Vegetarian

As a regular visitor, I've found everything I've tried to be extremely flavorful and fresh. The breads are fantastic--garlic naan is one of my favorites, but bhatura is fun to get as it comes to the table all puffed out! Sambar vada is my favorite soup, and paneer pakora is a great appetizer (homemade cheese, battered and deep-fried).\r \r Cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, chili...just a few of the flavorful ingredients you might find in different dishes. Pros: Food, very friendly owner/chef more

After reading the reviews I thought of trying it out ignoring manojkaushik's review. I was wrong and I should not have gone there. The place was empty on a friday night at 7PM and i thought twice before entering in. It looks like a old run down place. Now I ordered a collection of appetizers to start with and a regular Lassi. The Lassi tasted like few days old bitter buttermilk. The aloo pakoda came with thick slices of aloo and it tasted raw. Vada is hard and tasted like the batter mix is at least few days old. Samosa was sweet and the regular pakoda is the only one that tasted slightly edible. My wife ordered Malai Kofta which is her favorite dish and Tandoori Naan for one entree and I ordered Onion and Chilli Utappam. The naan was alright but the Malai Kofta was awful in taste and looks. The jeera rice that came with the dish tasted bad. She barely touched her food even though we were hungry. As for utappam it can not be called utappam at all. It seemed like a thick dosa with onions and jalapeno peppers placed on it like pepperoni. The coconut chutney that came with utappam is definitely few days old. Sambhar was alright. It was a bad meal overall in a bad restaurant and I wanted to let the owner know about it and wrote on the back of the bill that the food is awful. Now here is the kicker, as we are driving back he called me. It would have been alright if he asked why I didn't like the food. I would have told him and that would be the end of it. Instead he starts swearing in foul language and says I ate his food. He should realize that I paid $35 for that awful food and I expect a decent dinner for what I paid. I visited Tandoor on tuesday and India Palace on thursday before visiting this place on friday and got extremely tasteful food for the same $35. This place does not deserve the good ratings it got and the owner should be exposed for his behavior. Beware if you are planning to visit this place. I recommend you try other restaurants. Cons: Owner, Food, Environment more

Its worst Restuarent ..pls dont go...its so much dirty and food also not tastes good..\r \r owner itself shows up for serving dressed up all dirty.\r \r After seeing other reviews we had been to resturent and found tht its one of the junkyard. Cons: Evrything in Restuarent more

I love this place! The food is delicious and the service is wonderful. I have been served by the owner many times and he is a very kind, sweet man. My only wish would be that it was closer to Uptown- then I could walk there!\r \r Pros: Great food, great service, reasonable prices more

Huge fan of indian food here. But nothing can compete with this place. While the portions are a little on the small side...what makes this place stand out is the obviuous fact that each dish is made to order as opposed to the steam table at most indian restaraunts. Have not yet had the buffet but have been to dinner there several time...it's my current favorite restaraunt in the twin cities. I get the vegetable curry (medium) and garlic naan. I am a junkie. I love the owner....seems to be a dedicated, salt of the earth, type fellow. Nothing can compare to a made to otrder curry with fresh spices you can see. OK...it needsl a little ""atmosphrere"" but that will come with incereased business. First time I just drove by and peered in and left....but now it's my favorite and I am craving it right now. You can't eat at 112 every night...try this place. Pros: food freshness Cons: atmosphere more

We recently came here for the first time, found the food to be very good, and had a very enjoyable meal. The pakoras were served fresh and hot, and the two main dishes (Malai Kofta and Shahi Paneer) were spiced as requested, tasty, and also quite fresh. While we live out of town, we will definitely return, hopefully for the buffet on weekend noon hours. As noted elsewhere, the owner is helpful, friendly and knowledgeable. We left quite contented! Pros: Good variety of tasty vegetarian Indian food more

Great food! The Vegetarian serves all vegetarian and vegan Indian food. It was a wonderful surprise to find this place, and my husband and I are now regular visitors. The owner/cook often takes youre order and delivers the food and is very friendly and helpful. The food is fresh and flavorful; spices are used expertly. The dishes have a slow-cooked taste, not hastily thrown together. And if you like extra spicy, just ask! The Indian breads are baked to order in a dandoor oven and come out piping hot. I really like the iced tea?it?s a refreshing twist on the ordinary, with added spices. If you have room, the desserts are heavenly! more

