Govinda’s Restaurant

I have to admit, I really don’t understand the hype for this place. As someone who eats meat almost every single meal, I was genuinely excited to try a place that apparently did delicious vegetarian fare. I sampled most of the things available, and found most of it to be a lot more bland than I expected which was a disappointment. The pakora wasn’t too bad, but again I felt like it could have been better — I remember eating delicious veggie pakora in the past and this wasn’t close!
The cinema was cool though — we were stuck down the front so it wasn’t the best view, but I was pretty comfortable!

This was my 3^rd visit to Govinda’s and I’m getting more comfortable and familiar with the the format
It was a Wednesday evening and the restaurant was packed with a lot of young peeps enjoying the food prior to lining up for a movie which is part of the offering
For $ 19.80 you can eat all you want from a buffet — there’s a range of vegan and vegetarian dishes
Proceeding with vegan only dishes, I started with the Dahl soup and then moved to stacking up the plate with brown rice, delicious vegan kofta balls, spiced vegetable curry, tofu, broccoli and pumpkin salad and quinoa bean salad — couldn’t resist adding some battered cauliflower and potato wedges
Draining a litre of sparkling water I then went again with another plate of the same fare — even though the stomach was v full I couldn’t resist another Kofta ball and some battered cauliflower
Yep — I had over– eaten for sure and needed to walk around Darlinghurst for close to an hour to settle
This is a great place for plant based eaters at a good price — no fuss, lovely food and very relaxed

Stuff yourself at dinner? Check
Roll yourself onto some couches? Check
Watch a great movie? Check
All for $ 30!
What I love about Govindas is that it’s a great value and the movies are pretty current. The food is outstanding (all vegetarian, but you’d hardly notice the missing meat while you’re chowing down on curry or the amazing fried cauliflower) and the movie theatre resembles your living room, but with a much bigger screen.
It’s the perfect place to pig out with friends while wearing stretchy yoga pants, or a great option for a date where you want to get a bit snuggly.

I don’t consider myself a vegetarian by any stretch of the imagination, however I was quite pleasantly surprised by the variety and taste of the food available. It’s buffet style, so you get to taste a bit of everything, from cheesy potato, to broccoli and herbs and chickpeas, as well as a vege lasagna. Loved the food and the intimate candle lit dining with the poring rain outside made it far more romantic than we thought it would be!
The movie deal to go along with it honestly made it a treat. Very good value for money, considering a film these days is almost the same price. I quite like the layout and cinema size as well, very intimate. I’d recommend this place for a casual date, or even with a small group of friends.
One recommendation I have however, is to perhaps make the cinema seating allocated. I’m not fully sure how you’d do that considering most of it is lying down, but at the moment it’s ‘first-​come-​first-​serve’ which creates an awkward situation where customers need to start lining up 10 — 15 minutes prior to the film starting, and on a narrow staircase. This can be avoided and would make it a perfect night.

Why aren’t all movie theaters like this? I seriously stuffed myself at dinner and loved that I could lie down in the movie after.
I went with my omnivore boyfriend and vegan sister and the food received great reviews all round. An excellent selection of vegan and vego food including dahl, curries, fried cauliflower (so good), salads and more. If you’re looking for authentic, unbelievable Indian food then no, this probably isn’t at the top of the list but it’s still very tasty and satisfying.
I understand the menu changes a little every night but every time I’ve been the food’s been tasty. The service is also super friendly which I love.
Definitely great value for money and it’s really nice to be able to walk upstairs, lie down and enjoy a movie. I think it would be a great option for a date night! You absolutely need to visit at least once and try it out.

We were invited by a couple to grab dinner and a movie here on a Saturday night.
I am a new vegetarian but an old movie slut so being able to both and be horizontal during the movie was pretty rad.
I would consider Govindas to be a real ‘bang for your buck’ establishment after consuming the buffet. I wouldn’t come here for my mattar paneer or gobi masala cravings, but I would if I was down on the dollar and needed some cheering up. The popodums were crunchy and the food was spicy. The only thing that threw me off was the pasta dish??? I suppose if you’re going to watch a movie and you don’t eat Indian food that’s what you choose.
We viewed Wild which stars Reese Witherspoon and her trek on a life changing experience. It was meh, but that review is for another website.
The theater gets a bit chilly so wear comfortable clothing and try not to go in large groups. Each «row» can fit 6 people.
Have fun!

