Punjab Palace Cuisine of India | Best Indian Restaurant | Best Indian food | Best Indian Curry

Stopped by for their lunch Buffett the place itself is ok the food was very watered down and not very flavorful. It was meh but I wouldn’t come back.

It’s $18.5 for lunch buffet. Not many varieties overall in the buffet. Would not come again. It didn’t have goat meat nor lamb, no biryani, no pickles, no chai, one sweets variety, etc. For meat lovers, you’ll be very disappointed. The buffet had only two chicken dishes. The two lacked spices and flavor, it was very bland. Very disappointed. On the other hand, vegan dishes were better. Had good spices and flavor. The Naan was very good.

I ate here with a group during lunch hour to eat the special for $12.95 (plus tax and tip). There was table seating and booth seating. We considered the buffet, but the lunch special is a pretty decent size! Water is at your table in a carafe. The staff was helpful let us know what the lunch special included today - because it does change. Each special was large (and colorful!) served on what was like a tin platter. We had chicken tikka masala, chicken curry, paneer (saag, I believe), rice, and garlic naan. The naan was so hot and fresh, it was almost difficult to hold. Everything was pretty fresh and really rich and creamy tasting. They were mindful of our heat tolerances and sent us plates with mild spice. We asked for the spicier stuff on the side.

Food tasted as it was reheated and not fresh , the sauces tasted as its canned sauce The sent me chicken tikka and I asked for chicken tendori Packaging came leaking and no utensils or napkins Very arrogant attitude and hostile

By far the best Indian food in town. I always get their shahi paneer and it is the best I've ever had. Good portion size, superb flavor. I usually order to go with garlic naan and they've always been kind enough to include a small portion of basmati rice. Pick up is always smooth. They'll also go ahead and click the "no tip" button before swiveling the tablet for you to pay which I think is pretty respectful for to go orders. Either way, would definitely recommend.

Excellent food. Great service. I would love to come back here.

We ran across this place and decided to try it and glad we did. This place is definitely one of our favorite so far. We liked the fact that we were seated right away. Customer service was great. Everyone was friendly and courteous. They checked on us several times to make sure if we needed anything. The place was wasn't as busy, thank goodness, but we did see that they had a lot of to-go orders. The place was nice and relaxing. They had tv screens with music videos for entertainment. What stood out and is the most important was the food! We tried their garlic chicken (if you're a garlic lover, you'll like this) and their bhindi masala (okra). I never liked okra before until I tasted this dish. They gave us a choice and asked how spicy we wanted the food. We don't like hot/ spicy dishes so we asked for mild and it was wonderful. It was mild, but very flavorful. We also tried their gulab jamun dessert (it's like a warm donut in a sweet syrup ). Food was excellent! I can't wait to go back and try other dishes. Update: We came back during lunch and they have a lunch special for $12.95 that has curry chicken, chicken masala, saag paneer (homemade cheese & creamed spinach), garlic naan (it's like a pita bread), and gulab jamun (dessert). All of this for 1 price. Love it.

We ended up here on a random whim for dinner. We used to come for the lunch buffet but I think that went away after covid. We were the only ones in the restaurant when we first got there, with their TVs blaring their Indian music shows. We ordered the chicken Tikka Masada, the chicken korma, the tandoori garlic shrimp, alongside the cheese filled naan. Everything was delicious and came out quickly. The one thing though is that they never asked us if we wanted to get any beverages and seemed bothered when we asked for to go containers for our leftovers as well as asking for another order of Naan to go as well (it never came). The leftover veggies from the garlic shrimp made delicious egg/breakfast tacos by the way! Definitely recommend the chicken Tikka masala!

It was our first time here and let me tell you.... Service is excellent! They welcomed us and assisted us for ordering our favorite dishes! The food is delicious!!! My family and self ordered from the dinner menu, my children enjoyed it! Definitely will be coming again! Place is clean and sitting is comfortable.

This is a review after having already gone here once, having a bad experience, and giving it a second chance. Cost is great if you are going for the lunch buffet, but the food was pretty much a letdown when you consider Curry & Kebab is about 15 min away and exponentially better while the restaurant that closed down in University Village (Masala Mischief) had way better and culturally accurate flavors. The flavors here could barely be considered Indian where UCR's dorm food made by non-Indians had more accurate seasoning than here during their lunch buffet. Everything was watered down, cooked until super dry, and unflavorful. I wouldn't be surprised if you told me it was made by an American cook who thought Indian spices were too spicy and got rid of everything. In addition, things that are supposed to be dairy based and runs and tastes like water is very disappointing. All-in-all, the service was ok (food was replenished and we got our naan, but not exactly checking on people all that much) , cost vs filling is fine, but I honestly wouldn't even eat it even if offered for free. The room is on the dark side but at least somewhat comfortable. I'll give it a 2 star because these people seem to be ok people and the plates and whatnot were clean (as I've seen worse elsewhere). Also the naan wasn't bad (I still like elsewhere) but the naan was definitely better than barely edible.

