India Mahal Restaurant

Nice place to have Indian food! We are traveling across the US and decided to pick up the dinner at India Mahal Restaurant. Turned out that it was a great decision!!! We ordered chicken curry, a daal and Peas paneer. All of them were wonderful and freshly prepared. The best thing about them was that they gave us chappati breads instead of tandoori Nan’s because they stay fresh for longer periods.
The owner was fantastic! He provided us the extra salads and took care to provide additional plates etc so that we can get on our way quickly and enjoy food at the destination. Loved the place (Chattanooga!) loved the restaurant and the attitude — and the food was awesome!

Delicious every time we go, and the owner is so nice. He know how a business should be ran. We are vegan and he was very helpful with suggesting things for us. We enjoyed everything

The buffet is definitely worth going to! Great customer service, great food. Absolutely loved it!!!

If you’ve never had Indian food before the lunch buffet is worth a shot. Nothing on the buffet is spicy-​hot nor is it overly spiced.
Even those who have been eating Indian food for years will agree the food quality is above average especially for a buffet. I came here with my wife and son to try it on a weekend and was pleasantly surprised. The buffet was regularly replenished while we were there. The Tandori chicken was juicy and flavorful, not dried and leathery like other places. The naan was fresh, crispy outside and pillowy inside glistening with clarified butter on top (ghee). I did not try the basmati rice but instead went straight to the vegetable biryani rice which was fantastic both in flavor and texture. The chicken curry was perfect for dipping naan into as well as pouring over rice. There was plenty of boneless thigh meat in the curry. And the chicken Makhni was very rich and creamy and not at all what I expected.
Do not expect to be hit by a wall of spice at this place especially for the buffet which I suspect is tuned towards the average palate. However there was plenty of flavor in their food.
The building and the parking lot look almost abandoned which I assume turns most people off to even entering the place. You will however be pleasantly surprised by super friendly waitstaff and really good food here.

This place is incredible. The buffet is the best Indian I’ve had in a while. I’m kicking myself for not having gone sooner.

If you are looking for a genuine and authentic Indian food experience, then this is a must-​do for you. The owners are incredibly friendly and the food is fresh and condiments used are just right.

Very good lunch buffet for $ 10. I’ve even gone twice in one week. Haven’t been for dinner yet but the menu looks good and reasonable. Tons of variety compared to other buffets I’ve been to. Their tandoori chicken was a little dry though and I would be disappointed if I ordered it off the menu. All of their currys were great.

This is one of 3 Indian restaurants that I know of in Chattanooga. Even though they have a lunch buffet, I usually go here for dinner. It may not be the fanciest restaurant, but it’s never very crowded so it’s a nice quite environment and the booths have a nice private feel so it’s good for a date night. Food is always fresh. We can’t ever decide whether the dal makhni or the yellow dal is our favorite so we order both and split them. The aloo naan and onion chutney are also very good. The staff/​owners are always very friendly and provide great service.

Very solid food with incredibly kind staff/​owners. Had the Shahi Paneer Korma and Malai Kofta — both were so, so delicious! The raita was also very good. Definitely recommend this place for pickup, delivery or dine-​in. You really gotta try this place if you appreciate Indian cuisine!

Family owned business. You can see their family and kids hanging around. They have the best malai kofta ever!!! Will go back whenever I am in town!!!

Well, if you’ve seen any of my other reviews about this type of food, you know I’m a bit picky. So, please take what I’m saying with a grain of salt.
This place was not crowded when we visited for dinner on a weekend night and that kind of worried me; however, we decided to try it out anyway. Unfortunately, this was probably the worst food I’ve ever had at a desi restaurant. We tried the goat curry and the chili chicken — neither were good or very fresh tasting. The goat curry had a lot of tomato paste or sauce and that gave it a sour taste. It definitely was not worth the price to us. My husband is generally a very easy going guy about food but even he was agreeing with me. On a positive note, the restaurant itself seemed relatively clean inside and the service was fine.

Soooo good! I love this place! The food is amazing and the owner is a great guy who takes so much pride in serving his customers. Check out the lunch buffet any day of the week from 11am-​3pm if you want to try it out.

I had not been to this place in four years and the manager recognized me immediatly. Best Indian food in Chattanooga. Love it.

Our first trip to the India Mahal. I haven’t eaten Indian Cuisine in about 15 years and I remember it being really spicy!
Here, they will let you select the spice level of your food from mild to super hot. The food is delicious and a good experience for us.
We came early on a Thursday evening (around 5 pm) and beat the crowd. There was only 1 other party there.
I had Chicken Jalfrezi — Boneless Chicken cooked with vegetables, herbs & spices. My wife had Chicken Saag — Boneless Chicken cooked with spinach and sautéed in butter with fresh spices.
They brought them to the table in oblong metal dishes along with a dish of rice, so we were able to share the two entrees.
The cost was $ 12.99 for each of us. We drank water to save on the total price. Try this place. You will like the food.

The outside of this old restaurant looks like a run-​down and bit scary place. But Inside was clean and surprisingly good fresh food. Really enjoyed their lunch. Great service too :)

I admittedly have only ate here once — it was «okay,» a tad expensive, the location is a tad grimy and my Chicken Biriyani was incredibly dry. We definitely prefer The Curry Pot over this spot.

I’m a huge fan of India Mahal!
Sukkhi and his family are some of the nicest people and they take care of their customers.
I do try to come for the buffet as often as possible, that way I can get a little of everything. However, I do come for the dinner service on occasion just so I can branch out on my options. Now, about the food.
The saag paneer at India Mahal is absolutely the BEST I have ever eaten. (And I’ve been around the block on saag.) It’s creamy, green, with a subtle heat and a nice taste of cilantro. Sooooo yummy! I have tried so many times to make this at home and just can’t seem to get nail the flavor. Which is good news for India Mahal!
One of my favorites is the mushroom matar, but they don’t make that regularly. So I do cartwheels if it’s ever on buffet. The tikka masala is awesome as is the tandoori chicken they make it from. The dal makhani is super and I love to pour it over nan and add extra onions.
The nan, pappadam, pakoras, aloo tikki, samosas… all great. Especially with house made chutneys and tamarind sauce. But before you leave, be sure and get a mango lassi or hot tea. They help fill in any gaps you may have left in your tum.
I’ve tried indian food at various other establishments, but have never found myself just blown away by my fare. While the restaurant itself may be a bit out of date, the food and service are stellar. I’ll always come home to India Mahal.

My favorite place to get Indian food! The flavor is spot on. It’s a bit more pricey than its neighbors down the street, but it’s well worth it! The other Indian place downtown is also really good, but less convenient for me and costs about the same. If you love Indian food or are wanting to try it, I highly recommend this place. My usual order is chicken tikka masala, buttered Daal and naan. Do not let the appearance hinder your decision to eat here. You can take it to-​go if you like! Your taste buds will thank you ;)

FANTASTIC! We eat here everytime we come to Chattanooga. Sometimes we drive to Chattanooga just to eat here and that’s about an hour and a half away. Great chicken makhani wheat roti’s!

Atmosphere is nicer than most Indian restaurants we’ve been to. Very clean, even slightly romantic.
There’s a buffet, which is great for big eaters!
We are vegan, so we ordered off of the menu. The food was pretty good. Not the best I’ve had, but far from the worst. I thought it was a little pricey, but I would definitely come here again. Staff was very friendly.
Their Puri (puffy bread) was smaller than normal.
Would be fine for a business meeting or very casual date.