Nirvana Indian Restaurant

Tried the lunch buffet at Nirvana Indian Restaurant, which had a nice variety of veg and non-veg options. The food was fresh with mild flavors, making it a good choice for those who don’t like too much spice. The Hyderabadi mutton biryani stood out as especially flavorful and satisfying. The ambiance is welcoming, though seating for larger groups can feel a bit congested. Service was very attentive, and the buffet stayed well-stocked. Overall, a good spot to enjoy an Indian meal with plenty of options, from comforting mild dishes to a rich biryani highlight.

A Memorial Gem--Outstanding Food, Service & Value We had a fantastic dinner at Nirvana (Memorial, Houston) last night, and it's an easy 5 stars. The food was dialed in across the board: the Butter Chicken was silky and balanced--rich tomato-butter sauce with tender pieces that melt in your mouth. The Bhindi Masala was a standout (and not easy to get right): okra cooked perfectly with onions and spices--no slime, just flavor. From the tandoor, both the Fish and Tandoori Chicken arrived sizzling, lightly charred on the outside and juicy inside, with a bright hit of lemon and fresh herbs. The service was warm and attentive without being intrusive; the plates were paced well, and the team checked on us just enough. Portions are generous, and prices are very reasonable for the quality. We left happy, full, and already planning our next visit. We're planning to use Nirvana for our next party and catering order--these flavors will be a hit. Highly recommend!

Was totally shocked and disgusted to see the chef in the dining area laying on a cot like this on his phone??? With other paying customers in the area. We left immediately and when we asked about it the staff answered like it happens all the time. We were left speechless

Absolutely super meal. Went with friends. Mansoor goes out of his way to welcome his patrons and make people feel at home. Super service. Highly recommend. The staff takes good care of the customers. The food is very tasty and they have a wide variety of dishes.

Visiting from Frisco Texas tried Nirvana Indian Restaurant in Houston. Nice looking restaurant with really great food. All the dishes we ordered were delicious, well prepared and flavorful. Tasted very homestyle and not oily. Ordered paneer makhani, punj rattani dal, aloo gobhi, sindi style chole. Accompanied with breads from the tandoor: roti, aloo naan, and lacchedar paratha. Also, for the very first time in the United States, have I seen an Indian Restaurant serve complimentary Papad (lentil wafers) with Chutney. Have seen in India and Canada. Definitely will be back when in the area.

I stumbled upon this place when I was staying in the Energy Corridor area, and I was quite impressed. I have enjoyed many Indian style buffets, but this had so much variety. I even found some dishes that I had never tried before. There was a good mix of veg and non-veg items. The meats were good quality, and all food seemed fresh and made with care. My favorite dish was the lamb curry. The meat was tender well seasoned, and felt like it was cooked with expertise. The atmosphere was open, classy, and clean. The owner was kind, made a point to connect with diners, and seemed to really care. I spoke to him briefly and he was kind and enthusiastic about his his business. This place is a bit far on the other side of town for me, but I keep thinking about when I can return. This might be my new favorite Indian buffet in town. I highly recommend.

The food was exceptional, and every penny was worth it. I am really amazed at how they can offer 20+ items for $21.99. And fresh Naan was the cherry on top. Service was amazing, food was exceptional, and unmatchable vibes. Definitely going back again.

I had a very disappointing and concerning experience at Nirvana Indian Restaurant. I went there for lunch on Saturday 17th and invited a friend. While we were about to get food from the buffet, I saw two small cockroaches near the food containers. I immediately informed one of the staff members, but he completely ignored the issue and walked away without taking it seriously or doing anything about it. This is extremely unhygienic and unacceptable, especially in a buffet where food safety and cleanliness are critical. I only wanted to report this so management is aware and takes proper action, but the staff reaction was careless and unprofessional. I would not recommend this place unless they seriously improve their hygiene standards.

It's pretty good. Went there with my office mates. Food was really great and I would highly recommend this place.

Delicious food during lunch, many choices from their buffet line. Friendly fast service. We love their garlic naan! Can't wait for Nirvana to move back to their original location next door.