We've seen this place a hundred times when they're closed between 3-5pm. Finally making it in for a visit before 3pm we were warmly welcomed. Clean interior with tables or booth seating. The main dining room is open seating. On the left side is their banquet room for special events and private parties. A nice space to hold an intimate gathering. We dug right into their lunch buffet priced at $16.95. They also have a lunch special for $12.95. Buffet had veggie egg rolls and fritters, fish, tandoori chicken, tikka masala chicken or veggie, lentils, potato, rice, chic pea salad, mustard greens, salad station with lettuce, tomato and red onions, with mint and tamarind sauces, oranges and rice pudding. A nice spread of traditional dishes and sides. Fresh garlic nan was brought out in a basket for the table. Not sure if this is refillable we were too full to ask for another. Flavors were tasty and service was great. Overall a cute little spot among the surrounding shops. Parking is plentiful but area can be a little sketchy.

I went here for the Indian buffet on a weekday after getting excused from Jury Duty. Whew! Pleasantly surprised the moment I walked in the door. This restaurant reminded me of Indian restaurants in the Chunking Mansions of Hong Kong! Why? The aromas, the music, the decor and the small but cozy size. Ended up enjoying the food more than I expected to. Unlike a couple of other Indian buffets I've been to recently, these folks seem to make everything fresh or relatively fresh. The variety of foods is also better than most, and I've been to countless Indian buffets. Looking forward to coming back when that craving hits!

This is the best Indian food I've ever had. Sooooo tasty and fresh. The service was amazing. Very friendly servers and the owners oversaw everything to make sure we will be happy.

Spacious and bright LED-lit interior was what struck me right away. My group visited during lunch hour to eat the special for $12.95 (plus tax and tip). We considered the buffet, however the special was plenty! Water is at your table in a carafe. The staff was helpful and ran down what the lunch special included today. They let us know that it does change. It was very large and colorful served on a platter- chicken tikka masala, chicken curry, paneer, rice, and garlic naan. They asked if we needed more naan periodically and refilled our water. Everything was so hot and fresh, and really rich tasting. They were also mindful of our heat tolerance level and sent us plates with mild spice. We opted out of dessert. A pleasant and delicious experience all around!

I have to update my review because the Punjab Palace that we know and love seems to be back! The sauces are creamy and delicious again. The shrimp and chicken dishes that we ordered also had a good amount of shrimp and chicken in them. I am wondering if they changed managers because our last experience was so bad that we tried another place. That place could not compare to the flavors of Punjab Palace, so we gave them another chance. So glad we did! We were so happy with our food again. Definitely try them out!

So good!!! Murg makhni, palak paneer, garlic naan. kheer.... All of it top notch! For my waistline, it's a good thing I don't live nearby! Leftovers the next day were perfection. Would def go back if I'm ever in Riverside again!

Great food. Reasonably priced. Quiet but friendly staff. Order to go and if you need to wait more than a few minutes they will usually give you a drink or dessert for free while you wait.

Came here for the lunch buffet and they had the lamb shank that day and WOW was it amazing! I think I'm going to call from now on when I'm free just to see if they have it on their rotating options! It was the most soft and tender lamb dish and the rich marrow was still in the bones waiting to be consumed! For $16.99 the buffet was more than worth it for just that one item alone!

Food is really good especially, tandoori chicken, and garlic nan. Reasonable prices.

I no longer live in riverside but there is not a day that goes by when I do not think about Punjab Palace. I love the Shai paneer and I miss it every day. I'm just upset that I found this place during my last quarter at UCR. I have yet to find another Indian restaurant that tastes as good as the food here.

me and my boyfriend came to enjoy the lunch buffet and it was so worth it. it was self serve and some of the food was dry tho but it makes sense since it was mid afternoon. the buffet had lots of options between vegetarian and non. service was friendly and attentive, and there were lots of tables to choose from. very spacious with a couple tvs around too.

