We go here at least once a week. We both like to sample lots of different dishes, so prefer buffet. Buffet for both lunch & dinner. Fresh food at peak hours, but mid-afternoon, I would count on limited selection & spotty quality. They have a special rice dish with light curry & onion that I love. Tandoori is yum when it's fresh. Yummy soups. Always lots of choices for entrees. Desserts are light, but satisfying. read more

I ordered a Butter Chicken with a naan to go. It was so delicious! Fast and good service as well. read more

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Very delicious Indian food Friendly service Recommend this restaurant to everyone Clean and beautiful place to relax and eat read more

RATING: 1.5 ORDER TYPE: Dine-in MEAL: Lunch MY ORDER EXPERIENCE: The restaurant experience will be first and last at this restaurant due to terrible food. We were expecting it to have a buffet and was a busy place as it was on campus but as soon as we got into the restaurant, it was empty and then there was no buffet, so we had to opt for Ala-carte. We were given the option to sit wherever we would like and were given the menu. We were given three different chutneys and one of them was mint chutney which was terrible and not fresh. There was one red chutney which was good. We ordered a Mixed platter which had paneer blocks, Samosa, Kachori and Palak bhaji. Out of all Samosa was okay and everything else was not fresh. We also ordered Samosa chat as our other starter which was tasteless We ordered one chili naan, choole masala and paneer butter masala. Chole masala was honestly terrible with no taste and at some point, I felt like they forgot to add salt. The paneer tasted like an instant mix and was so-so. Both curries came with a bowl of white rice each. The ambience of the place was so terrible, and the rest rooms were not clean as well. Two words for this restaurant: cold and tasteless. PROS: Inexpensive restaurant Good for college students CONS: Tasteless food Place needs renovation read more

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Service was very mid and to be honest the food was no where near the quality it needed to be to make up for it. I ordered the Chicken tikka masala with a garlic Naan, the rice is just rice as usual but the chicken tikka I asked for spicy and it was in no way spicy not to mention it was very acidic and needed sugar or cinnamon to balance it, the naan was delicious some of the best naan I've had around here but it went to waste as the main dish was mediocre, and service was at the beginning very quick snappy and rude over time, it did however get much better. The decor and music is nice here, just very disappointing that the food was not better, usually service does not affect rating for me as much but when paired with sub par food it certainly does not help. I will be back however to try again. read more

This has a vibe of a typical take out. Fast service. Reasonably priced. The staff felt a little reserved, smiles only for returning clients. Our fried rice was spicy, but lacked flavors. It was fried in butter and had a smell. Veg manchurian was ok. Aloo paratha was delicious. Not sure about revisiting. read more

Proabably one of the worst Indian places I've been to over the last few years. This is not authentic Indian food. The kebabs, at least that's what they call them, are nothing but tasteless pieces of meat that are overpowered with red food colouring. The curries are simply watered down and above all, there are huge raw pieces of onions and green peppers in them. I would rather eat a bowl of cereal than have this as a meal again. Definitely not coming here again. read more

Ambar India - Indian Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

Naan was good. Aloo gobi and daal were ordered spicy and had absolutely no flavor or spice. Very bland. This place used to taste way better

Very disappointing. The samosas were okay. The chicken and shrimp curry was so-so. The shrimp was good but the chicken bone dry. There wasn't anything in the raita other than bland liquid. Nothing solid. I ordered two kinds of Naan. One was supposed to be stuffed with onions. It wasn't. It only had the faintest hint of onion. The other was listed as being stuffed with dried fruit and nuts. Well, I neither saw nor tasted any of either. The cheese balls for dessert also failed to delight and the mango Lassi lacked even a hint of that fruit. I spent quite a bit of money for an unsatisfactory meal, most of which ended up in the trash. read more

Just ordered Punjabi Kadhi and rice from here a couple of hours back... My stomach hurts now!

I enjoy Ambar takeout, but the buffet is great!!! The Tadka Daal and Chili Chicken has just the right amount of kick to it, perfect for me! Since I live over 20 minutes away, I usually stick to certain menu items for takeout. The buffet is a nice way to try additional offerings I wouldn't normally order (If I try something new once I get home I don't want to drive another 40 minutes to get a different item). As of today, I'm adding Saag Mushroom to my list of carryout go-to's from Ambar. This may become a weekly lunch spot! read more

This place sucks big time!! Pathetic food. Crisp naan, hard paneer. Useless food. read more

not sure if the guy that was running the place think he is the best Indian place in town Or he is a saint serving Indian food for broke student. either way its was a waste of $15.. terrible selection.. butter chicken with no chicken. watered down curry., halwa that look like pizza crust from last nigh.. just spend some extra buck and go to better Indian place in CU. for the owner .. have some empathy built in your business and how to serve customer with service - at basic level.. I notice you asked non Indian customers how is the food but barely making eye contact with Indian origin customers.. and have heard the same from other .. it's time you change your approach read more