We were recommended this place by some friends and it did not disappoint. All of the dishes I tried were solidly good, so the value for your money is good here over all. Everything is vegan, if not vegetarian. We did the combination dinner and a movie, and the seating area for the movies is very comfortable. It’s like being in a rich person’s personal movie theater instead of a standard movie theater. This places makes for a great date night. Maybe not a first date place though — unless you like to get really cuddly on the first date.

Sunday Kirtan meditation chanting and buffet vegetarian for only $ 10! Yes feed the spirit and tummy for only &10!

I haven’t eaten at the restaurant here yet (was a bit put off by some reviews) but love going to see a movie here.
You get to lay out and kick off your shoes and relax. Tickets are $ 14.90 which is a total deal compared to paying for Gold Class at the cinema. They do a good job of mixing what’s currently showing. I think they typically have three sessions per evening and will show both current blockbusters and as well as less common indie flicks.
Seating might be tough with a bigger group, especially if you’re late. It’s not a huge space. Very intimate. You have to give this place a try at least once.

Fantastic all-​you-​can-​eat vegetarian food at a sensational price ($ 19.80 pp). Dishes on offer include curry, falafel, pasta, baked potato and deep-​fried cauliflower; and there are plenty of accompaniments like salads, soups, breads, rices, dips, yoghurts and sauces. For $ 10 extra you can also watch a movie in the upstairs cinema.

The best thing about Govinda’s is the theater upstairs where you can kick off your shoes, lay down on their comfy cushions, and watch second run movies for about $ 10. It’s a small theater and would be a fun place to bring friends.
The restaurant is more on the ‘meh’ side. It’s a vegetarian buffet ($ 20 per person) with 3 pretty solid spiced dishes on offer with rice, poppadoms, potatoes, and deep fried cauliflower. It’s alright. But if you are craving Indian food and variety, there are other very good places on and around Victoria Street. Drinks are $ 4 and up, and the chai tea was not so good.
Also good to keep in mind, it’s not really a professionally run establishment. The place feels a little run down, part of the dining room is hot (presumably it’s the heat from the kitchen), and though the servers are very friendly, getting water can be quite a wait. Also, the hostess disappeared several times, leaving a line of customers waiting to pay for almost 5 minutes.

My friend and I went here one night for the movie and dinner combo and loved it!
All vegetarian/​vegan Indian food and tons of dishes to choose from! There were also a few other dishes that were non-​Indian such as a vegan lasagne, different pasta salads etc.
This place is all you can eat so I definitely recommend going!

You don’t typically find an establishment like this in San Francisco, or the U.S. in general for that matter. This may be the reason why my overall experience fared better than that of most Sydney locals.
Vegan dinner buffet (Indian food) + movie on comfy couches = success! And it’s all around $ 30 per person!
Dinner is all-​you-​can eat. Oh, the guy sitting next to us ate 7 full plates of food. I was very impressed, and a little scared for him for the next day… But I digress… Food was generally tasty, but nothing to write home about. After dinner, there is a group procession to the upstairs cinema, where comfy couches/​recliners await you. It was a little awkward sharing a couch with complete strangers, but we got used to it. Best part of all, you can cuddle with your date! Unless you both ate too much, or would rather cuddle the strangers…
Great for date night, and an overall memorable experience!

The movie theater here is actually pretty great — comfortable loungey couch type seating. Kick off your shoes and enjoy a movie (preferably one that you aren’t likely to fall asleep in).
Minus stars for the restaurant. A) It’s vegetarian. And I need my meat. B) It’s not that great for vegetarian! It’s a buffet and a bit ghetto… Guess that’s what you get for the cheap cheap price of $ 30 — includes buffet dinner and your movie ticket!