Weekend buffet starts at 11 AM. However, majority of the items in the buffet were not ready till 11:30 AM. Plain naan is brought to the table almost immediately, even though the buffet entrees themselves may not be there. This results in naan just sitting there getting cold. Naan texture could be better, it felt too doughy. Garlic naan texture was slightly better compared to plain naan. However, it was over drenched in oil. Buffet items: Pakora - good. Samosa - wrong texture. Green chutney - loaded with food colors, lacking mint and cilantro. Kadi - good. Chicken biryani - average, chicken was tough and lacked marination. Saag paneer - the only dish that Indian restaurants in Houston use to prop them up. Just okay. Nothing special. Chicken tikka masala - good flavor coz of butter, however it's loaded with food colors, chicken should be tender, and cooked like a proper tikka. Chicken curry - average. Madras seafood curry - average. Okra, squash and other veggie items - decent, not bad, not spectacular. Desserts: Kheer (rice pudding) - bad, just wrong. This is supposed to be an awesome, refreshing dessert with just the right amount of sweetness and rich texture. Here it was awful - just sugar-loaded mixture of rice and milk without any thought. Gajar halwa - just like kheer, this was just wrong. This dish requires slow cooking and takes hours to prepare, but here it was just sugar-loaded concoction. Gulab Jamun - okay. Overall - just an average buffet and it's okay to eat maybe once a year.

Nirvana was our go to Indian restaurant. The place has always been clean and tidy. The food used to be really tasty with a lot of flavour and the right amount of spice. Last week we went for lunch to try the buffet and were really disappointed. The place is still very clean and options are plenty, however all the food tasted bland. Not sure if they changed the cook, recipes or decided to appeal to broader group of people that prefer something tasteless. We will definitely give it another try in the future as we really liked this place before, but for now we plan on taking a break and trying out different Indian places.

Stopped in here on an evening that was buffet only. We were not aware of this but it was a nice opportunity to try different things on the menu. This is the first restaurant I've been to where the naan is free. Including garlic naan. And it's soooo goood!! Not sure if this is only on buffet nights but it was a pleasant surprise. The buffet is sorted so one side is non-veg and the other is vegetarian. There is also a little salad/condiment bar with chutney's. The service was great with empty trays being replaced quickly. There were also 3 different desserts but i stuck with my favorite - gulab jamun. My only complaint would be the drink/sizes. Some of my family got small glasses others got larger glasses. Since this is an additional charge, they should all be the same sizes.

This place is far from me, but I like to come at least a couple times a year regardless. I ordered the Butter Chicken tonight and it was very delicious, good quality, creamy, tomatoey and full of soft chicken pieces. The gravy was very well-seasoned and more on the sweet side than tangy. The rice n salad were very fresh and good with the curry too. Great, attentive and friendly service again on this visit.

They have a great lunch buffet. Variety of food. My only complaint is that vegetarians shouldn't have to pay the same as a non veg buffet. Service was great and the food is tasty. I loved the deserts the fruit custard and the raas malai. The naan was warm and fresh. The papad was stale

So Mondays and Tuesdays are buffet nights, it was really good! Offered a good variety both Vegetarian and non vegetarian. The servers were great!! Price was not bad either. I would definitely go back to order from the menu.

Great food and amazing service! Highly recommend. The palak paneer is great! The owner is really nice.

With an extensive variety of dishes laid out on the buffet table, there are plenty to choose from to meet all your Indian dishes needs, here at Nirvana. We came in a Friday afternoon for the lunch buffet, 20 minutes after they opened. There was only one other table here, but the food looked promising and plentiful. There are around 15 main entrée dishes to choose from, including chicken tikka masala, tandoori chicken, goat curry, fish curry, chicken kebab, daal, cabbage, aloo gabi, palak paneer, kadhi pakora, pakora, okra, green beans with other veggies, lamb biriyani, chicken biriyani and two other rice dishes. See? Plentiful right?? Unfortunately, there were only a few dishes that really stood out to me - the palak paneer and the yellow vegetable curry. The paneer was some of the best I've had and the Kadhi pakora was something I've never had before. It was a pakora dunked in a spiced yogurt sauce, with the sauce being sour but super flavorful. The rice dishes were all good, but nothing special. The tikka chicken masala had too much tomato flavor for my taste, making it overly sour. The daal was pretty good. The okra and veggie dishes were lackluster in flavor. Dessert included watermelon, rice pudding, carrot halva and gulab jamun. The waitstaff was extremely attentive and almost immediately cleared our old plates the entire meal. The cost of the lunch buffet was $21.50, which I thought was pretty steep, but there was a good variety of food. Overall, can't say I'd be back here but it definitely was not a bad experience!

