesn't need to be). But I did see one guy in a suit grab naan from one table and give it to another. Eh?
So, been reading the reviews and hearing people claim that THIS is the best for Indian food, so had to check it out for myself.
This place is a little different on how to order, get food and pay.
First, you order the food at the counter by looking at a newspaper menu.
Second, they tell you were to sit or you tell them
Third, food comes out REALLY FAST
Fourth, you return to the counter to pay.
The flavors are great and the things we ordered were not too spicy. The portions are a little small, compared to Spice Hut. We had 3 in our party so we ordered a dish a person and fillers. It was just the right amount.
Excellent:
#17 Murghi Korma Shahi - chicken curry in yogurt blend
#20 Chicken Tikka Masala (Butter Chicken)
Mango Lassi
I'm not so into creamed spinach so SAAG Chicken was not so great, plus the amount of chicken was only a couple of pieces.
The Garlic Naan is CRAZY filled with garlic, they fill it with garlic between 2 layers of naan. Vampires aren't coming near you for a month after eating that. Ohhh, the burn!!! but good burn.
This is a cash only place.
So, I don't eat much Indian food but I was pleasantly surprised with Shalimar. I came here with my family party of 10 and we ordered Chicken Tikka Masala, Naan, Garlic Naan, Beef Kebab, Chicken Tandoori, Palak Paneer, Bengen Bhujia, Rice, Goat Karahi and a Lamb dish. I tried everything but the goat and lamb since I don't eat both types of meat, but I tried a little of everything and it was pretty good. There was a spice in the Bengen Bhujia that kind of threw me off. I think my favorites were the chicken tandoori and the palak paneer which were really good. Both plain and garlic naan were really good It was a tad bit hot in the restaurant but expected since they have the grill going.
Given that I'm not much into Indian food, this place was pretty good. My rating shows four stars but it's more like 3.5, the ordering system kind of threw me off.
Probably one of the best Indian food I've ever had! Judging by the exterior, I would never have decided to eat there, so thank you yelpers for all the great reviews which made me want to go here.
I can't believe how crowded this place was, but everything moved along quickly and we were seated within 10 mins. We ordered and got our food almost instantaneously. They had messed up on my order of naan so we ended up getting one extra one, you can never have too much naan! I really love how this place is set up, its like a fast food setting with great restaurant quality food, which speeds up the order time and delivery of food. The front has self served unlimited onion and jalapeno with an assortments of spices, unlimited free milk tea, and to go boxes.
After reading some reviews on the garlic naan, I knew I had to try it. Probably a mistake though. Seriously, it seems like they added in a pound of minced garlic between the layers of naan. It made me feel conspicuous about my breath for the rest of the night. It would have been so good if they had added in a fourth of the amount. Oh well, the regular naan is a lot cheaper and better anyways.
This place is awesome! The price makes it a 5 stars for me! Where else can you get such a great dinner for under $10?
POOR HYGIENE
WE have been going to Shalimar in Fremont for a few years now. Know very well that it is a no frill Dhaba. We love Dhaba food. But this time the quality of the weekend chicken biryani was a 4/5 on a scale of 10, dry meat, no taste of spices. The chicken Biryani is one of our favorite. The rest of food was average.
The problem came when we had to go and wash hands (after eating by hands). There was no hand wash soap and hand napkins in either of the toilets. I went and requested 2 times on the front counter, but nothing moved. One person was busy passing the orders to the other person and that person to the third person - in the end no soap and no napkins !!! The toilets are dirty to start with.
I know in quite a few Indian/Pakistani places in USA providing clean toilet facilities is a waste. But please remember when you charge in Dollars don't try to provide the service in Rupees - it stinks. If you want charge a bit more, please do, but please have clean toilets. We have come this far, let us leran some good American habits for a change.
I love garlic, this garlic naan is SO good, (bring lots of gum afterwards). Yummy Mango Lassi, delicious tandoori chicken, the various curries are all tasty although a few were a little on the salty side for my taste-all the better to eat more naan I guess. I preferred the various creamy curries.
CASH only, service is efficient, flavorful food, very busy and chatty, not the place for like a romantic quiet dinner but one of my local favorites.
Wish they would stop using so freaking many styrofoam cups and boxes though-a greenware salesman needs to stop here...
Interesting service and setup:
No official waiters, per se. You order your food prior to getting seated, then get seated, have your food, then pay at the same counter at which you originally ordered.
At times, it can be somewhat chaotic with how the restaurant is run, but it seems like they have a very efficient system going.
As for the food, insanity. It's very good... juicy meats, unbelievable garlic naan, and an overall flavorful experience.
The restaurant is very big-group friendly... so bring your friends and family!
This is a fantastic hole in the wall place....flavors are very good! It's not your traditional indian/pakistani restaurant, you have to order at the counter, get your own plates but they bring the food out. It's kinda funky so be prepared. The food is very well priced and good size portions.
We had 7 adults and 4 kids and ate like kings for $65!
This is by far the most famous place to eat in the Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi community. The food is extremely oily, I have had better naans (Pakwaan), and almost packed with people. People can get thrown off by their ordering style but this is pretty standard practice in self serve places. I go here on and off, there have been days when I have had a bad stomach the next day. If you are having dinner here, be prepared to spend sometime in the bathroom the following morning.
I dont visit it that often now as the food is extremely oily, place is not that clean, and food quality has dropped over the years. Parking can be a problem at times. They have good chai. I normally go there to get the tandoori chicken or the seekh kabab as these two are the only dishes with low oil concentration.