I lived in NYC for five years -- within two blocks of 6th St and all those wonderful Indian places -- and I had just about given up on finding a decent, unpretentious Indian restaurant here in the Twin Cities. Then I came upon The Vegetarian. I can't help but think the reviewers who had such bad experiences simply had bad luck. I have been five times (twice for the lunch buffet and three times for dinner), and every time I take my first bite, I ask myself why on earth I don't go there once a week (the reason is that it's a bit out of the way for me). I try something new every time and my boyfriend and I never order the same thing, so we have sampled much of the restaurant's fare. We've always been happy with our choices. He's not a vegetarian (not even close) and yet every time we've been there, he talks about how great the food was for an hour after we leave. It's true that the place can be quiet and the last couple times we went, it was almost empty (the result of the bad reviews?!), but I don't go for the people watching, I go because A) it's the best Indian food I've had in the Twin Cities and B) the owner is a great host (who pays as much attention to my boyfriend as to me). I suppose some of the entrees are a little more than I'd like to pay, but it's not exorbitant by any stretch (my last entree was $8.50 and my boyfriend and I split a big sampler plate of appetizers for $9 -- very reasonable), and I almost always have some left over to take home with me (in a re-usable 'tupperware' container - no styrofoam or leaky paper boxes). The Vegetarian may not be for the club set or for people who like to impress themselves, but for the rest of us, you couldn't ask for a better place to hang out with friends and eat yummy food at a leisurely pace. I truly hope more people start eating there more regularly, because I would be sorely disappointed to lose my favorite place to eat out. Pros: Relaxed, friendly atmosphere and a variety of delightful tastes Cons: All the way up in Columbia Heights, could use a little music more

My wife and I tried this restaruant about a year ago after a recomendation from a friend. We were very impressed with the food and charming urban atmosphere of this small but well established restaurant. We go there on a regular basis about twice a month. The food is always flavorful and fresh and the menu offers a variety of wonderful South and North Indian foods. They also offer Vegan foods that are clearly marked on the menu. There are so few places locally where you can get this kind of vegetarian variety. The owner frequently serves us and he has always been so friendly and helpful. I have enjoyed dishes such as the Vegetable Korma and Aloo Gobi. I also like the samosa and Pakora appetizers. Another favorite of mine is the Dumm Aloo. The Tandoori Nan bread is the best I have had in town. The owner/cook is very open to adjusting the dishes and in setting the level of hotness. When ever my wife has asked about the taste of a certain dish the owner has always gone out of his way to give us the information we need to make a selection or to give us a sample of the food or dessert. I am thankful that the Twin Cities has such wonderful small restaurants like The Vegetarian that help so much to bring people into local and well established neighborhoods. The Vegetarian is a regular on our trips out to enjoy the good food that this city has to offer. Pros: Good food, good service. Cons: Parking, but we recently found a nice parking ramp in back. Not an issue any more. more

I have been going to the Vegetarian at least once a week for the past year or so, and (as a former chef at the St. Paul Hotel, Luccia's, the table of Contents and others) I rate it one of the most authentic Indian restaurants in the Twin Cities, with consistently high quality food. The Bedi family has created a place that is a both a wonderful place to eat good healthy vegetarian food cooked in traditional Punjabi and south Indian styles and a place that the North Central Avenue community. Whether it is the Dosa, cooked light and crispy and served with a mouth-watering coconut chutney or the Dhal Makini that is as smokey and spiced as well as any in India, each dish is made with fresh traditional ingredients. And we haven't even gotten to desert. Half teh Indian wedding/celebrations in the Cities get their pastries from the Bedis and the Kheer (traditional Rice Pudding) made a friend of mine from the Punjab swoon! \r \r The only flaw is that the North Suburbs have never realized or appreciated the gem on North Central. Pros: Amazing food! more

The place was dead empty at 7:45 pm when I walked in - you literally could have heard a pin drop! I was seated and menued in no time, but shortly after two people came in and sat across the aisle from me and started chatting up a storm right away. I found that since there was NO music or background sounds other than their conversation that I was maybe a little TOO aware of being a single diner. And given that the decor is a fairly loud orange and yellow they should add in some music to lively up the place aurally.\r \r I ordered Aloo Gobi, which came with some interesting spiced rice, vegetable pakoras, and a chai. And it was all pretty standard fare, nothing special... Nice as he is (nicer to the females across the aisle, tho) I think that he needs to try harder - just up the street is Nala Pak, and the last time I went there to eat I was simply blown away by the quality of the food, and the prices are comparable. \r \r I left feeling not quite satisfied, having spent close to $15 before tip for smallish portions of average food. I could have gone all the way over by the airport to Kabobs and gotten larger portions & probably better tasting food for about half the price. \r \r I am finding after eating at Kabobs I am not as interested in dining at any of the other Indian places in the Twin Cities anymore - those little portions of food they give for 8.95-12.95 were not my idea of value when I started eating at those restaurants, and now that there's an alternative that trumps all that, well, why not? I wish we had more of that NY/London takeaway action in town here, I guess it's only a matter of time tho. Pros: Owner served the food, wanted to know how things were... Cons: Owner seemed more interested in chatting with the females than myself, a male... more