Well here I am in Texas eating again lol . I've definitely had some amazingly good food while I have been here . Indian food Was on my list of things to try while I was visiting and this place was close to where we had just finished our relaxing massages. We were here as soon as they opened up at 5:30pm . No one was in the restaurant except us for just a little bit. The inside is very nice and pleasing to the eye with tables and linens for fine dining. Our waiter was friendly and helpful since I have never tried Indian food and made some excellent suggestions. I only wish I lived in Texas now to be able to return sooner . I want to personally thank Hossain our waiter for all he did to make this a memorable experience . I will definitely come again soon

Nirvana is one of the nicer Indian buffets in Houston. I came by back in September to try their lunch buffet. The service is quick and the food is refilled quite often. They have the usual fare that you expect from an Indian buffet but what really impressed me is the fact that they had an assortment of salads, chutneys, and pakoras. There was also a large variety of chicken and a goat curry dish. Several types of rice available including biryani. Most surprising was the Indo-Chinese food that they had. I liked all the desserts that they had to offer. I forgot to take any pics while I was here because I was super hungry. Note to self: Parking can be a little tricky. Get early or time it correctly.

This is a cautious, but happy 3.5 review that I rounded up to four stars. My friends said they love it hear and you know I am all about Indo/Pakistani food. We unfortunately came during a time that the buffet wasn't open, which is what they wanted us to experience. I know I would like to come back with the buffet open to update the review and add that element. Now for the negative, I have had better palak paneer and samosas elsewhere, but they were by no means gross or uneatable. It's just when you taste amazing samosas and palak paneer, you kinda judge every other dish to that. The appetizers - my friend ordered what felt like for a table of 12 - were really good. I think if I had not been so full, I would have enjoyed it more. Their garlic nan is on a whole other level. It's like bread garlic butter goodness. It's on the thinner side too, but it still has the yummy, comfort food effect to it because it's garlic naan. The service here was amazing. We had such a lovely waitress who even advised my friend not to over order - but he was stubborn and we told her not to worry about him. We all thought she did an amazing job. The only thing that worried me was how empty the place seemed. Looking at the reviews, it seems like this place is mostly active during the buffet hours, which is good. Is just I hate to see nice restaurants not have patrons, you know. I definitely want to come back and experience this place in its fullness. It's a nice little gamble, that I think everyone should take.

I've been to a fair amount of Indian lunch buffets, and this is absolutely the best one ever. The variety and selection are unheard of (~15 different entrees) and everything I tried was delicious. The setting is very clean and nice, and more upscale than other buffets I've been to. Look forward to the next meal there!

Discovering the best Indian restaurant in Houston was an absolute delight. From the moment I stepped through the doors, I knew I was in for an enjoyable culinary experience and was not disappointed. Each dish was excellent, whether it was the buttery naan bread or the fragrant biryani. What truly set this establishment apart was not just the exquisite flavors of their dishes but also the warmth and hospitality of their staff. Thank you, guys!

3.5 stars really. (Better than OK) I'll be upfront and say, food at Nirvana falls on the better side of things when it comes to Indian buffets. I visited their website and it showed their Monday/Tuesday buffet at $16.99, however when the bill actually came it was $23.99. The difference is too large to ignore on this review and I was not pleased with it. I understand the need to increase prices are a part of running a business, but at least be upfront and update your resources that TELL the public about these kind of changes. Secondly, their AC temp was set to 78 degrees in the middle of Houston heat, but it actually feels more like 80+ degrees. When you add in all the patrons sitting pretty close together, it was definitely stuffier/humid than usual. Not exactly comfortable, but rather noticeably out of the norm. ~~~~~~~~ Rule of thumb, Asians always try to find ways to cut corners to save money, this is one of them. To create a less than comfortable environment to turn over your patrons quicker and to save on the electric bill! (I grew up in my family restaurant business myself as a kid) ~~~~~~~~ Don't get me wrong, besides these two, albiet big gripes, we had ourselves a good food experience. The place was nice and well decorated, with a more higher end plating experience than normal when it comes to Indian dining. You'll find a slew of buffet dishes that is actually quite refreshing to see the amount of options. Starting but not limited to chicken tikka masala, tandoori chicken, goat curry, goat chops, fish curry, chicken kebab, daal, cabbage, aloo gabi, palak paneer, kadhi pakora, pakora, okra, green beans with other veggies, lamb biriyani, chicken biriyani and two other rice dishes. My favorite of the night was its lamb chops. Got myself a second plate of it. A non stop flow of naan is also a welcomed sight. The chicken biriyani was delish too. Overall this place has some solid food. However, the surprising price discrepancy and its less than comfortable temp they keep in the dining room really put my experience as less than luster.

