Reviews of Masala Indian Cuisine (Restaurant)

Rebecca Machtel

Delicious!!!

Lindsey Flannery

I had the lunch buffet. The food was delicious. I enjoyed the veggie options. The chicken in the chicken Tikka masala seemed pretty hard/dry, but that is my only complaint about the food. The restaurant atmosphere itself leaves a lot to be desired, in my opinion. It was really cold, and I peeked into the kitchen after I used the restroom and it looked pretty dingy. Despite those things, I would go back because I loved the food.

Diana Krystofiak

Delicate and delicious and faster than any fastfood. Highly suggest Masala Indian ...

Riya Dahal

Compares to authentic food!

Tracey Dockendorff

Good little Indian cafe. Not a huge selection, but it's a good spot for a quick lunch.

Christopher Mulherin

Service was a little slow, yet very friendly. Food is simply amazing.

David Borger Germann

Lunch buffet definition worth the visit. Make sure to enjoy the hot chai.

Valerie Wilson

Great service and food, but be wary of the "order online" feature, as it takes you to a fraudulent 3rd part site. If you want takeout go through grub hub or call the restaurant directly.

Ryann Hubbart

My favorite restaurant in Iowa City- food is always delicious and I love the weekday buffets!

nathan sellards

This place is great for Indian cuisine. I've been here twice and the food is amazing. The atmosphere is very authentic. A huge menu. I've tried the chicken masala, the chicken curry, and the chicken saag which are all great dishes.

Pranav Singh

Chicken tikka was so bad, I can’t tell. There was no flavor and it appeared like a boiled veggies with partially cooked chicken breasts. Saving grace was palak paneer and Rohan josh although the latter was spicy enough to put my tongue on fire . Bad experience overall .

Mary Mathis

Lunch buffet is key

Michael Trinh

Check your bill! They charge a hidden fee for not finishing your food. I ate there today for the lunch buffet with a friend. We finished our food and I find out that I was charged $.50 for not completely finishing the food on my plate. I know this because the buffet was $9.99. My friends bill was $10.59 w/tax but mine was $11.12. I asked the old Indian gentleman about it and he told it it was a fee they charge for unfinished food. It was a single samosa that I had on my plate. He then showed me the menu for the cost of the samosa and told me I need to respect the food and not waste it. Basically, I was full, but had to FORCE myself to finish that single item of food so that I would not be charged that fee. I will NEVER be returning nor will I recommend to anyone. I also have the voided receipt as proof.

McKenzie Gilbert

This place ties with Haveli for best Indian food in the area. Great service too!

Aaron Stone

Was an Oasis after a long drive. Not much Indian food between Colorado and here.

Anthony Koster

My favorite indian food in iowa city. Used to be vegitarian/ vegan and still has those solid recipies but also serves meet now. As the name implies they use the perfect blend of spices and heat on all there food.

Iowa Captive

Best Indian around IC, excellent Aloo Gobi. Ties with a couple of other things as my favorite dish(es) in the world. Love this place.

Lauren Schnabel

The buffet was excellent and Sam was a gracious host! The garlic Naan bread was amazing!

Sara Anson

Love this food

Jay Liu Bondurant

Food didn't have a ton of flavor. Everything was generally okay. Naan was good, their pakora is also pretty good. But otherwise not my favorite.

Kate Jones

Ordered online and was told it would be ready in 27 minutes, but it took 50. And they weren't busy. Probably won't bother to try that again.

Ethan Fields

Masala is my go to restaurant in Iowa City. Great food at a decent price! Make sure to check out their lumch buffet too!

Alyssa Peiffer

LOVE their food. my friends and I cannot get enough of it!

AjayKaushik Rajagopalan

The lunch buffet spread for vegetarians is pretty good

Rachel Edwards Harvith

THE place to eat in Iowa City. I highly recommend their lunch buffet. My only complaint is that I don't have 2 stomachs in order to eat more of this delicious food!

