Shiva’s Indian Restaurant
| Address: | 800 California St #100, Mountain View, CA 94041, USA |
| Phone: | +1 650-960-3802 |
| Site: | shivasrestaurant.com |
| Rating: | 3.6 |
| Working: | 11:30AM–2PM 11:30AM–2PM 11:30AM–2PM 11:30AM–2PM 11:30AM–2PM 12–3PM 12–3PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
RA
Rangaprabhu Parthasarathy
This was my fourth trip to Shivas. I had been there a few times over 2 years ago when this blog did not exist. Today, I went prepared for my buffet to take pictures and then write about the overall experience. So here you go, my review of Shivas Indian Restaurant in Mountain View, CA. Shivas is located at the intersection of California St and Castro Street in Mountain View. It is well known in the neighborhood and to most South Bay folks. It aims to offer an upscale Indian culinary experience. On weekdays, they offer a buffet for $12.95 (plus taxes) while their weekend buffet adds in more items for an extra $2. I had tried their weekend buffet once before and liked it. So this time it was the weekday one. We walked in at 12:20 and the place was relatively relaxed. It would soon fill up but we got good seats immediately and made our way to the buffet area. The buffet table started with the desserts - beetroot halwa, badam kheer (almond pudding), and apple walnut pudding. I have the habit of sampling the desserts with my first course- if one or more was good, I would do the second round in the end. This also allowed me to pace my meal accordingly based on how much dessert I was going to consume. In that sense, the apple walnut pudding was a disaster. I didnt bother to finish even my first serving. The badam kheer was decent. I was definitely wowed by the beetroot halwa. The texture and the sweetness were just right. I definitely went for seconds in the end. The buffet had a lentil soup that was good to taste but smelt strongly of coconut oil which was a turn off for some on the table. The fruit offerings were very good for an Indian buffet. Often times, the cut fruit section is sad looking with old and ripe fruit. The slices oranges and pineapple were a joy to eat and I definitely had multiple servings of that. The appetizer was vegetable pakoras- they were crispy and good. For the sabzi (curries), I am happy to report that they had 6 vegetarian options- most of which had a uniqueness to it. This is better than most Indian places were 4 is the typical vegetarian dish count. Of the 6, I didnt sample the Baingan Bartha (I dont eat eggplant) and mushroom curry (no mushrooms for me). I tasted the dal, the paneer chilli, cauliflower subzi and the aloo palak. All four of them were good with the pulao rice and the naan delivered flesh to the table. Specifically, the paneer chilli was a standout. Overall, the buffet was good. It filled me up well and I didnt find anything below par. Some dishes stood out as very good (beetroot halwa and paneer chilli) and the quality of cut fruit was definitely a notch above the competition. I liked the lunch and would recommend it. Rating Ambiance: 8.5/10. The restaurant has its own unique look with images of the Shiva linga and thiruneer (sacred ash on his forehead) iconography everywhere. The place looks dated from the last time I was here but still relatively unique. Service: 8.5/10. Nothing to complain about. Naan arrived frequently and without asking. Food: 8.5/10. I liked it. Some dishes more than the other but none too bad. Price: 7.75/10. On the pricier side for a weekday buffet given the competition on nearby El Camino Real. Restroom: N/A Overall: 8.5/10. I would definitely recommend Shivas for a good vegetarian weekday buffet lunch.
KA
Karen V Chin
Great Indian food, but I am only giving 3 stars because the service was painfully slow. We waited an exceptionally long time. We had to flag down our hostess to find out who are waitperson was. Then had to flag our hostess again to find out what happened to our order. She didnt have an answer. The majority of clientele who were in the restaurant were Indian. Always a good indicator sign for me since I am not Indian. From what we ordered for dinner, Shivas cooks definitely know how to use spices properly to enhance the foods flavors. The chicken tandoori was excellent! It really sizzled and smoked for a while as it sat on the table. The smells were incredible. The chicken was juicy, moist, not dry at all. The fresh chutneys were tasty, especially the one that went with our papadum appetizer. Contemporary, upscale Indian decor. White table cloth dining. Full bar. Pricey for what you get. Portions are on the smaller size. Maybe a better value and better use of time to eat here for Shivas lunch buffet. Metered street parking in downtown Mountain View, There is a public parking garage next to this corner Indian restaurant.
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A Private User
I was completely appalled by the host at this restaurant that I had to tell everyone. We arrived at 7:00 on a saturday. There were 4 tables open, but they said they were reserved for people who made reservations. Fair enough. So they gave me a pager and said it would be 20 min. We waited around for 25 minutes. The same 4 tables were still not being used. The host kept looking at some screen and saying that there is nothing he can do and it would be another 5 minutes. 10 minutes later, they seat a group of 3 who came after us. I was a little upset now. So I questioned why they seated the group who came after us. The host said they needed a table with 4 chairs, and we would have to wait for a table that only seats 2. Not once did they seem understanding that the customer comes first. 40 minutes after we got there, the same 4 tables that were reserved, still had no one on them. The host wanted me to be understanding that the table for 2 still hadnt left yet. So we left. I ENCOURAGE EVERYONE NOT TO EAT HERE.
SM
Smriti Mistry
Had a horrible experience here. We went for anniversary dinner. We found SILVER TOOTH FILLING in the food... believe it or not. To top it, after we pointed it out, the server tried to pass it as something that must have come from us ("Do you have filing in your teeth?") The restaurant offered to replace it, but it had already grossed us enough so we refused. The manager never even acknowledged the problem till we confronted him with this after our meal. After a lot of discussion he gave us his name as "Harsh Bahl" but refused to let us take a picture of what we had found in the food. He had assured us that he would take action and update us (we gave him our telephone number) but never heard back from him. He did not even have the decency to apologize for ruining our special day. Pathetic experience! Will never go there again..
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A Private User
If the food had ever arrived I think it would have been nice. Service slow, waiter hopeless. Ordered a glass of red wine and had to chase twice before after half an hour they pronounced they had sold out. Our food ended up at the table beside us..we never got to eat. First he apologised and said they were having problems wit the tandoor oven, when we said O.K. well choose something else he came clean and told us our meal went out as a take away order then finally after more lies the truth was he wrote the wrong table number down and the next door table got out food. We waited and waited each time being promised only another 10mins. Finally we left after one and a half hours not having eaten. (except for a couple of nice samosas when we arrived. I think the constant lying was what upset me the most. Very Brazen.