The most beautiful Indian buffet. Food is excellent. Just a little pricey for a weekday lunch, so I save it for special occasions.

Nestled in the heart of Houston, Nirvana invites diners to embark on a flavorful journey across Indian cuisine. The restaurant is very inviting with such a warm ambiance. The lunch buffet at this location is absolute perfection. They provide a vast selection of entrees and side dishes. The highlight of the show for me was the tandoori chicken. This dish was very tender and juicy. In addition, the naan was very soft and warm. It combined perfectly with the warm curries. Overall, my experience here was top notch. The food was just incredible. The service was great. One of the best Indian buffets in Houston!

I have been craving Indian food and typically love Indian buffets because I get all of the variety due to my indecisive nature. I went during a weekend lunch time, and there was plenty of parking and tables available with no wait. It was a little quiet inside with no music, so conversations were kept low. I do like that there was a large selection of foods available, including dessert, fruit, and a salad bar. The server also brought naan to the table. While the food was decent, it was somewhat bland in my opinion. I'm used to Indian food having a lot of spices, but many of the dishes did lack having much flavor at all. Service was great and attentive though, and the pricing was okay. Overall, I had a good experience, but I will probably try some other Indian restaurants before returning.

The buffet is worth the trip and worth the price. A thoughtfully curated mix of South Asian and Asian food the honey chicken is just as marvelous as the saag paneer. The service is excellent as well.

This is an amazing Indian buffet--AND they do dinner (though only on Monday and Tuesday)! We came here to try out their Monday dinner buffet and were blown away by the options. Parking is easy out front. There was 3 different types of rice (basmati, lemon rice, chicken biryani) and you get naan as part of the $20.99 dinner buffet. There was tandoori chicken, chicken tikka masala, chicken manchurian, lamb chops, lamb curry, shrimp curry, and more! I loved the daal makni and the chana as well as the palak. Everything here is fresh and hot and delicious. A steal for the price! Service super friendly.

Been here many times i finally decided to do a review. Nirvana is my favorite Indian food ! Monday and tuesday they have lamb! The staff is friendly and welcoming. You can get a many naan's as you wish and they make sure to bring them out fresh and hot It is a kid friendly, family, get together or celebration type of vibe in there. Very much worth the price. Will keep going

I went to this restaurant with my kids. It seemed to be a new restaurant. The service and staff was good, we could feel hospitality and friendliness. But the food was not great. I got a tea which was told to be part of buffet but rated separately , it had some sour taste. Goat curry - goat was not cooked properly. Poori was too oily and again tasted sour. Chicken kabab was really good actually that's the only thing we really had more. Since the first few items did not taste good, I did not try other things ..

I ordered on Uber Eats and loved every moment with the meal. The ambiance is quite nice and the staff was accommodating and answered my questions.

I am not an expert in Indian food, but the chicken in all the dishes I tried was very dry. It was also a dish with goat that was mostly bones. The dishes with veggies need improvement. But, in general the flavor was good. The service was excellent and the waitstaff was very attentive. In conclusion for the price it is okay.

Great tasting food! Got some pick up one night and I didn't regret it. Can't wait to try the rest of the menu. Chicken tikka masala was very flavorful & the chicken was cooked just right. Garlic naan bread was toasted perfectly & warm. Strongly recommend this Indian restaurant.

Great food but service isn't great and the ambiance isn't great. The food was actually good. One of the servers snatched a spoon out of my baby's hands ..idk why. The building of the restaurant needs renovations . Everything seems old and dusty. But I can see myself going back but they need to work a bit faster the food took really long . Maybe because they were hosting a party and mainly focuses on the big group.