Avery

Lunch is a absolutely amazing! 10 bucks pre person. 5 star!

Aaron Van Noy

Little bit on the expensive side. But honestly it's well worth the cost. Food is just amazing!

Philip Huang

Food is good. Plenty of flavor and spice. Took a long time to get the food though - they do a lot of take out orders it seems.

Derek Henscheid

Good Indian food, but not the best in the area. I prefer Exotic India over in coralville, but if you need to stay downtown Iowa City masala does the job.

Clayton Boltz

Our favorite Indian food in Iowa City area. Chicken tikka masala is great! Staff is friendly and the lunch buffet is only $10.

Heidi Cousineau

Amazing! Such friendly service!

Muhammad Hamza

We were hesitant to come at first based on reviews, however we were pleasantly surprised by the kind and quick service provided and the absolutely delicious food we had. The Lamb was cooked very well, daal was amazing, chicken was tender, and naan was served hot. No food was left untouched. 10/10 would smash

Rebecca Barrett

The lunch buffet is very popular and very good if you are looking for Americanized Indian food. However the masala chai is absolutely nauseating, it tastes like dish water. Other than that I have not been disappointed.

Lynda Yoder

Great tasting Indian buffet at 9.99 for lunch. Expect a crowd at peak times.

Nick Sparr

Decent Indian food and by far the best lunch buffet in Iowa City - the mango lassi is included in their lunch buffet price and it alone might be worth the visit! For that I give them three stars, but I frequently run into issues that seem to stem from poor management. I've been asked to switch tables mid-meal to accommodate another group; I've tried using an online certificate but was then told I could not use it if dining with another patron (which does not make sense, nor is that stated anywhere in the fine print); I've ordered take-out several times and gotten home to find that an item was missing (either rice or naan bread each time). This is my favorite place to go for a buffet lunch, but I've frequently had bad experiences ordering off their regular menu outside of lunch hours.

Emily Waddle

Latest management has really made some improvements. It's not the best Indian food in the corridor, but it's maybe second or third best, and they're super friendly. Lunch buffet is good and usually has pakora and several veggie options as well as chai.

Mary Foxx

It was nice. Not the best, but nice. I went by myself, they didn't have coffee when I was there sadly. The red chicken was rly good and so was the Samosas. That sauce w chicken everyone likes tho? Imo, it didn't have much flavor, even when mixed with the also bland rice. That said... It wasn't too bad, moreso for $10. Overall, not bad, not terrible, kinda good. It was okay, it just didn't wow me. Tho I suppose due to the bland'ness, it'd be great for kids, not too spicy.

Tharindu Priyan

Too hot

Angela Becker

Delicious

Deb Daniel

We've eaten here several times and even had them cater our daughter's wedding! The food is delicious and the people who work there are very nice. They also have GF options.

Khalid Ali

Below average

Stephanie Garcia

Such deliciousss food at a good price, served by lovely people. A must have for all in Iowa City, vegans and vegetarians included!

Kshitiz Bhandari

They send biryanis without Raitas. When you call them back, the manager says “what can i do now sir I forgot it”. Like what the hell.

Claire Chapnick

I had a terrible experience at the lunch buffet at Masala in Iowa City on Saturday, June 2. I arrived at 12:50 p.m. There were just cold, crusty remnants of the entrees at the buffet. The worker substituted one of the empty entrees with …

Ben Foxen

Great Indian food and a quiet atmosphere

Net Cat

The Indian lunch buffet is the best Indian food my wife and I have had in a long time!

Chett Breed

Kind, busy staff. Good, regular buffet.

Ajay Moorjani

Went there for the lunch buffet when we dropped off our daughter to college and loved it. The buffet choices were excellent...and the food was very good. Parking was the only hassle but being in the downtown district that is understandable and frankly beyond the control of the restaurant.

