Myilai Masala

Came here for the lunch buffet during the work week. The buffet had a good selection of dishes with a nice variety of flavors. I had no idea the food was all vegetarian, but it didn’t matter to me because the food was very flavorful, meaning that I stuffed myself silly. It was slightly embarrassing.
Now, don’t expect fancy dining or table-​side service, because that’s not here. But if you really like Indian food and trying dishes you wouldn’t normally order, then come try the buffet.

Tasty Indian vegetarian food. Worth to visit at least once. Especially hot vada is so fresh and i never tasted like this in new jersey.

Went there for buffet on Veterans Day, service is mediocre to say the least with barely any food /​plates on the counters. Why ask the customers to walk in and not serve food. Owner walked out when things were getting out of control. And expecting to pay full price for no food that was served is even worse.
AVOIDABLE!

A hidden gem! They had more items than I had room to try, and that was before I found out that my $ 10 buffet came with a dosa. Everything was vegetarian, so it was guilt-​free eating across the board, and a lot of things (though not all) were quite good. I appreciated that they had tons of sauces and soups, and that they provided little cups for all of them. That kept things from bleeding into each other, which REALLY helped me enjoy my meal. I wish I had been hungrier, and I will definitely, definitely, definitely be coming back.

I was in town for a regatta on Mercer Lake, went here for lunch buffet on Diwali and enjoyed it very much. Food is excellent and the place was packed. If you are not South Indian, like me, but love the food– this is it! Highly recommend. 11÷7÷15

Just had a great dinner here. It’s all vegetarian. The place is byob. Very inexpensive. It’s really authentic. Located close to AMC Hamilton do it’s great for dinner and a movie.

In my opinion, there’s no other reason to go here other than to have a dosa. Yes, it’s a vegetarian restaurant, but all Indian restaurants have a ton of vegetarian items on their menus, and really the food here is just okay. I mean, it’s an authentic place, mostly Indian patrons, and definitely no-​frills. The food is spiced appropriately rather than dumbed-​down to please the American (buffet-​goer) palate; however, it just doesn’t impress.

I love this place. I am vegetarian and tend to order the same dish. They would get 5 stars from me if they didn’t mess up our orders twice. For instance, last night we ordered aloo mutter and aloo gobi. The aloo mutter was supposed to be peas and potatoes. Instead it was potatoes and cauliflower. The aloo gobi is suppose to be potatoes and cauliflower. Instead it was cauliflower and peas. Other than the few mishaps and sometimes a change of chef, I really do love their food.

The best South Indian food I had in NJ.

Just went to eat on Friday, July 31, 2015 the second time. Giving it only 1star as service is very very bad. When they get you seated, they don’t even serve you water with glasses first. Food takes longer to make and to be brought to the table. Even if the food is made from scratch, it takes way too long. I saw many families complaining about this and especially those with children too and some of them left without getting their full or partial order.
The manager in the end apologised for all these but gave an excuse saying everyone happened to come at the same time. Whatever the case, this should not have been the issues or problems. As this must be the same every time as i with my family experienced the same more than a year ago also.
The only good thing is the food we ordered was tasting nice but we are never going to go back unless there is a very great improvement in the service. Suggestions are reduce the menu items and pay attention on just preparing a few South Indian menu food items. And make sure to have enough utensils and cutlery to provide to your diners (when they ask for extras as you ran out of those too). Maybe if your kitchen is small or big make sure to have enough space for cooking and get 1 or 2 or more chefs to help out make the food. And improve on services and restaurant décor too. Then maybe you will do better!

So… We actually didn’t eat here. I love Indian food and was craving some. But, at first sniff, something seemed awry. They had a broken alarm that was going off incessantly. Their buffet looked like it had been sitting out for days. And when we asked to order off the menu, the host/​owner? Rolled his eyes. At that point I was afraid of what we were going to get so we left.

It’s only when you are far away from things you like is when you actually realize the value and treasure things. This is one such place. All thru my life at Jersey, I would crib about quality of Indian food and even crib about quality etc. it’s only when I moved to LA is when I realized my folly.
I have had dosas, bisibele bath, sambhar, chutney and found them to be very authentic. The food is fresh and just awesome. I wish someone opened up something like this in SoCal. The place is always lively and full of people. This is South Indian food haven. The number of South Indian customers that you will find here at any point in time is testimony to the fact that these guys are the best in business.
I read through the other reviews and saw consistency about service. I noticed that too. I have been to this place a couple times and this is one area they can improve upon.
But absolutely no complaints. I am subscribed to their email and keep getting special notices every now and then.
I especially loved their kalyana samaiyal special a couple years ago. Next time I am in jersey, I have to drive to experience bliss all over again.

I would go vegetarian if I get food from here. Everything you eat here takes you back home. Great place. Definitely worth a try

We tried four things from the menu. All of them tasted like South India! This was by far the most authentic South Indian meal I’ve had since I’ve lived there.
I found the food so accurate that I plan to take my family there so they may know what South India actually tastes like. I couldn’t endorse this place more!
Most restaurants disappoint. They have a hint of India but not the essence and full flavor. This place does have both of those.

I’m not a vegetarian at all, but the spice combinations are interesting enough that I don’t miss the meat. I’m no Indian food expert either, but I enjoy the food here, and IMO there are certainly worse Indian places in the area. A disclaimer: I’ve only been here for lunch, cannot comment on dinner service.
Lunch buffet comes with a dosal, the Indian version of a crêpe. I believe there are stuffing options, but I always get potato and its very tasty. I usually find there’s ample selection, and trays are filled often enough. Service seems friendly as well.
If you like Indian food and looking for something different, I’d recommend this place, its definitely worth a try.