What can I say! The food here was amazing. This will be my new go-to for Indian buffet. I tried a little bit of everything. The chickpea dish, the cabbage, the rice and everything with sauce on my plate. It was all delicious. The naan was great too. Crispy and soft at the same time and they give you a lot - hot and fresh. At the end of the meal, I had this mango soufflé and a carrot sweet dish. I love the texture and flavor of the desserts. Not too sweet either. They were perfect. The staff was very friendly as well. Thoroughly enjoyed myself here and 99% chance I will be back!

Food was horrible there was not Desi authenticity we did not like it at all and definitely will not return Service was excellent waiters always there to give water ect One start for bad tasting food

Visited the dinner buffet on a Monday night. Good selection of meat/vegetarian options. Attentive and hospitable service. However, most of the buffet food was lukewarm at best, and some of the meats were overcooked, which impacted the tasting experience. For the selection and availability, it's worth a visit. It came out to about $25/person. Calm and quiet ambiance. Overall enjoyed!

Our family loves this place. Delicious food, great owner. Love their buffet - huge variety, very fresh!

Yeah. Not the hype at all. Heard so much about this place as a "real" Indian restaurant. It was not good at all. Went for lunch buffet. Why? We to old for this. Cold, under spiced, minimalist and just outright half baked. It is not what it is maid out to be at all. We wont be back.

Great Atmosphere Great Food Great Service I was introduced to this hidden gem by a co-worker (Jason). The food is delicious. This is an Buffett Style restaurant. The management team and staff are very friendly and welcoming. On Monday and Tuesday Dinner Buffet has lamb chops on the dinner bar. There's so many good things to say about this restaurant. I can not put it all in this review.

When it comes to buffets and especially Indian buffets, it's hard to find better than this. Weekday lunch is the time to come if you want the best value; they have more meat options at dinner, but if you're like me and lean veggie (or are vegetarian) you'll be spoiled for choice no matter what the time of day. The veggies on the buffet rotate frequently and are seasonal, so some days impress more than others. But no matter what, a little over half of their selection is always dedicated entirely to veggie options - these can range from mild cabbage bhaji, butternut squash, and one of the best aloo gobi I've ever tried, to a fiery bhindi (okra) masala that pushes the limits of my pretty high spice tolerance. Just don't expect spicy all the time; it's a buffet after all, and it's going to try to appeal to as many tastes as possible. We took our young niece here to try Indian Food for the first time, because there really is something for everyone! There are a few mainstays like kadhi pakora (fried vegetables in a mild yellow curry), the expected palak paneer, and several dal curries using always-in-season beans and lentils, but all of them are solid options. The meat side rotates less frequently, but I've seen butter chicken and tandoori chicken alongside goat curry, seekh kebab (ground chicken cooked on a skewer), and a seafood curry that can either be shrimp or fish depending on market prices. My meat-loving husband tells me it's hard to go wrong with any of these; and if you're lucky, you might even see a Jalfrezi-style curry, which is a spicy, tomato-based, British-Indian dish I've only previously seen when I lived in the UK. Drinks aren't included with the buffet price, but you do get a basket of freshly baked naan brushed with real ghee (grass-fed clarified butter) delivered straight to your table on request. Just make sure to save room for some fresh fruit and delicious Indian sweets!

It is a great shame that this Restaurant had a fire and they moved premises, although only next door. I was so disappointed when we visited last evening to find that their great menu had been replaced by a not so interesting buffet style meal. The food was OK but nearly cold and not of the quality we have been used to. This was always one of our favourite Indian restaurants but, to be honest, we probably will not be returning. I felt as if I was eating in a canteen and this is not what I expect when going out for an evening meal. I personally felt very let down. I would like to add that the staff are all as nice and professional as always and I will miss them. I also need to add that the web site is still showing their old full menu which could fool you. It needs to be addressed for others.