They remodeled and it's definitely an improvement. I think I came on a Saturday for a lunch special take out and I noticed they brought back their all you can eat! I don't know if it's all week or only a weekend thing but I will have to come back to try it. Let's just say I ate Punjab 2x that week. It was delish and I will be back again since it is a great price for what they give. Sometimes they forget the dessert but it's okay. The guys that work there are not rude, just serious but that's culture and it doesn't take away from the experience at all. It's delicious and better than the last time when I had to stop coming. Glad to see they made improvements, super happy for them. I love this place

All you can eat lunch buffet for $16.95! Had a good amount of options, and the food was really good. My favorite were the veggie korma and saag paneer. Naan was fresh and delicious as well. Service was very smooth-- we were sat down immediately and could serve ourselves for the buffet. 100% recommend the lunch buffet if you're looking for a good deal on Indian food.

This was my first time trying Indian food and I am so happy to have experienced my first time here. The food was so flavorful and creamy! The chicken was very tender and full of flavor as well. I got the chicken vandaloo and the chicken tikka masala, I highly recommend those two with the garlic Nan.

Been here twice: once for lunch and the other dinner. If you are very hungry, I recommend you coming here. The portions are pretty big and it comes with 3-4 different types of dishes (curry, yogurt, rice, etc) (This is for the lunch or dinner special) The Indian food is probably the best in riverside ( UCR). I haven't really explored other places, but for the most part it was pretty good.

Came here for lunch, The Curries were normal but the naan was the best Naan I ever had ! On top of that the Rice pudding and the Mango Pudding were the best ! It seemed like Dessert were little steep because portions were small ! But a good place for lunch ! I got the Lunch buffet! Ambiance is normal feels like you're eating at a low key restaurant. Moreover, the service was amazing.

Tonight I called in my order @5pm. The gentleman said it would be ready in 30 minutes. I arrived early so I sat in the car and waited. I went in for my order at 5:30. It wasn't ready. The entrance was full of door dashers. To make a long story short my order wasn't ready until just after 6pm. I was so irritated. I'm giving this restaurant 5 stars because the food was absolutely amazing. So flavorful! I now understand why they were so busy. Quality & Quantity was perfect. I ordered Goat curry, Karachi chicken, Aloo Gobi, Garlic Nan, and 2 orders of samosas. It was definitely worth the wait. It's reminding me of the good old days when I would frequent Punjab Palace off Magnolia & Tyler!

I have been going to this restaurant for at least 20 years but I think it changed owners in the last few years and the food has gone from inconsistent to consistently poor. Last night it was so bad we barely ate it and threw out the leftovers. The naan was so thin you could practically see through it. The chicken tikka masala was runny, bland and had only three pieces of tough chicken in it. The vegetable korma was little better. Next time, I am craving Indian food I will drive a little further, pay a little more, and enjoy my meal a whole lot more.

We went there for the first time. Had a lunch buffet on Sunday. They had chicken pakora and spring rolls for buffet which usually is not served as part of buffet in other Indian restaurants. We ordered Tandoori Fish also which was super delicious, it was very tender and flavorful. Everything was super tasty and neatly served. Staff was very friendly and polite. Food: 5/5 | Service: 5/5 | Atmosphere: 5/5

This place has the best pakora! I absolutely love all of their dishes. They are always super quick and efficient, especially if ordering takeout. I highly recommend trying this place if you haven't yet.

Delicious food and nice ambiance. The service was attentive and friendly. I didn't see it on the menu but I was able to order a hot chai with my lunch special. The lunch special was delicious! I will probably try the lunch buffet next time to have more tandoori chicken hehe. Great place for a quick and hearty meal

I don't like giving bad reviews, but I ordered from here on grubhub. The order was paid for and was set for pick up between 5:30-5:55, when I arrived I noticed that the site was closed. I saw someone inside and decided to knock. I knocked a couple of times and the gentleman sitting inside decided to ignore me. I then decided to call to maybe respect the sign, they didn't pick up either. Fact is if they were indeed closed they should have canceled the order and have the courtesy to inform me of the situation. Bit rude.

came here because it was late and wanted indian and this is the closest place that closes past 9 pm. i asked for the vegan menu and they have many vegan options, the daal was my favorite. i asked for spicy and it had a good kick to it i asked for vegan naan and the only difference was that they didn't put butter. naan was pretty dry though ngl. the portions for the plates was a good amount, could possibly feed two per dish. idk if i'll be back but glad it's there just in case

We usually order via Grub Hub, this place is fantastic. We love the chicken korma and everything we have ordered has been delicious. I've had Indian food in NYC in a couple of great spots, and we used to order from Mantra close to Eastvale and in Rancho Cucamonga, this place is every bit as good if not better than those other places I've tried.

