Akbar Cuisine of India

happily recommend this Indian food place. Cheese nan here is better than pizza! more

J.C. is great. The food, service, and cuisine are just what you would expect. There are a lot of Indian restaurants and this is one of the best. more

I grew up going to this indian restaurant and my husband and i went back recently and I still think that it is really great! We had their Lamb chops which were so succulent and tender. And the Sea Bass is to die for! Always remember loving their Sea bass dish and it is still amazing! I also like that i can get my favorite beer there; Delirium Tremens! Bring a sweater because it can get cold. more

I have my favorite little Indian restaurant on Lincoln Blvd where I have been going for a couple of years. But once in a while I love trying new places. Akbar restaurant lured me & my boyfriend in with its cozy lighting and it seemed full of people every time I drove by, so I thought crowds should mean great food. Alas, the experience was disappointing... The place did not have any exotic aromas in the air, and the house favorite and our favorite chicken tikka masala was nothing compared to other placed I have tried it at. The spices that came in chucks in the sauce interfered with the meal rather than complementing it. The serving of tikka, rice and lentils sides were all on one plate (re fried beans style) the flavors reminded me of Mexican restaurants, rather than Indian. We had to wait for nan until it arrived halfway through the meal. We kept wondering what was that special about the place, and the only solution was that the people who go there probably have never tried really good Indian food. more

We had received a two-fer coupon and decided to try the Marina del Rey Akbar for the first time. The place was small, but nicely appointed. But where was the wonderful spicy scent, so prevalent at any Indian restaurant? The place was almost antiseptic, with not even a hint in the air that that we were in an Indian restaurant. Oh well… the service and food would surely be good. The service was, in a word, pretentious. There was the annoying inquiry at the get-go about whether we wanted bottled water (no, thank you!). The emphasis seemed to be on wine, with the “sommelier” (probably the portly manager mentioned in other posts) pushing wine. Most tables had a bottle of wine. We’ll have a domestic beer please, but the only ones available were from domestic and foreign micro-breweries at $5.95 a pop. I tried one from Maine, and it gagged me. There was a weird column on the menu with entrée prices and another column for dinner prices: the “dinner” included vegetables, Nan, rice and a lentil concoction. In every ethnic restaurant I’ve tried, the “dinner” items include versions of what Akbar charges an additional $5. for the Indian “dinner”. Who would order just the “entrée”? The prices were high for the “dinner”, averaging around $17.95, but if it was high end Indian food, no problem. On the menu there was a 1-5 “spice” scale next to each entrée (very helpful), and when we ordered entrees in the 3 range, the manager warned us that we were “on our own”, that anything from 3-5 was spicy, and food would not be returned to the kitchen if we didn’t like the heat. Maybe it was an attempt at humor, but it felt patronizing. Well, we did get to return something to the kitchen pretty quickly anyway. We had ordered an appetizer of spicy chicken wings and waited and waited for them. When they finally arrived, the chicken was raw in the middle and we sent them back. The very same wings arrived later, just scorched to death and dry. The Nan arrived long before the entrees and was cold by the time the entrees arrived. As for the entrees, nothing much of note – pedestrian Indian food rather than the higher end food I was expecting, given the price and pretense. In all fairness despite the slow service, the busboy was very polite, solicitous, apologetic about the chicken wings, and kept the water glasses filled. And the coup de grace: the two-fer coupon was ignored on our check, even though the manager had specifically thanked me for giving it to him at the time we ordered. Cons: Slow Service, Average Food, Pretentious Ambiance, Price more

Akbar has for over 10 years been my favorite group of Indian restaurants in the LA area. Their food is... more

Akbar has for over 10 years been my favorite group of Indian restaurants in the LA area. Their food is always of great quality, extremely flavorfu... more

Service started off shakily and became worse as the evening went on. The waiter seemed to lose interest in us after we ordered the food. The 'Dinner' system involved having sides of rice, substandard dal and some mixed vegetables that looked tinned. A $5 premium was added to the normal cost of an entree for this dubious assortment. \r Indian food of this kind should not be expensive. I had two beers, a nasty poppadom, some shared starters of samosa and potato patty. My entree was a spicy lamb dish. My wife had the same. The cost of our meal before tip was 90 dollars. This is at least double the cost of a similar but better and more authentic Indian meal in Europe. Very dissapointing. \r Pros: ok atmosphere, nice to see the cooks at work in the open kitchen Cons: everything else. more

The Chilean Sea Bass almost made me pass out because it was so Delicious. We even saw Barbara Streisand. WHAT A TREAT! HIGHLY recommended! Pros: everything Cons: nothing more

The restaurant was freezing, service was horrilbe and the food was bad. I ordered the chicken tikka masala and it tasted like rubber. I had to ask 3 times for my order of cheese naan. That was still good. I have eaten at this restaurant for years and it has always been my favorite indian in LA. Very disappointed with the food and lack of service. The restaurant was not that busy. Cons: Freezing, Food more

