Kathmandu Restaurant

With its name adopted from the largest metropolitan area of Nepal, Kathmandu is an Indian restaurant located in the heart of Toronto’s downtown Young Street area. The interior décor, though nothing particularly eye catching is good. The tables are nicely set with base white and overlapping red table cloths, the glasses hand dried spotless and restaurant with an overall clean appearance.
The menu is extensive in Indian cuisine with various starters, salads, fish, chicken, vegetables, curried items and tandoor specialties done in a clay tandoor oven.
I went for their traditional recipe of Goat/​Lamb Curry cooked in a base of ginger, garlic, tomato and hot spices. When presented it eye appealing and had a good spicy curry taste about it. The goat was nicely done, had a good texture about it but it was more than obvious that the dish consisted primarily of goat with hardly any lamb, but at the low price of $ 11.99, pretty much what one might expect. The goat was also not all that nicely trimmed and in fact some hunks of the flesh in fact consisted of pure goat fat or grizzle.
Though I’m not any expert on this, one thing that struck me was that the food offered at Kathmandu didn’t exactly have, at least to my mind, the taste or flavors of what I would consider being true or authentic to regional Nepal, but in fact more like that of what I might term as being generic of India. I wouldn’t even mention this, but while there I had the opportunity to speak with a native of Nepal who, without any hesitations, confirmed my suspicion on that point.

Awesome food (soup, lamb korma, and garlic naan) and a quiet atmosphere. I will be going back!

I went to get take out from this place the other day. The server was really friendly but the ambience was absolutely terrible. The air conditioner didn’t work that day. I would probably not dine in ever. I ordered the chicken biryani which also didn’t taste like biryani. Neither did it taste like biryani nor was it good. I’ve heard their butter chicken is good so I would be willing to get take out and give it another shot. But I will definitely not be Dining in the restaurant

If sub-​subpar chicken biryani is what you’re looking for, look no further. At this culinarily South Asian sauna (the air conditioning wasn’t working, making a three minute wait seem like an hour long ordeal), the biryani was touted as ‘saffron-​infused rice with chicken’. My finely honed brown senses, although, told a different story: it tasted like nothing more than steamed rice with some sort of basic curry mixed in and left to sit for a good while.
If you happen to chance upon this place, though, worry not: the butter chicken I’d tasted once was 100% legit. Let’s see what a future visit has to say.

Having grown up in Nepal I was SORELY disappointed to find that all Nepalese restaurants in Toronto, are just Indian restaurants that also serve momos. I don’t get it… the market is saturated with Indian restaurants, and the only place that sort of serves Nepali food is Himalayan Kitchen, why would the Nepalese not want to take advantage of being the first? Kind of ironic, Nepali people serving Indian food, and Tibetan people serving Nepali food.
Ahhh, anyways, I guess this is meant to be a review and not a rant. So I will say, I went in expecting Nepali food — so I tried their momos (tibetan/​nepali dumplings) and thaali. The momos were okay, but then for me any momo is better than no momo. When I read thaali, I expected the Nepalese curry, daal and veggies, but it was all Indian. :(oh the travesty!
Don’t worry Kathmandu Restaurant, you’re not the only one I’m disappointed with (here’s looking at you Mt. Everest). Come on Nepalese people of Toronto!!! Open an authentic Nepali restaurant already! I would cash in on that so fast if it weren’t for the fact that I suck at cooking, but I excel at eating, so you’d already have one loyal customer in me.

I came based on a Groupon purchase. This place was busy which is really good to see. The lunch buffet is small but I didn’t mind. It covered meat and vegetable dishes well. They served fresh naan and mango lassi. Overall, it was a nice meal.

I hit Katmandou every time I visit Toronto, twice this trip, only to find out they are being torn down for yet another high rise condo. I guess they’re moving about 6 blocks up the street thankfully. Always order the dall soup with chicken and the chicken tikka masala or vindaloo. Never disappoints. Service is friendly and the prices pretty good. It’s never very crowded but there is a steady stream of people picking up take out which tells me the locals love it too. Atmosphere is very classy and relaxing making it the whole package.

