Bombay Garden

My husband and I went over to the San Mateo Bombay Garden on Friday, Feb 12^th, at about 5:29pm and there was a sign on the door that said «We are open, please come in» and there was an «Open» sign in red lights on the front big window. We walked into the restaurant and the guy who I think is the manager was vacuuming inside near the kitchen — the front of the restaurant was empty so we just stood inside the restaurant and waited patiently for the man to finish vacuuming near the kitchen. Once he was done and he unplugged the vacuum, my husband asked him if we can sit down and the guy rudely said no, we are not open yet! By then, it was beyond 5:30pm. My husband said so you are not open? He said no, we are not open so go outside! I said the signs say you are open and he said no, go outside! We said ok, and we left. OMG!!! What the h… We just walked over to the next block and went to Clay Oven where we were treated very nicely and the waiters were so friendly and courteous. We will NEVER go to Bombay Garden again — just because they have a lot of customers, they think they can be rude to us — he knew who we were because we went there often and yet he was sooo rude. Sometimes, people like him bring down a business — so please don’t gloat on steady flow of customers and mistreat them thinking oh we will get plenty more because one day you will fall from your high horse! Folks, patrons, don’t get mistreated by these idiotic employees at Bombay Garden, go to other Indian restaurants on the same street like Roti and Clay Oven where they treat you like you should be treated and the food is as good!

I came here yesterday with my girlfriend for a casual lunch with my girlfriend since we were hanging around San Mateo. I couldn’t decide what to eat and she said she was craving Indian so I recommended that we come here to eat since I’ve been to the other locations (Santa Clara and Fremont) and enjoyed my meal.
Ambiance: The San Mateo location is much much much more cramped and tiny than the other two that I’ve been to. Décor and atmosphere is similar to pretty much every Bombay Garden. Same color scheme, chairs, table, food, etc.
Food: The spread of food here is nowhere near as extensive as the other locations but I understand that this is because of the small location. Nonetheless I still enjoyed my meal since they had all my favorite dishes. The food was very flavorful and packed with spices which is exactly what I love about Indian food. My personal favorites are the butter chicken, lamb curry and the naan bread that they give you for free.
Service: Service here is the same at most places which is pretty much nonexistent beside refilling water and bringing out naan bread. I honestly don’t mind the lack of service though since it is a buffet and I don’t have high expectations for service at any Bombay Gardens in the first place. Overall though the waiters went around and took care of the basics (water refills, naan bread, removing plates, bringing check) regularly and promptly.
Overall experience: Reasonable price ($ 11.50) and good food but not quite as good as the other locations. Still a decent place to stop by if you want to stuff yourself with flavorful Indian foods for a good price.

I came here today for lunch with my boyfriend. I don’t eat Indian food much but when I do, I want to try a variety of dishes so a buffet sounded like a good option for me. We were Unilocaling Indian buffets nearby and we actually decided to go to a different place first. We first walked by this place and saw through the window that there were a lot of people. We went to the other place and through the window, we could only see that 2 tables were filled. I don’t really like going to restaurants where there isn’t a lot of people because I don’t like it when waiters stare at me eat. My boyfriend also said he tried Bombay Garden’s other locations and he enjoyed it so we decided to walk back and decided to have lunch here instead.
We got seated immediately and the waiter served our water and naan. I like how they bring the naan to your table instead of getting it yourself so it stays warm, fresh, and crunchy. All the different curries were flavorful. My favorite was the butternut chicken. I tried the two different rices that they had but I didn’t get too much because I wanted to eat my curry with naan more. I didn’t want to fill up my tummy with rice since the naan was so good!
I enjoyed the spicy fish filet the most. It is cooked with onions. To be honest, I couldn’t really taste the spicyness so for those of you who can;t handle spicy, try this anyways!
For dessert, I tried the Gulab Juman. It is spongy sweet dough balls in sweet syrup. It is comparable to Chinese sweet glutinous balls. I enjoyed this because it is something different and is hot and not too sweet.
Service– Not much service needed when you serve yourself. However, the waiter did ask if we wanted extra naan just when we finished our first batch and refilled our water which was good.
Ambiance– Feels comfortable and cultural in there with the golden and red decorations everywhere.
For $ 11.95 plus tax (even on weekends), it is pretty decent. I would definitely come back next time I am craving for Indian food!