Austin Carter

Amazing service and food. Large portions low price! Will be coming back!

Heather VR

I can't describe how much I love this place. There are mild menu options and a vegetarian buffet that is awesome.

Jack Greve

Best Indian cuisine downtown. The lunch buffet is also done really well!

Patrick Street

Ok, not spectacular. Tap water tastes terrible. Buffet is a little sparse.

Silver Daddy

The lunch buffet selection is good, both vegan and non, the dishes are authentic and tasty. Self serve mango lassi and chia tea too. Dining area is very small but I have never had to wait. Always a treat for me.

willie shay

Very good service and food thankyou

navi navi

We enjoyed Best food

Sandeep Yadav

This is the best restaurant in iowa city. The food and service is outstanding. I specially like the naan, mango lassi and tikka masala specialty. The owner and chef are very warm people and make you feel at home. I would recommend this place to everyone.

Daniel Tsai

Tasty buffet. Friendly staff. Clears plates faster than expected. Food can be spicier.

Christina Embke

Very good food at great prices! Definitely will return to in the future!

Apoorv Aditya

I liked their chicken bhuna and chicken reshmi kebabs. Buffet is cheap and good. Didn't like their chicken curries

Rajiv Rangarajan

we have been ordering food from this place and can recommend the lunch buffet which is very good and has lot of variety. we have tried other dishes also and were satisfied. its value for money.

Gary Lange

Good choices!

Aniket Deshmukh

Didn't like the food!! We ordered Kadhai Paneer but it was horribleee. They used tomato ketchup for the gravy:(((( Samosa chole taste was also not very good. I do not recommend going to this place.

Zoe Shampo

The food was pretty good, not the best indian I've had but good. Pretty good selection, not huge. Service was pretty good. The restaurant itself I found to be really cold and pretty small. Prices are very good, I think they are really fair. Overall good but I'm not dying to go back.

Miguel

Very authentic stuff. Delicious.

Rachelle Christensen

The lunch buffet was delicious with a good variety and good quality food. The atmosphere was comfortable. The service was good, and the staff were friendly. The bathrooms were a little dirty and not well maintained. The chai masala was a little child. But, I would definitely return and recommend!!!

Michael Delcau

The best Indian food in Iowa City, the Chicken Tikka Masala is the best. A great buffet selection with a lot of delicious Indian food.

Heidi Sailor

Best Indian in Iowa City. Very friendly and helpful staff too! I recommend the Masala tea greatly.

Stephen Silva

Go for the lunch buffet. Tasty and fresh.

Jane Morey

Absolutely wonderful place, fantastic options and delicious flavors. I wish I could go through the whole vegetarian menu - I haven't tried anything I haven't loved. Try the Masala tea!

Jocelyn Jones

I ordered a mild meal. Although I don’t like Spicy food, I do like my food flavorful. I felt that the mild dish I ordered was pretty bland, and could have had more flavor.

Tata Kavlash

My favorite Indian buffet! Wonderful people and great prices.

Shonda Monette

Deliciously well seasoned buffet food. Dinner amazingly spiced to order. Dining area needs an update, but comfortable.

Daniel Ripley

Was not expecting to find such a treat while working in Iowa City for the week, only had the pleasure of trying their Chicken Saag but it was enough to make me leave a review.

Tar Abd

Was told by a friend not to go there i did not listen bland taste not the indian flavors am accustomed to, the had a special that all lamb dishes on sale for 9.99 which usually means same quantity for cheaper price was not the case they gave me about 1.5 may be 2 ounces of meat swimming in sauce i had to fish for them

Marcie Tobin

Excellent buffet and if you are gluten free there are several things yo choose from.

Amit Dodake

We had been here twice, this restaurant has pathetic food plus attitude of owner. We had ordered paneer kadhai and chicken kadhai and both dishes were pathetic in taste. They had put tomato ketchup in those dishes..which were not even 10% of indian version of those dishes. These were the worst dishes I had ever tested. Being an indian I would suggest to go to exotic india or Haveli that is far better than this.

