Shah Jee’s Restaurant

This is a place you could eat. Not a place I would eat, but a place you could. Just super watery underwhelming Chicken Masala. I’m not sure if I just don’t like pakistani or this execution left much to be desired. Maybe just cause we got there after the lunch rush and all the good stuff was gone, but the bad stuff was bad enough I wasn’t interested in giving it a second chance.

This place is an absolute hidden gem. When I lived in Milwaukee, I would go to lunch at this place every single chance I got. The food is addicting, fresh, and priced cheaply! There’s a reason for the long lines… it’s worth the wait
This place is so good it actually was featured on the Food Network!

I love shah jees. Or the shah as my friends call it. this food makes your heart strong as well as your loins. If you can, get the Roti while it lasts. Don’t forget the chutney!

Shah Jees rocks my world. I could eat this everyday. The Thursday special is amazing and make sure you don’t forgot to use the spicy green sauce or you’ll be sorry! Sometimes the line is long but it goes relatively quickly… You won’t regret eating here!

I moved out of Milwaukee last week and already miss this place. I used to go once a week AT LEAST. It’s not really ordinary Pakistani food that you’ve had elsewhere. At least for myself Cause I’ve never had it the way they make it. Nor can I find the recipe anywhere. It’s a great local mom and pop type of shop with lots of care given in their food. It’s family owned. The owner or son of the owner said they’ve been there over 20 years. And they are probably what keeps that building standing. So try it and you won’t regret it. But also support local owned businesses in MKE. I used to get chick peas, chicken and rice. Then I discovered… EVERYTHING! tell him everything and get ready to be hooked on it! Dam I want some right now!

My first impression of Shah Jee’s was to leave. My food aggression got the best of me, so I waited in the basement cafeteria line for 30 minutes around noon. I knew that if all these people would wait, I should just wait.
I had never tried Pakistani food, but I heard this was a hidden gem. People who grew up eating Pakistani food, were fans. I had heard of suggestions, so I tried the basmati rice, red lentils, and chicken masala. $ 7? I’ll take it! The owner noticed I was a new customer and helped me out with the menu, which is always appreciated and impressive! As for the taste, it is simple texture, yet a whole lot of spice! If you don’t like it, it’s because you forgot to put the green chutney sauce on!
Highly recommend and addictive! (It was cash only when I went. That might have changed since then.)

I often come here for lunch with a lot of my coworkers. The food is consistently amazing, regardless of what is on special. The chutney (green spicy sauce in the bottle by the cash register) is incredibly addicting, which is why I tend to make it a point to come in weekly. When they have it, the flat bread is a great addition to any meal
The place is in the basement of an office building, so without directions from my coworkers, I never would have found it. It’s a basic cafeteria setup: you order your meal, receive the food in paper containers on a plastic tray, pay at the register and then find a seat in the large seating area. I’d recommend showing up early — this place gets really busy during the lunch hour.
The value of the meal is really reasonable in my opinion. You get a really good portion of food for the price. A typical meal of 2 entrees, rice, bread and a drink is around $ 10. For the quality and portion sizes of the food, this is a great deal.

I love this place and try to eat here everytime I get to Milwaukee for lunch. The food is great and the pricing is reasonable. Simple set up but I have never had something that wasn’t great!

Based on my last review, some new menu items may be in order, but everything I have here is always solid! Today’s chicken masala and saag paneer was just as good as the last time I had them.

Food is horrible. Chicken is extremely dry and there’s no sign of freshness to any of the dishes offered. Rice is also dry, you will literally choke if you don’t eat with the sauce.
Terrible value, serving is the exact opposite of generous, maybe it’s because they don’t even expect you to like it.
Self serve, the atmosphere of eating there is like a school cafeteria, but with a terrible smell, absolutely not appetizing.
Cash only.

After about five or six years of my wife raving about this place I finally relented and went with her on an off-​day. Only open for lunch during the week, it’s not a place you can easily get to unless you work downtown. Others have told you the routine, decend into the food court area of that awful office building on Jefferson St and queue up. ** side note ** this monstrosity of a brick pile was built on the site of the Frederick Layton Art Museum. This one-​time meat packer donated his vast personal collection to the Milwaukee Art Museum who did not have the room for it at that time. This forced the county to build a new museum and led to a 10 year political struggle over where to build it and who would pay for it. Eventually, they settled on the lakefront site and a joint funding effort with the War Memorial. I tell you that to tell you this: if that had not happened, this building would not be here and nor would the Shah. While you are here, get the Thursday special. You can get it any day, its awesome. Be nice to the Shah, he’s great guy who cares about his customers. My wife hasn’t been here in two years and he remembered her like it was yesterday.

Friends, let me tell you my Shah story.
My first visit was years and years ago — my then-​boss was a rather curmudgeonly older man who was fanatical about cleanliness and very likely mowed his lawn in a custom made Italian suit. This man did not play. So, one day he said «I’m taking you somewhere special for lunch». I was pretty excited — the Pfister? Zarletti? Hotel Metro? Oh no — it was a hole in the wall in a sketchy office building basement where the food was served from a cafeteria steam table. I was like «really, dude?» but after one taste I was hooked. HOOKED. We had lunch here at least once a week for 5+ years.
Fast forward to present day — its been a few years since I worked downtown and I was missing the Shah something terrible. The Mister agreed to go with and was a bit taken aback at how happy an $ 8 lunch could make a person. First, the Shah remembered me, even though it’s been a few years — he thought I’d moved to France for work (from your lips to Gods Ears, my man). I ordered my old standby The Thursday and almost wept with joy. It was perfect — spicy, aromatic Pakistani deliciousness.
Here’s what you need to know:
*There are «daily specials» (I.e. the «Tuesday») but they’re all available every day
*The line will be long. Totally worth it.
*Open from 11:30−2 during the week only. Cash only. Everything is $ 8.
*There is a special green sauce in a bottle. You want to use this — generously.
*There are rotis on the menu. Sometimes, they’re actually available but mostly not. Get one if they are.
The Shah is the only thing I miss about not working downtown. It’s the real deal.

