Namaste Cafe
| Address: | 2512 Hennepin Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55405, USA |
| Phone: | +1 612-827-2496 |
| Site: | namastechai.com |
| Rating: | 4.4 |
| Working: | 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 14
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A Private User
My experience at Namaste was not good at all... I, too, had heard good things about the food here. I was also warned the service is REALLY slow, and that ended up being unfortunately true. Lets just say the family that sat down a few minutes after us waited so long to order they actually took off. I WISH I HAD BEEN THAT SMART. So whats the gist here? Food that tastes like packaged frozen Indian food entrees. Bland, untasty curry. Small portions for everything. Every dish was disappointing. I hate the breads here. Overpriced. Over-salted potato app. LONG, LONG, LONG wait, my goodness we spent maybe two hours there total and 80% of it just waiting on our waters/server/food/check. Too bad I was with a party of 6, I just wanted to take off! It was that bad.
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Sycil Mathai
Worst excuse for South Indian food (or indian in general) Ive ever tasted. At prices like $$, you should expect more. Am of South Indian descent, and wouldnt expect any restaurant to taste like home cooking, but Namaste Cafe has pulled the wool over the eyes of its patrons. With no reference point in the neighborhood for Indian food, why should high paying customers expect more? Well, you should. Superb and even decent Indian food can be healthy (say, locally grown ingredients) AND delicious. Id rather heat up a frozen indian dinner than go back to this restaurant. If youre near St.Paul try India House resto. Theyve got the best yellow daal Ive ever had in North America.
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A Private User
I travel fairly often into Minneapolis. I am Indian and have always carve authentic food. By chance I took another indian friend of mine here. This cafe changed my outlook. They have great fusion food, with slight variations from the original authentic food. The ambience and the decor is really fantastic. It was my first experience of such a setting. Its unique. I am sure you wont be disappointed. The food is not exactly 100% authentic, however it is very interesting fusion recipes, and great tasting. Definitely recommend and give a 4.5 /5/0 Its also a great place to go on a date. The traffic is horrible,
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Udeeb Shankhadev
I was there with 7 of my friends and the environment was really good. Decor is excellent even though it is built on the ground floor of existing house. Staff were really helpful. Place was somewhat small due to patio being closed. Food was very good. Since, I am from the same country, I was hoping for real spicy food but the spice level was adapted to normal crowd (which is still good.). Food were delicious and I can see why people prefer to stay in line for more than half an hour. Bison MoMo wac favorite among our group. Overall, this is a really good place in a cozy location.
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Tim Holmgren
Full disclosure, Im not vegan or vegetarian so was a little hesitant when my vegan friend suggested here. All of the dishes we got were prepared vegan. Started with the crunchy cabbage salad. Surprising was full of flavor for a salad. It wasnt my favorite but decent but my friend loved it. We shared the kichdi and chole. Both were great and completely surprised me. I enjoyed both. The kichdi was my favorite but the more I ate the chole, the more I liked it and by the end, loved it. They do have animal protein for those who want to order but I didnt miss that in the food we had
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A Private User
I am not sure when Namaste started to have musicians play but tonight there was a lovely lady playing the flute on the porch. I sat on the patio with my husband right as she started playing, it was lovely. Our server was extremely helpful and recommended a few items on the menu, the spicy fried potatoes and coconut spinach both were delicious! As the night moved on the restaurant became really busy, I recommend coming early. Not sure if they have music every Tuesday night but it was a perfect night out and at the right pace for me. Thanks Namaste!
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A Private User
This was Mpls best kept secret a few years ago when the place was small and cozy and the owner was involved. Each time I have gone it has gotten progressively worse with more tables but same number of servers, cramped, slow service, and the menu keeps shrinking, reducing the number of vegetarian options and pushing alcohol. I think the owners should have stuck with what they knew best - healthy food, subdued atmosphere, and friendly service. Please change Namaste back!!!!!
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Jason Waye
The decor here is very charming. I absolutely love the color choices. And the patio is just fantastic. Bonus, Ive learned so many great new songs from here. The food is the best in town. I get healthy food that appeals to my ethical concerns that tastes amazing. I could eat here every day. Every single person that has helped me here has been super awesome and kind. Theyve been able to answer any of my questions and provide super solid recommendations.
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Family Guy
I believe it is very over rated, when I saw the five stars, I thought It was FIVE STAR restaurant but the food is not even close. Really normal food with no special tastes or flavors. Quantity is very little/dollar [I actually went to eat in another restaurant one hour after I ate here]. Place is basically a house [you will be eating next to a house kitchen]. The only reason I gave it 2 stars and not 1 is because our waitress was very friendly and nice
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A Private User
I did not care for this place. The server was very slow, even with bringing the menus. I had to ask him for several things myself, including water and the check. So I ended up tipping only 12% or so. I had the Raajma which was pretty boring looking and tasting. We also had the Aloo Chaat appetizer which came with these weird Rice Krispies-looking things over the whole top of it. Good vanilla chai though. May or may not be coming back, but probably not.
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A Private User
They know how how to use my favorite ingredients, Masala and Coconut! They knocked it out of the park! The Masala Chai is my favorite, but the Coconut Cream Chai is a close second. The Creamy Masala Curry is a perfect ten at any spice level you desire. The Carrot Coconut Creme Brule is the best way to finish off the Namaste curry house experience. I will be back sooner then later... I wonder if they are hiring?
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Rebecca T.
One of my favorite restaurants. The daily lunch specials are a great way to try multiple items at once. I have never ordered something that I dont like. They have vegan, omnivore, vegetarian, and gluten free options and their homemade chai is delicious. My only negative comment is it costs $3.50 to replace white rice with brown rice. Brown rice is not expensive so a charge at all seems silly to me.
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Alex P
I thought this place is really great. The atmosphere was great, the food was delicious, and the service was extremely friendly. The only down side is that the two dishes we ordered were very small. (think Chinese dish at Mandarin Kitchen or HK Noodles, but half the size). And the price was a bit more than what it should be for the portion. All in all, Ill come back again!
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Eric Mistry
Absolutely love it. Great service, charming atmosphere, and fantastic food! Highly recommended for a good date night in Uptown. We love sharing two entrees (chole and palak paneer usually) along with an aloo naan and order of bhatura. Unlimited rice is a nice touch that we also really appreciate. Different specials throughout the week, so plan accordingly!