Sorry, I never give bad reviews but there was a fly in our food AND I saw a large and strikingly grotesque roach near the kitchen as I went to pay. Also it was clear they didn't want to make me fresh food, although they did. They were pushing me to use the buffet however I refused when I was told the buffet had been out since 11am (it was 5pm!). Also the atmosphere was terrible due to the owners (or managers?) airing out their personal issues in less than savory language during our meal (in another language, but one which I understand). Prior to this bad dine in experience I once ordered carry out and came to find them shoveling their buffet food into to-go boxes... and then charging me normal price. The food itself wasn't bad, but it also wasn't great. I definitely won't be eating there again. read more

I come here every once in a while to order food, and usually the staff is very friendly, but whoever was working tonight was very rude. I tried to order take out of a variation of something I have gotten there many times in thebut without question the server proceeds to tell me its not possible, even as I try to explain, he gets frustrated and keeps denying that it exists. I end up ordering something else, and when I went to go pick up, the man is glaring and me and my friend who went to pick up. Rude as hell and don't think I want to come here anymore. Forget here, go find a better Indian restaurant that knows what they're talking about. (Update: and the chicken they gave me was all fat and bones disgusting, and I asked for potato) read more

Place is in a very convenient location. Food is largely north indian cuisine. Instead of buffet, prefer ordering individual dishes from the menu. Buffet quality is not consistent. One thing that I did not like is they sometimes add too much salt or oil in the food. I never order deserts, so no opinion. Indian appetizers are mostly deep fried, so i do not order them either. read more

This review is for the buffet. Cheap quality Clearly can tell the meat and vegetables used in the dishes are old Not authentic Indian food. Indian food is supposed to be a blend of spices not a blend of preservatives read more

My friends and I were really excited to come here. We all love to eat and who doesn't love Indian food? None of us had ever been to Ambar. Well, we got our food and all of us paused and just stared down at our plates for a moment. The food looked bad. Then we tried some. We were silent. One of us said "Uh. What the fuck." We were baffled that we had just paid to eat this nonsense. My Indian friend was like... "WTF". Yeah. I came here again and the food seems to have improved both in taste and appearance. read more

I don't know why it took me so long to try this place, but I am in love with their tikka masala! And vegi korma. And their pakoras are great! The buffet is also a decent deal, though I'm always too full after one plate to go back for another one. The only critique I really have is that I wish they had their own delivery service, since Mr. Delivery's fees are ridiculous, but I get that it's probably not financially viable to have drivers. Ah well, I can just call in orders for pick up. :) read more

Great Indian food loaded with spices and flavor. The interior is extremely casual--it's not exactly the place to go on a date, but for a casual get together with friends it works. The buffet option makes it worth the cost. Their carryout option is particularly useful, so you have the option to eat your food at home for potentially even less money than sitting down and eating (they weigh the carry out box by the pound instead of the regular flat fee for the buffet). After having visited Ambar over the course of several years, I have never been disappointed. Vegetarian options may sometimes be lacking, but the meat is quite good. I highly recommend the red chicken and mushroom saag! I do, however, wish the interior looked more neat and organized with a cozier feel, which is why I am giving four stars instead of five. For what this place is--a restaurant on campus, designed to feed students tasty Indian food at an affordable price--it's worth a visit. read more

buffet is good imo. I went there with my Indian friend and she told me it's pretty close to authentic. however not happy with takeaway buffet option. was charged $9 for food just weighed hair above 1lb ($5.99 for 1lb) which made me feel scammed. When I complained the guy at the cashier *proudly* pressed the scale to 1.5lb. Mind-blown. (plz, your finger is not in my takeaway box) not want to argue over a few bucks but it simply made the customer discontent with the experience. especially for people like me who consider experience and service over taste in rating. highly impossible to revisit. read more

We have tried Ambar India's lunch buffet a couple of times and the dinner buffet once. Both are similar. And, overall, the food isn't bad per se but it's not in the same league as Indian restaurants in Chicago. In fact, Bombay Indian Grill on First Street, Champaign had better ambiance and a superior buffet selection at about the same price but it closed down, leaving Ambar the only Indian buffet in town. Food's hit or miss here. Chicken pakora starter isn't always part of the spread but it tastes good. Tikka masala's perfectly fine but the tough and almost flavorless tandoori chicken's nothing to write home about. Ditto for lamb curry, which was essentially chewy meat in a generic brown sauce. Naan bread's always lukewarm. However, the bhatura bread they had as part of a rather nice Mother's Day buffet spread a couple of years ago, although very calorific, wasn't bad at all. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for some of the other rotating items. "Hara bhara kabob" was drenched in a disturbing green food color--and, on top of that, had little flavor to speak of. Chilli chicken was inexcusably bad. Plain rice's alright. Other rice dishes usually are not. Their chicken biryani might as well have been called generic yellow rice, lacking as it did the complex spices and rich flavors of a quintessential Indian dish that any Indian restaurant worth its salt should know how to make! read more

Unfortunately a bit hit or miss. Sometimes the food here is spectacular and absolutely on point and my friends and I will gorge until we're stuffed for days and regretting our decisions in life. But, even when the food is good however I recognize that it isn't as flavorful as it should/could be for Indian cuisine. Other days the food is just almost unpalatable and doesn't look like it should be served. read more