After eating here I realized that most of the Indian places I go to serve canned everything: canned chutney, nan from premade dough, etc. Eating at The Vegetarian is a delight -- the prices are cheap, the staff is friendly and helpful, and most of all, the food is fresh and delicious. Go there now. Pros: Food, prices more

I cant help but think that the glowing reviews are from desperate vegans aching for a restaurant that serves any vegan dishes. I'm an occasional ""flexatarian"" tending towards vegetarian, and as a vegetarian I was pretty disappointed by this restaurant.\r \r The vegetarian is true to its name, but certainly not the the wonderful wealth of Indian vegetarian cuisine. \r \r The food is fair to good, though seems a weird mishmash of regions at times, and tends to be bland and repetitive. Its also quite expensive for dishes that actually require little meticulous preperation or expensive ingredients. In parts of new york or london (where there is actual competition among good veggie Indian) the dishes would be half the price and twice as good.\r \r The owner is super friendly and has a great sense of humor. But alas, I must continue my search in the twin cities for top quality indian cuisine, however. The vegetarian simply needs to put more energy into preparing good food, but I think they know they've got a captive audience and just don't try very hard. Pros: Friendly Cons: expensive, mediocre food more

Cozy and casual, they treat you as if you're their best customer. The first bite always brings the thrill of lusciousness. The flavors are distinct and layered. They accomodate my food sensitivities and usually have soy milk for the Chai tea. We try to go regularly to support this and other locally owned establishments. Try Jessica's, Toshi's and Julia's favorites as noted on the menu. Pros: Family friendly. Parking available on street or in ramp behind restaurant. Don't need reservation. Lunch buffet on weekends is especially good value. Cons: Location and no alcohol more

This place is as good as it gets for vegetarian Indian food. With the demise of Udupi Palace our discovery of The Vegetarian was very timely. And they have Batura, the wonderful puffy bread! We were the only ones there on a Tuesday night. The owner is amazingly helpful and cordial. Support this restaurant so it will be around for a long time! more

This was quite bad. I went based on the other posted reviews. The appetizers (pakoras) were okay. But it was downhill from there. I ordered one of the thalis forgeting my rule as to never order thalis at an indian restaurant. The food was old and not fresh at all. I will not go there again. Cons: Food was not fresh more

Found online searching for a well-received vegetarian restaurant. Stopped in on our trip to the Twin Cities last weekend, and were very pleased. We arrived just before the buffet was scheduled to end, but they stocked it for just us! Wide variety of dishes. Some were not labeled, however. We tried what looked appealing (which was almost everything) and were not disappointed. The owner and his staff were very friendly and answered any questions, making us feel quite at home. We will return in the future for another excellent dining experience. more

I've been meaning to add my comments about The Vegetarian ever since my great birthday party at the restaurant. My closest friends and I ate at this place, and the waitstaff was incredibly gracious and friendly. They let us increase the size of our table at the drop of a hat and were gracious to all of our needs. The food was excellent--however I did order it ""hot"" and could've even tolerated a bit more spice. Hats off to the owner and server who truly made my 26th birthday a party to remember............... Pros: staff, service, value Cons: location more

This is my all time favorite. I love the food, the service, and the relaxed atmoshphere. I'm a mango lassi lover, I admit it. The kheer is fabulous, but if something is extra good, your server will steer you in the correct direction. Ashok makes everything fresh! He uses real food and is basically one of the most magical beings on this earth. I swear he puts something other worldly into his food. The Dosas, the onion appetizer that I'm not going to try and spell at the moment, and his vegetable samosas are all fabulous. I haven't even tried a quarter of what is on his menu, but I love it all. Ok so maybe I've fallen a little in love with Ashok, but he just laughs at me. If only he was a little younger (my poor husband, lol).\r \r Seriously this place is great for big or small groups. When my group of friends want to get together, it is a unanimous decision to go the vegetarian. We all love it. I've been to various Indian restaurants and none have even come close to comparing with it. By the way I'm not even a vegetarian and this restaurant is that good. If other people could cook the way Ashok does I would maybe consider becoming a vegetarian. This place is like 30 min or more away and I have no qualms in driving to it whatsoever. The food and service is that good. I just can't say enough. more

Everything on the menu is recommended and a bargain. Familiar dishes are well prepared with distinct, fresh flavors and we have found several new favorites, including the doti (crepe rolled with onions and potatoes) and bhatura (puffy fry bread). Ashuk is always cheerful and friendly. One day we will have room for dessert! The Vegetarian is our weekly 'spot'. Pros: close to a great theater! more