Bad service, bad attitude not welcoming, i never seen waiter like that, i will never come again here and i don’t recommend this place

This is the worst excuse of Indian food in the Bay Area, or anywhere! We ordered a takeout and got the most disgusting dishes we have ever had in decades of eating Indian food, and we’ve been to many Indian restaurants from San Francisco to London and Mumbai. About the only thing that was ok was the rice! The lamb was like rubber, the veg curry was so sweet that it was inedible and the Ocra was very dry. Never again.

I was rushed through the lunch buffet, which was a good thing in a way, because it prevented me from overeating, but in other circumstances I would consider the staff’s behavior as rude. I am trying to give Thanks for everything in my life, though so not overeating today was actually a blessing in disguised. However, would you like to try to load your lunch in a hurry? Other than that, I definitely visited places where staff was more friendly, food less greasy and not getting cold already like in this instance. Perhaps you will have a good experience at this place when you order your dish à la carte. If you do, please, feel free to contact me and let me know which dish you had. Also, do you know of any places in the area where authentic vegetarian Indian food is served and staff is not rude?

Good value for all u can eat. I wish there could be more food and drink opinions.
If u can eat a lot and u want Indianan food so bad, this will be a good place for u.
Utensils, tables and chairs are dirty.

This place is slamming!!! Came on a Tuesday night, only one other table was occupied. The service is excellent and responsive. We had the garlic Naan, lamb buryani, and cheese paneer. All was hot and tasty, great food in this place. We will return.

We literally cleaned the plates! I like that it is not too spicy, and it was of good quality. The lamb biriyani and paneer in cream sauce just hit the spot. Not to mention the yummy garlic naan that was freshly made. I wish the portions are a little bigger for overall a great restaurant.

I was craving Indian food and stopped by this past weekend to test out this Indian buffet. When it comes to Indian cuisine I usually go for the buffet because I want a little bit of everything. I drown my naan with the different sauces available from all the dishes to absorb all the different spices. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that there were two Indian buffets a block away from each other in Downtown San Mateo and that both are relatively inexpensive (less than $ 15).
The inside of Bombay Garden is small and nothing special, but if the food was great I think it could have made up for that. The food ended up just being okay. I passed on the salad it didn’t look too eventful and went straight for the butter chicken and saag paneer. The naan was tasty and paired well with the food. Boyfriend got the lamb curry and it seemed pretty tender.
Overall an okay experience but not sure it was worth the pain after (a pain I often feel after hitting up a buffet). As far as cleanliness goes I wouldn’t give them a ¹⁰⁄₁₀. It wasn’t that clean and the chairs felt a bit sticky. I’d prefer Saffron over in San Carlos!

My mom dined at Bombay with her nursing students and told me that I had to try it, so she took me here on a weekday at around dinner time. We were greeted promptly and were told that we could sit anywhere we would like. Shortly after, we were brought waters and were asked what we would like to order so we ordered a chicken tikka masala, samosas, and basmati rice. Honestly, the food is okay (chicken was a tad bit try and the sauce was a tad bit sour) but the exceptional customer service is the reason why Bombay gets 3 stars! My mom conversed with the server for a good 30 minutes after our meal. Good food, but better service!

Butter chicken was definitely the best curry there! They have a good variety but I only really enjoyed the butter chicken and the eggplant… They give you fresh nan! Literally hot and crunchy when it gets to your table!
They have a so called small «salad» bar but it’s really not one. It consist of ice cream, hot sauces, orange, salad.
Overall food and service was fine. But I would rather go to other places for curry…

If you are looking for great indie food in an affordable price, this is the place! The food is awesome perfect taste and spice! I love it!

This is a hidden gem ! I’ve lived in San Mateo for so long and never knew about this place. My dad took us here because one of his buddies recommended it. I love Indian food and this hit the spot ! From the Naan to the rice and the chicken Curry to the mango lassi !! We loved the service and food!
My mom almost licked the plate clean ! Even when we got full we couldn’t stop eating bc of how wonderful it was !!! Definitely gonna be come one of my regular spots !!!

