Namaste Dining

Absolutely love, love, love this place! It’s a must for my husband and I every time we’re in San Diego. Not only is the food AMAZING, but the service is fantastic! Ask for Everardo and ask Lucky to make you a cocktail! Best cocktails I’ve ever had! The Mojitos are my favorite :) Even their coffee is delicious!

Comfortable setting but food is average, not enough flavor. We were told they just opened so hopefully the quality of food will improve.

Wandering around the Gaslamp nothing was catching our eye so we decided to try something new without consulting Unilocal (asked a couple sitting outside if it was any good and got an enthusiastic response). Typing this at the table as I am crammed full of several dishes I can’t pronounce, I heartily endorse you giving this place a shot. Very reasonably priced and very tasty to a couple that was dorky enough to Google dishes as we read the menu to see what the entrees were!

Definitely not a positive experience.
We walked in for lunch, and were never told that it was too late for lunch or that lunch would not be served much longer.
The person seating us seem to very bothered that we were even there. That should have been our first sign to turn around and leave. But we were there, and we were already halfway into the restaurant, and we were starved!
We were seated at a table that included two tables pushed together. There was nobody else in the establishment, and yet, the person seating us made a big deal about how he had to separate the two tables before we were seated. When we asked for some Nan, the sever scowled at us, but brought it nonetheless.
We had the buffet lunch, and the selections were limited & substandard. Nonetheless, we were starved, so we dealt with it. After finishing my first plate of food, (3 selections for me — a vegetarian — 2 salads and a spinach dish) I waited and waited and waited for the waiter to come back and take my plate, so I could go get a second round of salad & spinach. That never happened, so I just got a new plate and placed it on top of my first plate.
In a moment of competence, the waiter came over and let us know that the lunch buffet would be closing in five minutes. We thanked him very much, and let him know that we would not be eating any additional food. After we finished what we had on our plates, the waiter brought over the bill. We immediately put payment out for the bill to be paid, and waited for the credit card to be returned to us.
As soon as the credit card was returned, less than a minute or two had elapsed, and they literally turned the lights off in the restaurant!
How embarrassing and rude! We were so offended! If you are closing down, let the people in your restaurant know, and we would get up and leave. To literally turn the lights out on us was so disrespectful and rude, and we were completely offended! Definitely not what we would expect from a fine dining establishment. Heck, we wouldn’t even expect this from a greasy diner!
So before you make the decision to eat at Namaste, do yourself a great favor, and Nama-​stay-​away. There are so many other fabulous Indian food restaurants downtown. Don’t waste your time here!

The fourth Indian restaurant I have been to in SD and the best. One thing that set this apart was the service. Very courteous and attentive bartender. That alone set this place apart from the other Indian restaurants nearby.
I had vegetable samosas and poori. Getting freshly made Indian food is rare, and I’m not sure if this was, but it sure did taste like it.
The menu was a little different from the website, but not vastly.

Made a reservation for mothers day lunch & it was amazing, great food & great service. My mom, grandma, & mother in law had a great time & I am glad they enjoyed the food. It was gluten free so our stomachs didn’t bloat pr feel to heavy. Great restaurant & very good prices I really recommend it.

One word: WOWW! My family and I stopped by for the lunch buffet. Staff was very welcoming and attentive. Restaurant was so clean and beautifully decorated– ambiance felt great. Every item we tried on the buffet stand was flavorful and delicious! Definitely worth trying if you are in the area.

Terrible overpriced tourist joint. Bad food and tried to overcharge us.
STAY AWAY! We should have known, the place was almost empty on a Saturday evening.

Great South Indian food! The dosa is impressive. The cilantro chutney was a bit watery, but the flavor was nice. Glad to have a place that has South Indian options. The décor was lovely, but they had American pop music playing and a football game on all the tv’s. Maybe it’s just me, but I enjoy the beautiful Indian music while I’m at an Indian restaurant.

Awesome, real authentic Indian Cuisine .
Chef for the day from Goa, excellent Goat curry and Lamb Briani.
Chai Masala also very tasty.
Will drive 200 miles again !!!
Great Place to enjoy an spicy dinner, Medium level spices was as said and spicy indeed as describe by Marco!

Although ownership has changed the food is still just as amazing… I love Chicken Madras and garlic Naan

We love Indian food and it is our first choice when coming to an international city. Namaste is truly amazing. Fresh ingredients
cooked with care and experience. We had masala Dosa and a vegetable korma. This is the best Indian food I’ve had in all of Southern California!

This is my new spot for Indian lunch buffet (thanks to Brad for taking me). Namaste has the widest variety of dishes I’ve come across for something in this category including kebabs, which are typically seen at Pakistani restaurants. Good amount of veg options and salad but the variety of meat dishes is where they separate themselves. Great service at the bar too. You’ll want a wheelbarrow to sit in when you attempt to leave.

I host a dinner every year at Comic-​Con for all my friends and colleagues — and had my original booking fall through at the very last minute this year.
Mike Reigel (Manager) and the staff at Namaste didn’t just get my party in for a Saturday night dinner (the BUSIEST night of Comic Con), but went above and beyond with a beautiful, and gourmet, buffet, attentive service, prime seating, and extras included (naan, chutneys, sauces, dessert, coffee, tea, sodas all included in the original pp $).
The food selection was authentic Indian cuisine, and of the highest quality. The choices were varied enough to cover a wide spectrum of palates, and the bar had a strong selection of different cocktails, beer, and wine. The price was $ 30 – 35 pp, which while higher than I had anticipated was absolutely supported by the food and service.
The atmosphere is open, tasteful, and offers big party options or small, more intimate seating. The decorative waterfall is peaceful, not intrusive, and the wood etchings/​carvings are beautiful.
Lastly, the service was phenomenal. I know they are a new restaurant and so on top of their game right now, but I — and my family and friends — will be back, for romantic dinners or more parties!