Yes, it's a dive. And yes, there are plastic chairs and tables. But, this is real deal Pakistani food. There is no pre-cooking of the chicken, the air is thick with masala's, you can hear the meat and break sing on the coals and grill. The line is long from the beginning, and you need to be patient for your food to get ready. They have great naan, sauces, raita, and grab a drink 'cause there is some good spiciness happening. You might just want to take a nap after the meal, and you will want to return. So, don't get fancy when ordering, get some Tikka Masala, Tandoori, naan and raita, see where to go from there!
I guess I'll round up but I really want to give this place a 3.5. For the price and portions. I went there to get it to go since I just wanted to relax at home and stuff. I ordered the palak paneer, chicken tikka masala and 2 garlic nans. Now, most places I go to usually give smaller portions so even though I ordered a lot I didn't think it was going to be much since I do like to eat. However, it was a lot of food for me. I neded up eating it for a couple days which was still good in my book. All that food for a 2-3 days for me was around 20 dollars.
The palak paneer was my favorite. It was with the right amount of spice and tasted amazing. Slightly chunkier than what I've had before but that's just how I like it.
Garlic nan was huge. I should've ordered just one. It was filled with garlic. I think it was more garlic than nan which was ok since I'm a garlic lover but I can see how some people were turned off by it. I had to make sure that was only going to be eaten at home. By the way I still have remants of the garlic scent in my car even with putting the windows down and using an air freshner...that's how garlicky it is...
Chicken tikki masala was not something I have had like that before. I usually get a creamy consistency with mellow spices. This chicken was spicey, full of flavor, and greasy. I wasn't much of a fan of it. Tasted good but I could see the grease/butter to it which I know it's basically its name but it's not something attractive to me. Don't think I'll get this again.
Overall, this hole in the wall served pretty good food. Spicier food I'm not used to but do like I have to come back again to try their kabobs and such.
i loved all the food here... especially the chicken dishes.
the only thing is that the actual restaurant is very very ugly...it literly reminder of an indian "dhaba" in INDIa...so not a compliment.
but since the food was awesome...i would recommend take out...
One of the number one things I crave is delicious, spicy, full flavored curry with a good piece of sturdy, thick, hot naan for dipping. Shalimar is definitely the place for a good piece of naan. Lets face it, as different as Indian/Pakistani food is compared to many other cuisines, a lot of the time curries tend to start tasting the same from restaurant to restaurant. I can easily say that Shalimar definitely is not one of those. I will be honest and say that I am not going to try to sound out or type or spell the names of the food there because I am not trying to offend anyone alright? I'm just going to describe everything I've tried so far.
We will start with the curry that I actually ate just a few hours ago with my mom. Its the first chicken curry on the front of the menu in the center of the page, the other dish I tried tonight was the spinach with paneer. Both of these were amazing, for some reason when it comes to this restaurant, even with all of the curries I've had from other Indian restaurants, their flavors always wake up my taste buds. These two dishes definitely were made with a lot of spices and lots and lots of love. Looking in the kitchen, there are no random workers putting pre-made this and that's into a large skillet, there are men rolling out thick dough for naan and cooking behind a hot stove just as if they were cooking for a huge family. Another staple I get from any other restaurant is chicken tikka masala, unlike the chain restaurant naan n' curry, Shalimar's is extremely authentic and there is just something about it that makes naan n' curry's tikka masala seem mediocre. Their naan is my favorite out of any restaurant, hands down. Thick, crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, hot naan is the perfect complement to a great plate of curry. Lets not forget that prices are extremely affordable (about $6-$8 per plate of curry) and I always leave with my curry craving satisfied.
So, try Shalimar out! Cheers!
By far, one of the best Indian restaurants I've been to and have ever had. I used to go here a lot when I lived in the area, but ever since I've moved, I barely get the chance to come here now.
My all time favorite-their chicken tikka marsala. OMG!! It's delicious and once it hits your mouth, its so orgasmic! I love eating it with their rice because it's not all bunched up nor soggy. It's cooked perfectly. Then their Tandoori chicken is so moist that it just melts in your mouth. Be careful because it's pretty hot. Their Palak Paneer is to die for.
Here's the usual order when I go there: Chicken Tikka Marsala, Naan, rice, Tandoori chicken and mango lassi. Usually we can't finish it because its just the two of us, but we love eating it again and again.
Kudos for the seductively descriptive menu! I love it when people talk about food in my favorite language--SEX! Ha ha ha! Came here w/ some co-workers for a bday lunch.
Favorites from the table (I got the descriptions from the menu because I never know what they put in Indian nom noms):
+ Mili juli sabzi - stir-fried mix of veggies, tomatoes, and spices and herbs. Consistency = thick. Sounds super basic but it was so flavorful and tasty--prob one of the best Indian dishes I've ever had!
+ Okra - cooked w/ onions and a bunch of yum yum spices, garnished w/ ginger. Consistency = less solid than the mili juli sabzi. Once again, sounds basic but the spices they use make this dish delish!
+ Garlic naan - THE MOST GARLIC-Y NAAN EVER. One of the workers had to bring it to our table before the rest of our food came bc he said it just smelled too good! You could chew on the cloves! I love it! Our department at work wreaked of said deliciousness. MUST TRY!
Prices were very reasonable: all veggie dishes were below $6 and all other dishes were around $7.
This place filled up fast during lunch. For some, you could tell that this is a part of their usual lunch fare. Others were newbies just like us. Staff was super friendly and made us feel more than welcome.
Great food + great prices + good customer service = DING DING DING! WINNER!
Tip: Food wasn't spicy. So ask for them to make it spicy if you like it hot--I won't make the same mistake twice!
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