Great masala dosa! Probably the best I’ve had. The butter chicken was good and definitely above average just falling short of my favorite in that category. Really good daal also. Seriously tasty. Portions were what you’d expect for Indian — not overwhelming but filling. Service was only good but not great. Nothing to complain about though. Just not exceptional. Still if you’re looking for good Indian food this is a nice place to go.

Quality of white meat chicken was high, but dish wasn’t very buttery and was quite spicy (which I don’t usually expect). Other dishes were fine but sauce was universally watery. Buffet food was also all lukewarm.

Absolutely superb East Indian — Pakistani cuisine! Definitely one of the best East Indian smörgåsbord home-​styled restaurants that I’ve ever experienced.
Also located in sunny downtown San Mateo, where the busy life of the streets is
most enjoyable to have a bite to eat.
The lamb curry plate is a most delightful treat, served with curry sauce, pan bread,
and most exquisite drinks and wine selection on the house.
Styled buffet, with a tremendous selection of traditional East Indian food, most to serve
the palate most delightfully!
Rice plates are priced very reasonable, and have the most delicious chutney with
a unique glass of house wine, and engage in the quiet ambience of East India,
where service is most traditionally styled with superior class.
For a small bite to eat, while out on the town, most superior restaurants of this style,
are traditionally on an upscale rating of your most exquisite Zagat restaurants.
Highly recommend this is definitely the place to eat, dine and enjoy!

For $ 11.95 lunch buffet, the price is not bad and will fill you up but the selection of different food is small. This place had probably the smallest selection of food choices for a lunch buffet that I have ever been too.
Food wise was also only ok. The only dish I really like was the spicy fish fillet. Before going there I was looking forward to enjoying roti (crunchy flatbread), tiki masala chicken, and mimosas, but they didn’t have any of that. Was a little disappointed…
FYI be prepared to drink LOT and LOTS of water afterwards.

Took a cousin of mine here and although the food is decent the experience was not. With so many lunch options, I would definitely not recommend this place.
We got rushed out because they very willingly sat us at 2:15 when they close at 2:30. At 2:25 we were asked if we wanted any more food. At 2:31 they were flicking the lights on and off pretending it was an accident. By 2:35 they gave us our check & I said «just a minute» and was met with «lady we closed at 2:30.»
«Well you shouldn’t of sat us at 215 then» I said without missing a beat.
Do yourself a favor and do not go here for their $ 12 lunch buffet a minute after 2 p. m… Unless you like the scarf your food down.
And their bathroom was disgustingly dirty and had not been cleaned for weeks which is always a wonderful indicator that their kitchen is probably super clean.
pass.

I’m very particular about my Indian food and sadly Bombay Garden just doesn’t cut it. Not even close. This location is well known for their Buffet which I didn’t try, instead I went for their regular menu which in theory should be better than the Buffet as it’s made fresh to order.
Chicken Tikka Masala, $ 11.95 (
) Is served with Rice. Good sized portion, lot’s of sauce, Mild in terms of spice, I asked for medium Chicken was rubbery and overcooked, strong Tomato flavor. By the looks of the Chicken (hole right through the middle) it was cooked on the grill then placed in the sauce so the flavor wasn’t throughout.
Chicken Vindaloo, $ 11.95 (
) Another good sized portion, a little bland, medium in terms of spice (Hubby asked for extra hot) Not hot enough to be a Vindaloo in my eyes.
Naan Bread, $ 2.50 (
) One of the better Naan I have tried. Thick and fluffy, baked a tad too much in places for my liking but dipped in the sauce it was good.
Roti, $ 2.25 (
) Thick (too much so, meant to be thin), slightly overcooked also.
Rice portions that came with the Entrée’s were ample and we also got a Poppadom each to start which was accompanied by Raita and a Tamarind dip.
Mango Lassi (
) Thick, tart, overly sweet. Mild Mango flavor, could have been a little stronger.
Service was fine, we got our water glasses filled twice while dining and our plates were cleared and check brought in a timely manner. Just a shame the food did’t impress.