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Royal India Cuisine
- Hours:
Mon-Sat 11 am - 2 pm
Mon-Sat 5 pm - 10 pm
Sun 11:30 am - 2 pm
Sun 5 pm - 9 pm
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
14 reviews for Royal India Cuisine
14 reviews in English
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Review from Vishal M.
Calgary, AB
2/5/2012
$18 Indian dinner buffet...how can you go wrong? They have a decent selection including all the standard Indian buffet eats.
The only issue I had was the $3 buffet coke...$3 for a coke?! The expensive pop aside, I will be returning here. -
Review from Phillip C.
Calgary, AB
11/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
Royal India - downtown has two distinct personalities. The lunch buffet is crowded and nothing special - unless quantity is your thing. Dinner is a different story. The weeknights that I've been there have been nearly deserted. Tonight for example, my dinner guest and I were the only two patrons. Even with that "crowd," service is slow and nothing special (but usually friendly). The Vindaloo however is excellent in my experience (and I eat a far amount of Vindaloo). I order it very spicy here and while all is relative, it isn't the hottest I've had by a long shot but the flavors are rich and the spices do as they should, enhance the flavors and not overwhelm them. Other than a nondescript Yellow Tail Riesling and poppadoms, I can't say that I've ever had anything here - no reason to in my mind.
Worth a visit but be proactive on your dinner service! As another reviewer said, I'd go for 3.5 stars if I could. A little more atmosphere (people) for dinner and better service would definitely raise the rating.
BTW - I am #glutenfree and have never had a problem here... -
Review from Vishnu V.
8/31/2011 ROTD 9/7/2011
I kept telling at yelp party it's one of the places that u can visit of those Indian restaurants in calgary, but why didn't I review yet?? Here it goes. When it comes to downtown, I can suggest this as one of the good places for buffet of Indian restaurants.
Good that we have lunch buffet here over weekend too.( Saturday there was, but not too sure about sunday.)
I would want to rate it 3.5 but as I have an option of either 3 or 4, i go with 4.
What makes it a 4 star in downtown?
The place is pretty big. Very clean and colorful. You will get to have water in copper coated glasses ( Indian style ). Tandoori chicken is really good outta here. I usually dont taste lamb curry, but got to taste here and it was really good that I opted to taste it again.
Also they have pakoda, samosa,salad and all as usual menu as other indian restaurants.
But remember to save some space in ur stomach for the desserts. Even if you dont have any space try to stuff it in. Never miss them. Gulab jamoon!!! Oh no!!! mouth started watering already... So smooth, hot, delicious, and fruit custard,kheer,carrot sweet were good too..
Why did I leave the rest of the stars?
Little costly. Like it goes around $18 for lunch buffet. Not all dishes are excellent. Some were just upto the mark. It is a typical north Indian food. While Raj palace was more of south Indian flavors.
There is one other Glory of India in downtown too. Never tasted its lunch buffet as they don't serve it over weekends. I wish i would try that some day and hope it would impress me for 5 stars.Keep waiting :PListed in: Indian restaurants in calgary
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Review from Sergey S.
1/9/2011
Royal India is by far the best Indian restaurant I have been to, and a model to which I compare all the rest.
Food was not just good, it was delicious, abundant, with lots of variety, and nicely served. There obviously was some Kingfisher accompanying it, and waiters were very polite and careful. I have read some negative opinions and can imagine that quality varies, but at least the time I was visiting Royal India I might have been really lucky to get the best.
I would say that the only thing I did not like was that for a huge group of people we were (a team event for 20) they could have pulled at least three waiters to provide the needed speed-up of the service. But except for that slow-down, everything else was very decent, very good.
Also, the restaurant is located sort of upstairs in the second floor of the building, so it might be tricky to find the entrance for the first time.
My wife is totally not into Indian food, but if I'd ever decided to initiate her - my first thought would have been about the Royal India. -
Review from Eric K.
1/29/2011 2 photos
The naan stole the show. The nan alone gets one star. It was of the thinner more crispy type, not the thick fluffy type. Three stars for the curry. I did not think it was better than the other smaller Indian places around Calgary.
Personally, I prefer the smaller mom & pop Indian restaurants. Royal India would be good to host banquets or company events, the place is huge and even has a dance floor.
Overall, the experience was not bad and I would go back.Listed in: I-Foods
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Review from Jess B.
Calgary, AB
10/2/2010
Attended a private dinner year back in April. This restaurant is quite big, has a dance floor at the back.
The food quality was not that good, maybe it was because of the mass amount of people that were in attendance, proper care was not given into preparing the food. Chicken wasn't cooked properly and just left a bad taste in my mouth. Indian food is known to be spicy, all the dishes were sweet for some reason. The staff were so so there was nothing over the top about this place that would make me want to come back.
I've been to a few parties that Royal India has catered and it was the same situation, the food on various occasions simply was not good. -
Review from Chuck I.
Vancouver, BC
2/11/2011 1 Check-in Here
Great flavors, tasty naan bread, and awesome atmosphere!
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Review from dinah g.
Calgary, AB
4/10/2010
My colleagues and I decided we wanted to bond so we opted to try something new, enter Royal India. When you enter the restaurant you are welcomed by two life statues of people just like you and me except they are wearing traditional South Indian clothing. This is a nice touch, this and the wonderful beckoning interior color decor, fusia and oranges... very stimulating.