Great food and great service here.
I always find that when I order India food the portions look small but once I start eating I’m extremely satisfied/​full by the end.
The staff was really great here. One of the guys even put fresh cherries in out drink that he just got from the market, he said he thought we’d prefer fresh Cherries to the maraschino one, and he was right, so much better.
The food was good, not the most amazing but still good. Great naan and lassies.
All in all, delicious food, friendly staff and a spacious place. What more can you ask for?

Came here on a Friday night with my brother. Based on the store front, we probably wouldn’t have entered. Don’t let the décor or lack of customers throw you off but the food was pretty good!
Neither of us were very familiar with Indian or Nepalese cuisine aside from samosas, pakoras, butter chicken, biryani, momo, etc so we ordered samosas ($ 4.49÷2) and the everest non vegetable thali ($ 14.99).
I got the curry chicken and my brother got the lamb. Both came on a segmented metal tray with seasonal vegetables, plain basmati rice, curry chicken, raita, pickled veggies, tandoori naan, lentil curry and rice pudding which was the dessert.
The samosas are about the size of a fist and were so delicious! Crunchy on the outside and filled with steaming spiced potatoes and peas!
The rice didn’t have any flavour like the kind I’m used to eating: fragrant and slightly chewy. It did however complement the heavy spices and seasoning of each curry very well. The chicken was slightly overcooked but the creamy sauces helped with the moisture. Both of us agreed that the tandoori naan was the best part! Perfectly warm, slightly crisp and had an amazing chewy and fluffy texture. Great for soaking up the curry with!
Overall, staff were very friendly and food came fast. The dishes were so full of flavour and complemented each other so well. The naan is a must… even on its own. It may not look like a lot of food at first but we definitely left feeling stuffed. Again, décor could use a makeover but the food speaks for itself.

I have come here for years off and on from when it used to be a small take out place. The flavours and prices have increased as costs and inflation have. I would say it is comparable to many other Indian style restaurants I have been to except they garnish with fresh coriander and ginger. For some this is a turn off but I find it only adds to the explosion of tastes and flavours. I recommend samosa chat as an appetizer. I have never found it anywhere before but the naan breads are made fresh and hard to resist. It’s a bit difficult not to leave over stuffed. Service is slower but worth the wait if you aren’t rushing.

Boy. We got like $ 150 worth of food delivered from here (including 16 pieces of naan. judge us not) and it really hit the spot on that cold early winter day. Chicken Dilruba, Tikka Masala, Butter Chicken, can’t go wrong with any of these. Saag Paneer if you need your veggies. Oh and might I recommend the Kashmiri Naan? It was life changing. A sweet take on your familiar naan, filled with cashew nuts and dried fruits.

Came here with 2 of my friends on a Friday night. The waitress put two tables together to make a table for four and served us water right away. I don’t know much about Indian cuisine so we asked the waitress about butter chicken and she recommended the butter chicken dinner special for $ 12.99. all three of us got that.
The wait time was very long. Probably around 50 minutes. That was probably the main reason for the 3 stars. Does Indian food always take this long to cook?
The dinner special portion was very good. It came on a big plate with 2 small side dishes (one salad, one vegetable curry I think), butter chicken, rice and naan. Both side dishes were delicious and the butter chicken was good but I don’t have anything to compare it to since it was my first time eating butter chicken lol. The naan was my favourite though very good texture and taste.
Overall the service was acceptable. They constantly refilled our waters which was nice. I would come here again if I crave Indian cuisine.

Good food but waited far too long. Was there with a few people on a Friday night and waited a full hour. We were ready to leave. Never again going back. The wait wasn’t worth it.

I love the food here, and it hits the spot every time. I usually order the chicken tikka masala with basmati rice, and a garlic naan on the side. The portions are reasonably large and the quality of the food is very good. The butter chicken also looks amazing.
I understand they have a lunch buffet here during the day, but I’ve never tried it so can’t comment on its quality. The service can be quite slow and the food takes a long time to arrive, so if you’re very hungry either get a starter to keep you going or order takeout.
Tip: There is a 15% off dinner coupon on their website.