Late post...... My fiancé and I visited yesterday and we will definitely be back. Customer service was great and the food had excellent flavor, consistency, and temperature. We started our night off with the Onion Bhaji; Excellent flavor and I didn't have to use the dipping sauce. For my entree I had the Goat Rogan Josh; this dish was top tier it had the right amount of spices without feeling overbearing. The rice was enough for multiple people to use. My fiancé ordered the Tandoori chicken. He loved the fact that it wasn't saturated with sodium and had great flavor, and juiciness with good portion cutting. We also enjoyed the garlic Naan. You will leave full without the discomfort feel. Thank you all for a great experience.

Great food. Large selection. Have been twice for lunch. (but why do i need 85 characters for a review?? la la la la la la la la )

My first time visiting for lunch. Great service and I enjoyed the food. We had the buffet for lunch, lots of variety, meats, veggie dishes, salad options. I had meats for lunch, the dishes I tasted were good! Even tried a couple of the desserts - a little goes a long way! Nice ambiance, not a huge crowd but we met @1. And we could hear ourselves talk which I enjoy! I would go back!

Years later and it's still the best buffet in town! Food is fresh , service is good , decor still nice

Great food and wonderful service!! Would definitely recommend to try this spot. Chicken tikka masala was amazing

Fancy names of the dishes while the food is nothing special. Service was good but the order takes forever to come out. Starters and entree would come out together, which leaves your food cold by the time you finish one. For ambiance, it is a house-converted-to-a-restaurant.

The food was absolutely delicious. The decor is cozy and intimate, and the service is excellent and attentive

This Indian food restaurant which is actually more Pakistani than it is Indian is probably one of the best on this side of town. They require you to wear a mask and a plastic glove at the buffet. I think that if you're craving Pakistani food this will check all the boxes. There are two problems for me however. One is the homeless encampment next door. There's literally a stripped car in the parking lot with homeless people living in it and on the front porch of the vacant building. The second is paying $17 for the meal which is very expensive IMO, esp when you wonder if your car will have been broken into in the parking lot when you come out. But food wise, the place is legit.

Good food but definitely more American Indian food. This is just average Indian food! Service is good but nothing spectacular. I do like how the restaurant is setup! Enough seating.

My family has probably been here fifty times and we've shared lots of big family memories here. The food is always good quality. I will say that my uncle had this food catered at a party of 100 ppl a few weekends ago and it tasted better than ever. Likely because it was so fresh. I haven't been to the restaurant in awhile or been out to eat with my family in awhile but having the food at the catered event made me want to go back there. Chicken Tikka Masala, Saag Paneer, Dahl, and the naan bread were all fantastic.

The food was beyond amazing and the options for buffet had a lot of variety! Definitely one of my favorite restaurants in Houston.

The lunch buffet was excellent. Large selection of items.

I've been here once before a couple years ago on a trip to Houston. We snagged a to go box off the buffet. There were a LOT of delicious looking options but only so much room in the box! I thought it was good but obviously not remarkable enough to write a review (what I do remember thinking was a bigger to go box would have been great but I certainly didn't go hungry!!). Fast forward to this evening on another Houston trip. No buffet this evening. It was an off the menu to go order. Started off with the Grilled Portabello Mushrooms appetizer. These were FANTASTIC! The acidity of the pickled onions and a subtle heat really set this one off. Then came the Saffron Rice Pulao. Beautiful to look at and really delicious. In spite of having butter and cream, it did not feel/taste heavy at all. The Gosht Boti Kebab was very lightly sauced yet heavy on delicious. Chicken Vindaloo provided plenty of sauce to drape across the rice. And a nod to vegetables.. the Sindi Chole chickpea dish with more saucy sauce to drape on rice :) Complimentary regular rice, Naan, what ever that cracker style bread is, chopped cucumber/sour cream (?) dressing plus sauces made a great meal EXCELLENT!!!

This is the 3 rd time I've been struck by the rudeness of the woman behind the reception/cashier desk. The food definitely wasn't that impressive either on this visit. The "chicken biryani" looked like some thing made with Minute Rice and a seasoning packet from the Indian grocery store. I won't return, mostly due to the consistently unwelcoming behavior of quality of the receptionist/cashier person (x 2 previous visits). Today, again, it was clear she couldn't care less about this patron's experience.

Nirvana does not use a lot of spice. The sauces are watered down and there is not much spice. The service was polite, however we are looking for much more flavor. The Naan was good, rice was good, chicken and lentils pretty good. Grilled Tikka. Needs more spice, sauces need thickening and more spice.