Dinner and a move for $ 30! Where on earth can you get such a good deal? Well at Govindas!
A Darlinghurst favourite, step into Govindas and be engulfed with the aromas of different spices and relaxed, cosy ambience. The vegan buffet, features a really good variety of foods, it’s all you can eat so no excuses for not trying a bit of everything.
Once you have enough to eat, roll yourself into the intimate cinema room, stake your cushion and lay back and relax while waiting for the movie to start. Always a great experience.

I’m not a vegetarian and I’m certainly not a vegan, but I’m nothing if not open minded, so going to Govinda’s isn’t too much of a stretch for my carnivore-​minded self. The food is also very good, which helps distract you from the lack of flesh on the plate, although I’d stay away from the non-​alcoholic wine — if you’re going to be a dry restaurant, don’t try and fool me with virgin vino.
Once you’ve had your fill of the vegan delights downstairs, then head upstairs to the living room-​cum-​cinema. The films vary depending on the night, but I reckon most people go for the novelty of lying down on comfortable bed-​seats while out in public. They’re very comfortable, and makes a change from your usual cinema seating. Although, it can be a bit tricky not having a nap, especially if the film isn’t up to scratch.

I had such high expectations for this place. My vegetarian friend had been having hallucinations about curried potato all week, so we pretty much sprinted into this restaurant/​cinema/​yoga hangout.
The restaurant has a pretty nice layout and the waitresses waft around in pretty Indian outfits. The move we wanted to see was at 7.30 which meant we had to eat at 6 to make a proper meal of it. This meant I wasn’t remotely hungry (though I wouldn’t dream of letting this on to my vegetarian friend).
The buffet didn’t have quite as many options as I’d imagined and when I began to tuck in to the assorted dishes I started to question how actually Indian they were. A sort of curried pasta dish, fried potato chips and curried falafel were just some of the suspects.
The other dishes, although slightly more Indian, lacked any distinction or spice. They just turned into a kind of generic moosh on my plate.
All the sadness was somewhat relieved by the post-​dinner film which we watched from a horizontal position on the big squashy sofas. Ideal for digestion and entertainment!

For me there is nothing like a good slab of steak to be washed down with a glass of red. Unfortunately Govindas Cinema and Restaurant is vegetarian and does not serve alcohol. Not that I need the former to survive and Govindas is a great little place to grab something to eat from the ‘international buffet’, wash it down with a lemonade then lie back on the bean bags and enjoy a movie in ‘The Movie Room’.
It’s nice and chilled and the little boutique cinema is a pretty cool place to watch a flick. I feel nice and relaxed and slightly healthy after my afternoon here that I almost want to reward myself with a drink!

Me actively seek out a vegan restaurant? Not bloody likely. So why in the world would I come to a vegan buffet dinner? Because this place defines what dinner and a movie can be.
I can always great an extra couple portions of meat at another meal to make up for it… but coming here for a movie is something to experience. With only 2 movie showings a night, show up a little early, grab a great Indian dinner, and then lay back (yes… lay back) on the soft cushions and enjoy the movie. This is especially nice on a date night as there are no arm rests to get in the way… :-)
Besides… at $ 30 each for dinner and a movie, this is one of the best value dates you can go on ;-)

Get in touch with your inner hippie and head to Govindas.
Govindas is a vegan restaurant and movie screening space.
When you walk upstairs you will be greeted by a Vegan buffet… which changes all the time but always has the following staples — delicious Indian dahl soup, vegetable curry, baked penne pasta, lentil pie or potato au gratin, cauliflower pakoras, potato wedges, rice, poppadums, bread & a variety of salads. The foods nice, it feels good eating it like you’re getting good karma by enjoying it. It’s not the most amazing food, but its quite delicious if you’re into all things Vegan.
Post dinner head to the theatrette which feels like an extension of Byron Bay. Make yourself comfy on the pillows and lie down and enjoy the experience of taking in a movie whilst lying next to strangers… in a way it feels like camping and there’s something quite communal and warm about the whole experience…
Now you can have a meal or watch a movie separately, but i suggest you do both as that’s half the fun.
Dinner is $ 19.80 and a further $ 10.00 for the movie/​dinner package. Movie only tickets are $ 13.90. Definitely worthwhile trying — could make for an excellent date night.