Charlie

This is my favorite of the two very good Indian places downtown. Both have lunch buffet options.

Sarah Mahoney

there would’ve been a time I would’ve given this restaurant five stars, hands-down. The food was delicious and the price is totally on point. However, masala’s maybe overdue for a good spring cleaning.

Suj Krish

Looks like management and chefs have changed. I used to love this place for the authentic north indian vegetarian lunch buffet food especially the Punjabi kadhi. Now this place served lamb and chicken also. The lunch buffet food was bland and flavorless.

David Rosazza

Love the butter chicken

Abby Whittaker

Great food and great people! The best Indian place in town !

Jane R

Nice and spicy! I need to go back to try more things!

Dena Sidmore-Seyer

They have a nice lunch buffet but it is very much Americanized Indian cuisine. If You're Expecting vindaloo to have the Heat this supposed to have, it won't.

Joyce Tsai

Excellent food with a wonderful variety for lunch!

Rebecca Bachar Dance Temple Studio Yoga USA

Delicious fresh healthy not too spicy Indian food and no dead cow

Brian Larson

Delicious food

Sarah Roffman

This used to be our favorite place in IC. But it seems to have changed ownership or something over the course of the year. Each time we’ve gotten it the last few months, it has been disappointing in multiple ways. We kept trying it again because we’d loved it so much and were hoping it would get better again. But tonight was the last straw. Food was again very sub par and bad service. No more Masala for us and I don’t give it up lightly.

David Schaffer

Buffet is best!

Ross Byers

Probably the best place for Indian food in Iowa City. Try the mango lamb.

Mark & Amy Smellie

Delicious food cooked to spicey-ness order. Not a fancy place, but cozy and friendly.

Ikram Basra

I have been to many Indian Indian restaurants in several states but Masala Iowa City is matchless! I love everything on the menu especially Chicken kabab and Aalu Naan.

Wania Abbasi

Pretty good. They have halal cert for chicken. Also the buffet was ok considering it was in Iowa City

Raghavendran Ragothaman

Food was average

Waddah Moghram

I am giving it one star because that is the most I can give it. It is by far the worst "Indian" restaurant I have ever been in. I ENDED UP THROWING UP NOT TOO LONG AFTER GOING THERE. It is that disgusting! Their bakora is totally flavorless. Everything there is tasteless and cold and bland. One of their veggie plates had chicken bones in it!!! Now how did that even happen really amazes me!!! I am never, ever going back there again, and neither should you!

Angela Kenna

Consistently good food and buffet in a casual setting. Good service also.

Brittany Means

I love going here for the lunch buffet. I get a huge plate of fritters and just go buck wild. Everyone has always been kind and I like the selections. It’s nice having great, affordable vegan options.

Ed Reggi

Delicious Indian food.

Colorado Reed

Great indian cuisine at a decent price

Kunal Konwar

very authentic and delicious Indian food in town along with great service, will be back

Marcelo Aruani

Really good lunch buffet for the price

Paris F

It's very clean and has a nice atmosphere.The staff is very friendly and the food was amazing! Will come again

Isabella Penniston

This place is great! I love the lunch buffet option, they have a wide variety of entrees and breads. The service is also quick and since you pay at the counter it's convenient for on-the-go days. The restaurant itself is small and cozy, so it may not be great for large groups. It's overall a wonderful place to stop for a bite!