Wow this place is amazing! Ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala, Tandoori Chicken, extra Basmati rice, an order of cheese stuffed naan and 2 orders of garlic naan. The dishes were amazing. Juicy chicken; perfectly seasoned. Chicken Tikka Masala 11/10! Tandoori Chicken 9/10! We got to choose our own spice levels (which we appreciated!). Started with the cheese stuffed naan, which I must say, I personally was not a big fan of. When I hear cheese stuffed, I'm thinking melted cheese, but this was not that. 3/10 (Still good though) The garlic naan, however was so good we had to order one to go! 8.5/10 My family was traveling to Riverside with the gps directing us to a different Indian food spot, but by chance we got mixed up and ended up in the parking lot where Punjab Palace was. So thrilled we gave this spot a try! Looks can be deceiving because "hole in the wall" type restaurants are lowkey always the most fire! Glad we took a chance; will DEFINITELY be returning! And next time, we'll be coming for their ALL YOU CAN EAT LUNCH!!

I would have wished to have taken the pictures of our food before we inhaled it!!! First time being here and it will not be the last. The food, the ambience , the staff all calmness and polite. I ordered my favorite chicken vindaloo. I told the hostess I wanted it spicy hot! He understood what I wanted. This place is truly the best Indian food restaurant I've been to. And I've visited and yelped only those that truly are the ones that I thought were Yelp worthy and 5 star worthy. Punjab Palace ! You're definitely a 5 star And more.

This restaurant is amazing with delicious food. I ordered vegetarian food to go and Raj was so helpful and gave extra rice for my family. This restaurant is our go to place and comfort food. Thank you

We ended up here on a random whim for dinner. We used to come for the lunch buffet but I think that went away after covid. We were the only ones in the restaurant when we first got there, with their TVs blaring their Indian music shows. We ordered the chicken Tikka Masada, the chicken korma, the tandoori garlic shrimp, alongside the cheese filled naan. Everything was delicious and came out quickly. The one thing though is that they never asked us if we wanted to get any beverages and seemed bothered when we asked for to go containers for our leftovers as well as asking for another order of Naan to go as well (it never came). The leftover veggies from the garlic shrimp made delicious egg/breakfast tacos by the way! Definitely recommend the chicken Tikka masala!

I've been to Indian restaurants all over the west coast (we're from San Diego and now Seattle) and this is still the best one I've been to. Every time we're in town we stop by here sometimes multiple times because the food is so good. The service is really friendly and make you feel like you're visiting old friends for lunch. The garlic naan that comes with the lunch combo is hands down the best naan anywhere: thin, crispy, and loaded with garlic and cilantro. All of the curries are richly flavored. The methi Matar malai is a house special fenugreek and pea curry that I've never seen anywhere else and is probably my favorite Indian curry. I hope they reopen lunch buffet soon because that would make this the ultimate Indian dining destination. As it is, the prices are very reasonable and the portions generous compared to other Indian restaurants I've eaten at.

I love this place! The beer is amazing! I started going there when it was by the galleria and am so happy they just moved locations. The lamb Malai is baaaaad assss! So delicious as well as the Tikka masala. Everytime I have been there it's been great and the staff is very kind. Can't wait to go back!

Punjab Palace's all you can eat lunch buffet is back y'all! Offerings included the standard favorites like chicken Tikka masala, tandoori chicken, curry chicken, but also vegetarian options too like daal and vegetable korma . Naan was all you can eat as well.

So happy to have found this place. We love Indian cuisine. They are delicious and this place makes them perfectly. We thought we were going to an all you can eat buffet but as it turns out they offer pre plated lunch specials which has chicken curry, chicken masala, paneer korma, basmati rice, garlic naan and a small dessert. All were so very delicious. I wish we live close by so that we could enjoy this more often. I highly recommend this place. At $12.95 per person for lunch it can't be beat.

Really good food and is very authentic! Prices are affordable too. It's always consistent flavors. Chicken Tika Masala and Malai are our favorites

So much better than our favorite spot, try the buffet. You wont be sorry. Plain naan, vegetabke samosa.