Overall an amazing experience. Authentic North Indian cuisine and service goes above and beyond to accommodate you. The only sad thing I found out about this place is we left a generous tip because the female server seemed very friendly and dedicated to us only to find out that the owner does not allow them to keep the tips as ‘he pays them out of the tips’that is their base salary that is shared.

Yesterday night was the first time I came here and had a very pleasant experience. The restaurant was nice and warm so we felt real cozy after coming inside from the Toronto cold.
The host who seated us was very nice. Same goes for the waitress and guest appearance from one of the chefs who brought out a dish for us. The employees who work there have such a nice aura about them.
The food was good but it is a bit mild compared to some Indian restaurants. My friends and I ordered the chicken biryani, butter curry paneer, butter chicken, goat vindaloo, and the tandoori naan. It came with complimentary yogurt as well. We were very big fans of the goat vindaloo and the tandoori naan which was baked to perfection (very soft and fluffy). The other dishes were okay, they weren’t tasteless but lacked the quintessential spice kick that we were used to. Their butter chicken is made sweeter than conventional butter chickens but it is nice. Wasn’t a huge fan of it but that’s definitely a preference bias; some may love it.
Worth noting was how accommodating the staff were. I requested for some additional peppers to add to my dish and they were very cool about it. Brought me some very delicious hot peppers right away.
My friends and I ate for 25 bucks each and I believe it was a pretty good amount of food for that price. Also, the service was flawless so that was also a plus.
The restaurant does cater to a more diverse crowd, which is good as I know not everyone can handle a lot of spice. Personally the lack of spice was my own little qualm with it but the restaurant is a really good place to check out.
If you’re like me, just order some additional hot peppers and you’ll be good to go :).

Visited with some friends for a quick dinner on a chilly night. Quickly noticed that this is a nice warm and cozy place to have a quiet dinner to catch up. The servers are friendly and show passion for the food being served.
The dinner special is well sized and has a good mix of flavours, though there are also some good combos which can be found on the back page of the main menu that should also be looked at. Their vegetarian and meat options both come out well so both dietary options are well covered. The only issue I noted with the food is the proportion of carbohydrate base that was given, rice and pita bread… just a bit heavy on the starches. I’m thinking it would save them some trouble and waste if they asked the customer if they wanted half portions or just one of the two.
The prices are pretty reasonable for dinner, but I felt like the prices would make for an expensive lunch.

This is absolutely the worst indian food I have eaten in the whole of downtown Toronto. I went for lunch buffet on a friday for $ 12.99. The service was very slow, only one waiter! I found their butter chicken to be descent but the rest of the curries were absolute shit. Even I can cook better indian food at home (and I am pretty average).
Also, don’t even think of using the washrooms, they are pretty disgusting. I don’t know how resturants like this are even profitable being on Yonge street.
PS: I am Indian

Came here for a birthday dinner with a party of 14. Took up almost half the restaurant. Despite our huge number of people, the wait staff (3 of them) were very attentive and helpful. Wait for food was quite normal.
My friend and I split the ‘feast’ for one, as we were told it was quite a lot of food for one person. It included Naan, rice (which we declined for more Naan), Tandoori Chicken, Kebab, Chicken Tikka, Tandoori Prawn, and a choice of Curry. Plus dessert!
The Kebab was okay, the 2 chickens were quite dry though. The goat curry we ordered was good though. Very rich! Price wise, all the entrees are approx 12 – 14. Our feast was 21 bucks though.

It took me 90 minutes to travel one way on driving/​TTC to have lunch buffet ($ 11.99) at Kathmandu! And it better worth it! And yes I have a good filling spicy lunch that put a smile in my face!
The buffet selections may not be huge. don’t expect to be at a Chinese buffet or a Japanese AYCE when there are 50 items for you to pick from. Here we are talking about quality not quantities.
All the food were all tasty, spicy and fresh… Yes spicy enough that I don’t need any hot sauce and so delicious that I start having bits of food on my face and everywhere… Sorry for my friend that was eating with me, I hope I did not splash some of the sauce in his face!
Lunch Buffet only serves from Monday to Saturday, so for me it will be another painful TTC trip if I want to come down again! But I am IN if my friend says let’s do it!