I have eaten here several times but visited the place after a long break. After eating here today I feel compelled to write this review.
I will grant all the Shah Jee fans the food is consistent and relatively flavorful. But with the recent arrivals of Mantra Bistro (in Oconomowoc) and India Garden (in Tosa) I wouldn’t say Shah Jee has the best food in town. It is average; and the lack of variety on the menu and the relative indifference of the staff makes it a less than pleasant experience. At $ 8/​plate it is not that cheap either.
So you Shah-​Jee fans gather up some courage and step out into the great unknown of trying other Indian restaurants in metro-​Milwaukee. You won’t be disappointed.

Authentic Pakistani food with just the right amount of spice and flavor! I told the guy behind the counter I’ve never been here before and he explained what all the foods were to me very well.
The basmati rice is so good that I could just get a big plate of that by itself.
Make sure 1 of your sides is the chicken masala! The spinach and potatoes are great alone as well. I ordered a side of roti (bread) and it was ok but I definitely had better.

I really liked this place — simple, good food. You know an ethnic restaurant is a good one when those of that ethnicity frequent it – this is the case here. I’m no-​carbing it at the moment, so I didn’t have rice or bread which probably would have made my dining experience much better — everything was too spicy for me, but I’m sure, if I would have had the accompanying carbs, it would have been just right.

We are just visiting the area and wanted a quick and inexpensive meal. Based on Unilocal and our location we gave this place a try.
This is a cafeteria style restaurant — you get rice with 2 «sides» (meat and vegetarian options) and a drink for $ 8. The flavor was good and my non-​rice liking partner said «I like the rice!» I enjoyed the chicken & chickpeas. Portion size was perfect for lunch. Meal was flavorful without being «too spicy» they offered the amazing green sauce to «spice it up» if we wanted hotter. It was cilantro based, too spicy for me, but my partner liked it.
Super fast & friendly service. It was obvious we didn’t know their ordering process and they immediately stepped in to help and explain.
Would come back again.

My Brother and Father and apparently everyone else on planet earth rave about this place… Finally went this week for the Wednesday Peas special and WOW what an amazing plate of food. The place is so easy and so simple it works perfectly. They know exactly what they are, what they need to be and they KILL IT. The owner is on hand doing his thing and making sure everything is quality and that the customer knows how much they’re valued.
Highly recommend… get off the burger, get out of the soup and try something new and amazing.

Those of you who have given this 5 stars. apologies in advance. I don’t mean to offend you. but this is NOT what good food tastes like.
Certainly, it is CHEAP and a good value. it is NOT bad food either.
It seems freshly made. and it seems to be catered towards Milwaukee’s bland palate.
But the taste of their curries, their rice. Very low quality food. «cheap tasting and bland» would be my summary.
There are many Indian restaurants in town, which offer much better food for not much more money (lunch buffets). Maharaja’s is very good, for example. Maharaja’s and most Indian restaurants over charge for dinners — so if you want to try Indian food, go for their lunch buffets!

Descriptive phrase: what is this?
What is this building? Is it a parking garage, or offices, or Narnia?
What is this area? It looks like a food court but there’s only one vendor.
What is this menu? How is everything $ 8 (cash) for a meal and a drink?
What is this food? It all looks and smells delicious.
What is this feeling? The food is warming me, it has a taste I’ve never had before, it’s bountiful and filling and just spicy enough.
What is this service? How nice can a guy (owner) be? Who comes and chats with his customers and seems genuinely happy you’re patronizing him anymore?
Shah Jee’s, that’s what’s up.

You know how they (whoever «they» are) say that hole-​in-​the-​wall restaurants are usually the best? Well, Shah Jee’s is a hole-​in-​the-​GROUND restaurant. Yes, it’s literally the basement level of a parking garage/​office building. There is no signage, there is no warning. You literally have to know someone in order to find your way to this establishment. And hey, you know me!
Very simple. Belly up to the bar, tell the guy that you have no idea what you’re doing and you want today’s special. Pay (CASH ONLY). Eat. And while you’re eating, wonder how you never knew about this little diamond in the rough.
Today was a chicken dish and something with chick peas (lentils were also available) and a huge pile of rice. Don’t ask what it is. You don’t need to know. Just eat the stuff and be very very happy.
Some tips and suggestions:
It is spicy. A little hot (maybe 6 – 7 on a scale of 1 to 10) and very flavorful. Expect it.
It can be messy. Big pieces of meat in sauces are never a good thing for clumsy klutzes like me, so be prepared and wear something that will hide stains.
It is ONLY open for lunch and they do sell out. So arrive early and be hungry.
It is cash only. At the moment, $ 8 gets you lunch and a can/​bottle.
I would recommend getting it «to go» even if you’re having it to stay. Larger portion!