Even though we stay in NJ finding authentic south Indian cuisine is rare. And this place exceeds expectations. To top the awesome authentic fare they also have dishes which are so unique — bitter gourd salad.
We had the lunch buffet on Saturday and the spread was astounding!
Try out the dosas, bitter gourd salad, sambar.
Hospitality is great. The owner was always around explaining the dishes and explaining patiently.
THE BEST vegetarian south Indian fare in NJ for sure.

We have a Christmas tradition… take home Indian food. This place was recommended to me by a student who is from southern India. So my husband and I decided to give it a go after finding out Shah Indian had closed.
The owner told my husband, when he went in to pick up our order, that is will be the best Indian food you ever had. I like that.
Well, I can honestly say it was definitely one of the best we’ve ever had. (and that is a small list)
We has the saag paneer and paneer makhani. They gave us big portions with lots of cheese. And the flavor and heat was perfect. My husband found it a little hotter than he would like, but they will adjust that to your liking.
We also got plenty of rice and naan with our meal.
Okay, so this is now our new local Indian place. So convenient to the gym, which is right in the same shopping center.

Amazing food! I was traveling in New Jersey for work and My coworker and I decided to get south indian food. This place came highly recommended from one of my coworker’s friends so we thought we’d try it out. We went there on a Wednesday night and it turns out they have «dosa night» every Wednesday eve were you can eat unlimited dosa (different varieties!!) along with some other items in the buffet (biriyani, idly, etc.).
They were very courteous and kept the hot sodas coming. The sambhar and chutneys were well balanced and fresh. Overall, we were pleasantly surprised !!
Tip — make sure you try the cilantro dosa! It’s very tasty. If you like it a bit crispy then try the ghee roast.

Food– very good. Ive had their dosas and idlis– both tasty.
Pretty expensive for breakfast (about 9 $ for 2 idlis, sambar and chutney?) — little too much.
They have a dosa buffet (also with other vegetarian items) in the afternoons, a unique offering and seems to be worth the $ .
Service: i have never dined in. They are nice people, but every darn time i place an order over the phone (for pick up) i ALWAYS end up waiting a long time for my order in store (either they misplace the order or forget? idk). but it is really irritating. Same with their online ordering system– either they are not paying attention to it/​or it does not work. Either way, i suggest you walk in, place your order and run around get your shopping done /​play on your phone and then return.
My dad loves their idli (plus, its the only place around that i know of), so i end up returning on a semi-​regular basis– when hes too lazy to make them at home. They also have a big menu for things other than the typical (idli/​vada/​dosa) .But to all the people not familiar with south indian food– this place is vegetarian and semi spicy– but ask them to customize to your spice level and like most indian places, they will oblige.

My first visit to Myilai Masala came on «Dosa Night,» when the restaurant was all Dosa, all the time. As I like Dosa, this was not necessarily an issue, and I was curious about what would be offered.
We arrived around 5:20 because we wanted to go to a movie over at Hamilton AMC 24 @ 6:30. The shop was not quite ready, as they were still setting up the tables with food for the limited appetizer and dessert buffet. Still, they were happy to see us, if a little disorganized. After a few minutes we were handed two menus with lists of all the available fillings for the crêpe-​like Dosas. We ordered the Masala, Cauliflower, Green Chili and Eggplant Dosas, and then made our way to the Gobi 65 tureen to help ourselves to the nicely red coated chunks of vegetables and assortment of 4 sauces to accompany it. I enjoyed the use of the small aluminum cups into which we ladled the multi-​colored and tasting offerings and the larger dish for the Sambar.
The Gobi 65 was very good, and the Tamarind sauce seemed most suitable for that. I liked the Sambar with its intense flavors and chunky veggieness.
It was explained to us that we could have as many Dosas as we wished, but order them only 2 at a time per person. That seemed reasonable. We really did not know how much would be within the crispy thin crêpe, and did not want to over indulge. Another few customers entered and got settled. Still, the place was mostly empty. Yet, it took a long time for our order to arrive tableside, and we began to watch the clock for our movie. Finally, they arrived on two large while plates. We cut them into slices for easier manual pick up, dipping and mouth placement. All were tasty, fresh, and possessed strong spiciness. The Masala potato, onion and peas had a pleasant curry flavor, while the Green Chili was significantly hotter, leaving a lingering aftertaste that was most memorable. The Cauliflower and Eggplant were also quite good, and possessed both taste and texture that kept the palate entertained. The Dosa were well baked, crisp with a mild taste.
All in all, everything we had was quite good.
The downside was in the slow service (most evident in a mostly empty shop), and the condition of the bathrooms. While the men’s room was tolerable but unclean, I was advised that the women’s WC was appallingly dirty, with no hand towel other than one kitchen towel hanging from a hook that everyone was exposed to. No paper towels nor hot air blower. Feh!
So, while I would have certainly returned to sample more of the menu on an off-​Dosa day, and to have the benefit of being greeted by the owners who we did not see, it is difficult to justify returning to a place where the sanitary conditions are at best questionable. Three Stars is my attempt to balance the competing elements, good and bad. The food was definitely up to 4 Stars, but the conditions otherwise were closer to 1. Be prepared to come here with clean hands and an empty bladder for most enjoyment. Best to bring along paper towels should you need to visit the facilities.