They are currently not doing AYCE lunch buffet due to the pandemic, but they are doing a lunch special for only $12. You get basmati rice, 3 different curries, naan, and gulab jamun. A BIG MEAL for only $12. A pretty good price and the quality of the food was great and satisfied my cravings. Very flavorful! They wrap their takeout food pretty well, so there was no spillage in the car ride home. I really appreciated that. The thought of curry spilling in my car... I would have been upset.

We got chicken tikka masala with medium spice & of course garlic nann! Sooo yummy! So much flavor! We are so fortunate to have this place just a few minutes drive away from home. The food is absolutely amazing - everything we tasted melted in other mouths. A small local restaurant with great service, food, and overall experience! Definitely a go-to place for Indian food when you are in Inland empire!

Delicious place. Always great and the rice is amazing Food is always on point. Whether is to eat there or to go.

This is one of the best restaurants in all of Riverside, if not THE BEST. I used to go to the one on Magnolia but it got shut down and I decided to give this location a try. Honestly, I'm kind of bummed out that I didn't go here sooner at it took another location to close for me to finally visit. The service here is excellent. The people who work here are so friendly, kind, and always make sure that you are well taken care of. They seem to really care about their customers and they treat them with respect, which is so rare to see these days. Although it is not in the best location and doesn't have the most welcoming storefront, I can assure you that once you step inside its like everything else on the outside just fades away. First off - the food is amazing. I've ventured out of my comfort zone of just eating chicken tikka masala for the longest time and found that literally every single thing on the menu is just really good. Everything is really flavorful and fresh. I've tried to eat at other places while I was traveling but honestly, nothing really compares to Punjab Palace. This will forever be my favorite Indian restaurant and I know I am not the only one. The family who owns it is so loved by the community!

Indian cuisine is one of my favorite types of food and Punjab Palace definitely has delicious food and everything is very fresh. They also have my favorite dishes in their buffet which is the Chicken Tikka Masala and the Palak Paneer. Eating their is a delight to my senses and they also provide great customer service which is rare these days.

If you're looking for a hidden gem near UCR campus with absolutely delicious food, you have to try out Punjab Palace!! If you're into Indian food or even if you're not, this restaurant is worth trying. I highly suggest coming here for the lunch buffet

Good Indian Food made right certainly delicious and prepared good really good cuisine and a pleasure to dine or take out. Indian Food is really excellent a little spicy but worth the dine In experience to have a good cook meal.

Experienced poor customer service during the lunch buffet. Some of the dishes were not being replaced after being empty, wish there was more fresh (hot) food available. The food was good, just wish I had a better experience and able to try the variety of foods.

Ordered takeout, it was extremely fast and incredibly tasty! Samosas were small but flavorful. Lentil soup was a surprise hit! Lamb Tikka was some of the best I've had, lamb was tender and the sauce was flavorful, a huge portion. Definitely would order from again. Inside looked nice with white table clothes, a no fuss staff and a bar.

Honestly this wasn't our favorite place. The Tikka masala was watery and lacked flavor, one of the employees was doing paperwork in the middle of the restaurant, the food was just mediocre and not worth the $17 buffet. I will say their naan was fantastic though.

First off, i want to say that right when you walk in, it feels as if you are walking into a great emperors domain, the atmosphere was magnificent and felt as if i was in india. Secondly, the food was hand made an indian god or goddess. The service was just as amazing as everything else, they were very nice and extremely helpful. And the the ice cream on top of everything was sweet, handsome, and lovable man by the name of raj. This man made out dining experience one to remember.

We wanted to like this place. We tried. We tried hard. The naan, like others have noted, is spectacular. Not spectacular enough, however, to counteract raw food, a disinterested owner, and borderline hostile service. As others have also noted, someone who looked like the owner had set up shop at a table smack in the middle of the restaurant. It looked messy and unprofessional, and not what we wanted to see while we ate. Maybe if the owner would have been friendly and engaged the restaurant patrons in conversation or at least acknowledged their existence, we might perhaps not have been so put out to find that the tandoori chicken was undercooked across multiple pieces. When we brought this to the attention of the owner, he seemed only vaguely interested. He gave us a half-hearted apology and mumbled to a staff member to replace the chicken, which never happened. Nobody came back around to check on us or to see if the rest of our meal was okay. We could even have gotten past this, if the staff had not spent the entire time staring at us mutinously, as if we were in the wrong for bringing a salmonella risk to the attention of their boss. We found this so unfair that we took our concerns to the city inspector instead. All the best, Punjab Palace.

I gave 3 stars only because of salt content in food. If they go a little easier on salt, I'd give 5 stars without any qualm.