Our group of 15 were a bit early but yet the owner of the restaurant graciously opened the all you can eat buffet for us, so we had first dibs at fresh tasty Indian food. This spot because of its downtown location caters to the downtown passerby's so therefore it affects the heat of the Indian food, it was quite mild than what I am used to.
The buffet itself has many options, most notably the nice assortment of bread and the desserts. The mango salad was so delicious and so was this carrot concoction. My personal favourite is the Gulab Jamon which I could eat forever and create a diabetic problem for myself. Thankfully I was already full with the buffet so I didn't indulge my sweet vice.
The lunch buffet is a bit steep at $20, I know other Indian places that charge $11 to $15 for a lunch buffet but I guess you are paying for the downtown location. All in all a nice Indian place to eat with milder South Indian flavours. -
Review from Lauren N.
9/18/2009
This place is awesome! I came here for a business lunch and it was great. The decor is warm and colorful, and the food is delicious. It apparently gets really busy at lunch time, because there wasn't an empty table in sight when I was there. The place just kept on filling and filling up! But that's no worry, since this restaurant is quite large.
We hit the buffet right away, and my favorite thing by far was the naan bread. Fluffy, fresh, and chewy, just the way I like it! The butter chicken was a bit sweeter than I'm used to, but still good. The overall selection wasn't vast, but it was big enough.
We decided to skip dessert, as the choices didn't look tempting enough. Fruit, fruit cream, and rice pudding. Also, I couldn't figure out why there was a large container of Clamato .... did I miss something?
Overall though, a wonderful place for lunch or dinner. Lots of space and quick, friendly service, as well as a full bar. Would definitely come here again when I'm in town! -
Review from Katie C.
Calgary, AB
10/19/2009 2 photos
The first time I was confronted with Royal India's buffet, my stomach expanded six times. Buffets are not my friend, and this had a selection of all of my favourites - delicious butter chicken, fresh cooked Naan, paneer, samosas, paneer, vindaloo. My plate was full like a little mountain, and I felt like I was going to explode for the rest of the day. Which was a bad thing, because at the time I worked in the building above the Royal India. Try concentrating when you are about to burst.
My proximity to the restaurant meant that I went back for lunch a few more times - while exercising careful restraint of course. And the second time around I noticed that while it is pretty decent Indian food, it isn't quite stellar. Quality is sacrificed for quantity, at least buffet wise.
Also, can I just say that the service here is pretty stellar. A full star full of service actually - I was debating three but they have never been anything but courteous, helpful and kind. They legitimately ask about your day, and are always quick to fill water glasses and to take away dirty dishes but also to let you linger if you want. -
Review from C T.
Calgary, AB
1/31/2009
Royal India has a pretty good buffet. I've had the lunch buffet during the work week and it's quite a spread.
There's a salad bar, samosas, the different types of curries both vege and meat, tandoori chicken, naan bread, desserts and fruits.
I absolutely love the goat curry!! -
Review from Chris W.
Calgary, AB
10/16/2009
I had been craving Indian food for days, and picked Royal India Cuisine after much deliberating over Yelp reviews. Sigh, it was something of a disappointment.
This restaurant was *empty* for dinner. I wish I liked this place better, really, I do. Their prices are fair and their portions are pretty good. But we went here for dinner and the food was just .... mediocre. It didn't hit the spot. The palak paneer (fresh cheese in spinach) was pretty good- silky and pretty flavorful. But the other dish we got, the navrattan korma (mixed vegetables in a creamy sauce) was really sub-par, despite being listed as a house specialty. It tasted like the kind of bagged mixed vegetables you can buy in the freezer section of the supermarket, boiled too long, and then plunked into a mostly flavorless sauce. This dish had the quality of a school cafeteria side dish. Rice, naan, papdi chat and mango lassies were ok, but nothing special. The pappadam and sauce were a tasty complimentary appetizer, which was a nice touch.
The staff was pleasant and friendly, but once we were seated, the service was not very attentive. There were no more than two occupied tables the whole time we were there (and we were the only ones there for quite a bit of the time), and despite there being two waitresses and the owner present, our water glasses were empty a lot of the time, we waited quite a while to order, and then waited a long time for the food, and we had a hard time flagging someone down for the check. The service was never rude and the people were nice, but it sure was hard to get ahold of them.
The decor is quite pretty, with deep red saris over the windows and elaborately inlaid chairs. Though given how tightly packed everything is, I could see how it might be a problem the restaurant gets full. That certainly wasn't a problem for us though.
I wouldn't rule out a repeat visit to Royal India Cuisine in the future, but I'm going to continue my search for the delicious Indian food that I am craving, as this just wasn't it. -
Review from Jag S.
Calgary, AB
8/12/2010
went here for a private event.
worst indian food i've ever had. I'd really save my money and go ANYWHERE else, there's tons of alternatives in downtown.
THOUGH, the decor is nice! it seemed really traditional! -
Review from Andrew M.
10/28/2008
Royal India is by far my favorite India restaurant in Calgary. The curries are rich and spicy. The breads are cooked and seasoned to perfection. I hear that the lunch buffet here is really good; even though I am not a big fan of buffets I am definitely going to give it a try. I would definitely recommend.