David K

I want to say that a lot of the Indian people on here are being a bit too harsh on this place. They really do a great job bringing Indian flavor to Iowa, and it is difficult to find fresh ingredients to do that with, especially in winter. I ordered the Rogan Josh, which is basically a curry, and it was pretty good. It had the right level of spice. One thing I enjoyed was the proportion of meat in the curry. The meat in a curry is meant to just be one part of the whole curry, not the predominant thing. These guys did it correctly, and in a short frame of time. I will be visiting again. A note to other reviewers: You can't expect homemade Indian cooking from a restaurant unless you are paying 50$ a plate. This is a place to experience the flavors in a pinch, or a place to bring a date/acquaintance for lunch. If you want laalmaas that some lady has slaved for 12 hours to make, go to India. Remember that they have to accommodate a broad range of palates, and they are doing just fine without your cheeky reviews.

Avanti Deshmukh

Horribleee dinner!!! Kadai paneer was worst as it was made by using tomato ketchup. This is nowhere close to Indian cuisine. I would not recommend this place.

Chris Wilson

Im not a fn of iden food not a bad place

Mani Ram

Best Food, Best Service and best price. Awesome Buffet. Keep it up....

Mostafa Shagroon

The best Indian food I have ever eaten

Peter Chanthanakone

The buffet used to be good but 1 star now b/c there's almost no meats available anymore. The dinners are much better though but the servings are soo small. Dude, it's just sauce! Give me more sauce!

Mamadou Diallo

Worst place

alex chino

"Nice atmosphere, friendly people and good food."

Drake Swails

It's a wonderful place to go for lunch. The servers are nice, the food is great, and they serve complimentary Chai Tea and Mango Lassi. Definitely a great place to go for those new and old to Indian Cuisine.

Robert Brown

Not the best Indian food, but it is the best in downtown Iowa City.

Matt Ehler

Nice place, good food, seemed to be aimed more at carry out than dine-in

Jonathan Prall

Very limited Indian food experience but I got lamb tikka masala and it was amazing! There is this mango juice that is also very good. They have different spiciness levels to pick from too! Overall a great experience.

Menaka Kamath

Food is too oily

Leo Selavo

Indian meals, vegetarian and also with chicken. Nice lunch option.

Pallav Ranjan

I'm an Indian vegetarian (no meat or egg) and follow my dietary restrictions religiously. I visited this place since I know the contents of Indian cuisine by heart. The general ambience of the restaurant is kinda gloomy. Limited lighting and damp looking walls made the place look dull. However I had high hopes from the food. I started with tomato soup and had my first sip when I realized that there's something different about it. When I asked the waiter what are those white pieces floating around, he said it was chicken soup labeled as tomato soup!!! He changed the label, gave a idiotic smile and turned around and left. No apologies nothing!! That was highly unprofessional and rude. However, now that the damage was done, and I was very hungry, I thought to eat the main course. The palak paneer (spinach+cottage cheese) had no trace of the cheese. The vegetable korma was highly disappointing made of boiled vegetables with indian spices and whipped cream. The chole (chickpea dish) was however good. Overall there was more variety than quality. Despite my experiences I give them 2 stars because the aamras (mango juice) and kheer (rice pudding) were really well prepared.

md templeton

wonderful

Jared Brees

Overall the food was alright, but nothing to write home about. A little bland for the most part. The mango shake dispenser was filled with awesome, and there was some sort of pakora that I couldn't stop eating, though.

Christian Zabanga

The atmosphere is very quiet, located in the center of downtown area. The food is absolutely outstanding and very flavorful. If you want the full experience order food vs eating at the buffet. They serve you on traditional dishes and give you traditional portions. (They dial down the spices at the buffet). Great place to take anyone.

Valarie Taylor Crawford

Waitress was stand-offish with me. Not good service.

Jennifer Hope

Fantastic Indian food!

Jann Arisa

Very rude manager , no manners and snobby. Like bruh ? Chill! Also I found a hair in my food and the food I ate made me sick as hell. So if you don't want to go here try somewhere else like Haveli . Just don't go here . Yuck .

Tanya Campbell

Love the food and server!

Adam Fullerton

Good but not great. I prefer creamier tika masala and the nan was average. The mango lassi was pretty good though. I would come back but doesn't make the list of favorite Indian restaurants.