Nick the bartender made my night! It’s after 10pm and I got to eat, have a good conversation, and an amazing drink!!! Sooo happy!

This is definitely my go to place for Indian food. I probably eat here once a week and love the food. If you want the best indian food buffet (seriously, a buffet that is actually delicious and has an amazing selection), you have to come here for lunch. Imagine ALL YOU CAN EAT indian food, including naan bread for only $ 9.95!
Winner: Best Chicken Tikka Masala
Winner: Best Garlic Nan Bread
Winner: Best Saag Paneer
PS. Ask for the secret hot sauce from the kitchen.

Appetizers are good… Vegetarian entrees not worth money spent. Navratan korma was a disaster… Paneer butter masala too sweet else would have been very good… Ambience is good for fine dining.

The food is very good… Everything is fresh and made to order. If you live Indian food, this place is a must try! You will not be disappointed!

Good Indian food. We have ordered Spicy Gongura mutton and chicken biryani, both are really good. I have tried 9 Indian restaurants before this one and didn’t like any one.

Party of 6 for their lunch buffet. Looks like they switched ownership, or at least their name, but the food is still great. One of my gaslamp favs.
M-​Th their lunch buffet runs $ 9.95, F-​Su $ 11.95. I think it is a great deal for the quality of the food. Along with the buffet, they offer a choice of plain naan or garlic naan. I have to say that I prefer the garlic, but it is veeeeeeeeeeeeeerrry garlicky so beware!!!
The buffet has several salads and dressings, dips. and chutneys. The main courses offer a variety of different curries, with varying degrees of heat. Their samosas are delicious but spicy. .. yum! I prefer a tandoori chicken right off the bone, and they offered kabobs— not my favorite.
And they have some lovely desserts. They are bite sized. I believe that I have tried the mango mousse, but honestly I am usually too stuffed to make it to the desserts! Good food, good value!

I’m actually really surprised by the poor reviews this restaurant received because we thought it was fabulous!!! My husband and I eat a lot of Indian food and this was by far one of the best restaurants we’ve been to. The corn soup was outstanding and the shrimp 65 was amazing. For dinner I got a veggie dosa and my husband got the butter chicken. Everything had a lot of amazing flavors and absolutely had not been frozen, as other reviewers suggested. We ended up taking everything… even the sauces and white rice… home for leftovers. If you’re in Gaslamp and looking for a great restaurant you should look no further than Namaste!

Excellent food especially the Chicken 65. You MUST try the delicious Imly martini with tamarind and jalapenos made by Jeremy, their excellent bartender. Very attentive and friendly! An overall wonderful dining experience.

We miss Monsoon! We ordered Chicken Tikka Masala delivered just like we used to from Monsoon (which was in the same location previously). This dish didn’t have the same delicious flavor as Monsoon at all. Plus, the portion was small and very expensive at $ 18/​dish.
Very disappointed.

Overall: The food is VERY over-​priced and under flavored. The food was made by someone who does not understand Indian food. Frozen Indian food from Trader Joe’s is better. The ambiance is reasonably nice. With at least 2 other Indian Restaurants within 3 blocks, try the other places.
Details:
FOOD: the food was poorly made. Indian food is traditionally served family style — in serving dishes with individual dinner plates. Our food was served in soup bowls and we were given appetizer plates to eat from.
The Malia Kofta sauce was good, but the dish overall looks like someone threw it together. It was not cooked as a single dish.
The Palak Paneer — the cheese was tough and also did not look like it was cooked as a single dish.
The rice was old, dry and smelled odd.
DRINK: My mojito was poorly made and served in a water glass.
SERVICE: the service was pretty decent. The waiter was attentive and timely.
AMBIANCE: The ambiance was ok. Indian movies were playing on a big screen. The music was oddly out of place but pleasant

SUMMARY: Your wallet and your tastebuds will regret this place! Usually empty. overpriced. Tikka Masala sauce tastes like canned marinara sauce?! There are plenty of much better Indian food options in SD.
DETAILED REVIEW:
There used to be a pretty good Indian restaurant at this location called «Monsoon,» but the restaurant is under new ownership and has a new name (Namaste).
The last joint didn’t do that well, probably because there isn’t a big market for upscale Indian cuisine. Nevertheless, the food was pretty good and the servings were generous. All entrees came with a side of basmati rice.
We tried out the new place on a Friday night and it was empty! The first thing the new ownership did is jack up prices (not a smart move for a business that was already struggling with traffic). Before, you could get a $ 14 tikka masala plate with a complementary serving of basmati rice (very common for Indian restaurants). Now, the much smaller tikka plate will cost you $ 18 and rice is extra!
As far as taste, it’s pretty bad. The tikka masala sauce quite literally tasted like canned Italian marinara sauce! Very bland.
I give this place a few months before it gets sold again. In the meantime, don’t go unless you want to pay $$$ for some pretty mediocre Indian food.

Nameste is a new restaurant here in Downtown SD.
Right now it has an all-​you– can-​eat buffet for $ 12.
No need to wait for table. At least for now.
Yum! Well spiced and tasty. Great variety. Good amount of vegetarian options. The naan was fresh and brought to our table. We asked for lemonade and since it was not a staple the gentleman whipped it up. Delicious!
We will definitely go again. I really only had a plate and half of food but it was worth it. Good for groups. Outdoor seating is also available.
Great lunch time dining experience. :)