We ordered a take away and it was good... But then it should be at just over $50 for two! Food came quickly from the Santa Monica branch and was warm, that hardly ever happens! We did order very early though before 6pm. It tasted fresh and portions were a decent size. I had the tikka masala, spiced at 3-4 it was hot. No complaints very good. Thats how I like it being from the UK, if you dont like food too spicy go for level 2 in the spice factor. Okra was really tasty and plentiful but expensive at $10 for a side dish of veg. My wife had the chicken with mango curry to try for a change, something different, it was interesting but not a classic. It was so so. I liked how the main dish came with veg, rice and lentils and nan bread.\r \r A few things not so good .....no lasse, 'no yogurt today' they said, well the store is open 24 hrs go buy some I thought, no excuse, lazyness. Also nan bread was doughy and chewy not very good really. The person taking the order on the phone sounded clinically depressed! Cheer up, maybe just having a bad day who knows.....\r \r So even by UK standards this was a good indian but not cheap. It was a decent meal for the price. \r \r We scored Akba Santa Monica Out of 10 for fun and to help others in search of a good curry take away\r \r me 9 out of 10\r \r my wife 7 out of 10 \r (would have been more if she had ordered mine!)\r \r We have been to the Marina restaurant and that is good too with an excellent wine selection.\r \r \r \r Pros: hot take away, tasty, lively, fresh, spicy Cons: expensive, more

This is one of my favorite restaurants in L.A. the staff is friendly, the food is incredible, and the wine selection is good as well. I have never made a reservation, the lunch is super inexpensive and the portions are perfect. I could go on and on, this place is as good as it gets. Pros: Food and service are fantastic Cons: The restrooms are a bit small. more

I am a banker and travel the world and most big cities in the us.I have been to the finest top restaurants in the world such as el builli,the fat duck,daniel,le bernardin and french laundry but i have to say that akbar is the next best restaurant in the world for it's delicate wonderful flavors of indian spices.I had the scarecrow cab 2003 on atul's suggestion who owns the place to go with tandoori lamb chops and tand chicken.The food is heavenly as if god himself came to earth and cooked the food with his own hands and served to you.I love this place so much that i am coming back tommorow for dinner.The wines at akbar are high end and for an indian restuarnt it is one of the best wine lists in los angeles by far.Atul who owns the place,serves people with love and an education on food and wines.The scarecrow cabernet blew my socks off,it is phenomenal and thank you atul for your great suggestion.I am a big wine collector and was surprised by atul's reasonable prices for all the wines.He said wine is a condiment,food and service comes first.Atul i wish you the best and may you open more of these fine establishments,perhaps in my home town,the hampton's and i will fund it. Pros: Atul,service,fine wines more

I am a londoner who knows indian food like no one else coming from england.My friends took me to akbar this past saturday who kept bragging about this place for months.First of all we were waited on by atul who owns the place and knows his wine and food.I have never in my entire life had such an amazing time at an indian restaurant such as akbar.I am a big wino and was very very impressed by atul's wine selections and pricing on all the wines.We had peter michael la carriere chardonnay 2004 to start to go with the tandoori grilled chliean seabass which was astounding and seasmoke southing pinot noir 2005 to go with the rest of the dinner which was great as well.We had several amazing dishes such as tandoori grilled lamb chops,chiken tikka masala,chic kati roll,bhartha,prawn madras,banarasi pillao.This food is the finest indian food in the us by far.Atul prides himself in using the finest fresh ingridients from california and he only uses organic lamb and breast white meat chicken in all chicken dishes.Atul you and your restaurant are great.I can't wait to bring some wino's who usually drink beer with indian food.Atul will tell you otherwise,wine is better and wine is life.Cheers atul and cheers and my hats off to akbar. Pros: food,wines,service Cons: please open more of these more

We live local and go here often. Food and vibe are both good. Pretty sure the place is owned by a couple of brothers-- the older one seems cool, the younger one isn't great. Just as well, I suppose, getting in isn't usually a problem. If a true competitor opened up, we'd go there. In the meantime, when my girlfriend calls and says ""I'm interested in Indian, want to go to a-hole's?"" I pause for a second... but I always say ""Yes"". Pros: Good food, nice atmosphere Cons: The heavy manager's attitude more

Ok...food is awesome. Staff is a bit slow and the food will take a bit. I've tried most of the entrees on the menu and they are all wonderful! Hope you like spice because the food has a BIG kick to them! Pros: Great Food Cons: Limited Parking, Do not go there if you are in a rush! more

A casual, hip dining with a great selection of wine. Food is in top 5 of Indian restaurants on west side, better than any other Indian restaurants in Santa Monica. The manager has a great memory of what customers liked or did not like. The spicy dishes are very spicy, even for people accustomed to Indian spices. Pros: Food. Ambience. Service. Cons: Price may be little higher than you'd expect, but not by much more

As someone who has grown up with South East Asian food all her life and eats out fairly regularly in LA, this place was a TREMENDOUS disappointment. The service was poor and the food was ridiculously expensive. When my friend's fish (the costliest item on the menu) wasn't cooked all the way, the server took it back, burned it to a crisp, and slammed it down on the table without apology. The curry I ordered was like lumpy porridge. The food was not fresh, authentic, or tasty. I would never go back. more

Only complaint - they don't take reservations and owner/manager likes to seat his friends ahead of waiting line. Shame, because the food and wine are quite good more

My brother brought me and my dad here. At first i thought it wasn't gonna be that good. Boy was i wrong!, the taste of the food here is so sophistacated, so many flavors in my mouth. Started off with the Papri Chat, sort of like indian ""nachos"", Their vegetarian options are pretty tasty also, The chicken tikka, still smoking and sizzling from the tandoori is unforgettable. What i really like about this place are the 3 chutneys that are in your table all to enhance your food. All the food here is prepared to go along with everything. No matter what you do, remember to top everything off with the ""Gulab Jamun"". Trust me on this. The perfect ending to a nearly perfect dinner. Pros: food, service, ambiance Cons: parking, pricey more