First time when I went to ambar India for buffet, I was hungry and could have eaten anything. So, I enjoyed my food like anything. And, also told my husband that we are coming to this place twice a week. Guess, I was possessed by the spirit of my hungry stomach which was now filled. However, when I came second time I realized that first time I just ate without savoring the food. Anyways, there is nothing to savor much. Food is mediocre, and the only thing which I liked was dal makhni. Rest was average. Yes, they have a good selection of dishes in buffet but not one tastes wow. We seriously need good Indian restaurants in Champaign. I believe my great cooking has set such a high expectation for Indian restaurants, that very few have beaten it ;) Tip: go after 5:30 pm for dinner because before that the food is cold as most of the crowd comes after 5:30 and then only they refill it with hot food. read more

Go between 3 and 5 and get the buffet for $8 which is really really cheap. For indians - Have the goat curry in the buffet menu ( If available) read more

Best North Indian food I've had in the US so far. I even liked it better than the several fine dinning Indian places I've tried in NY and Chicago. But I may be biased given that I hail from North India. This is more of a student crowd focused place, so the interiors and seating isn't very fancy. The food however is worth every penny. read more

Another excellent buffet dinner ($10 cash!). They have a variety of meat and vegetarian dishes, with sides and dessert. Tonight the saag mushroom was verrry creamy. The chicken tikki masala was sooo good! The dal was spicy but the curry was not. The soji was simple but good, not too sweet. Perfect naan. Eat up! read more

THIS FOOD WAS DISGUSTING. seriously i have never had food so flavorless in my life. samosas were truly so oily it was slipping out of my hands. absolutely disgusting honestly. the saag paneer was disgusting. literally no words besides disgusting. naan and rice weren't even good. DONT order from here read more

So this place suffers the same issue that all buffets do: average quality food for $10. If you want some Indian food, then it's fairly good. The choices don't seem many compared with other buffets. The coconut soup had a piquant spicy taste to it that I suggest anyone try. read more

Excellent Indian food located near campus. The buffets are amazing -- the lunch buffet is $11 and the dinner buffet is $12. Definitely a big draw for a college student on a budget. There are a la carte dishes for around $10, but if you think you can eat more than just one plate of food in a sitting, the buffet is worth it. Make sure you arrive a bit early for lunch and dinner so that the buffets are still warm. read more

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This is my go place on campus lately- close to my department, reasonably priced, and the food is great. My only complaint is that the naan could be a bit crispier. Their saag paneer and chicken tikka masala is very good. I'm not one to get too hung up on service, but theirs is excellent as well. The only downfall is limited seating- But, if the place is full, as it usually is around 12-1, you can get take out buffet by the lb. read more

There were no Paneer pieces in Shahi Paneer. When I told the attendant he said they grind the Paneer into the curry! The tandoori chicken has the red color, but is tasteless. It feels like they made it hours ago and jut put it on the buffet now Lol this place is a joke for Indian food. Seems to be college students are working here who don't care at all about the taste or quality of the food. read more

Ordered chicken tikka and paid around 13 dollars for it. As a broke college student this was a hefty investment and I was excited to eat it as I had been craving Indian food. Was met with a flavorless, oily mess with subpar chicken. Would not recommend, and the staff was rude as well read more

They do have variety of items in their buffet but whats the use of such variety which ends taking u to restrooms.... I got my stomach upset kind of dyria ended up in hospital emergency. I dont know how so many people could not see these flaws..and then i got to know thet got closed for a short period of time by the health department due to some health violations.. All i can say is ONE SHOULD ALWAYS GO FOR QUALITY INSTEAD OF QUANTITY.. read more

I downloaded Yelp for the sole purpose of reviewing Ambar India. For starters, I really wanted to like this place. A close friend of mine frequently recommended it to me as a solid choice for lunch or dinner; so whenever I visited for the first time, I was really excited. Boy was my friend wrong. First of, the environment was incredibly uninviting. Whenever I ordered, the woman behind the register gave off the energy of one who's time was being wasted whilst conveying a solid look of boredom and annoyance ( I understand that work can be slow and whatnot, but what did I do to bother you so much, lady???) It was as if I, the customer, was an inconvenience for wanting food. Flustered and nervous, I decided to order from the buffet so that I could quickly get some food and leave as soon as I could. Now, I'm a pretty big fan of Chicken Tikka Masala, so I was pretty pumped to see it being served. However, upon further inspection, I noticed that there were some ...,contaminates. Sitting neatly atop the masala sauce were some VERY noticeable, long, dark hairs. I decided to tell the woman at the cash register so that no one would have the displeasure of eating contaminated food. Reluctantly, the woman decided to investigate. Instead of removing the dish altogether, she simply grabbed the ladle within the dish, scooped the hairs out into a small bowel, and sat THE SAME ladle back inside. Wow. I could not have been more disgusted. She really decided that it was STILL suitable to serve. I'm angry to say that I still bought the food. I didn't want to cause a scene and inconvenience this lady even more by leaving my box of food. I'm never going back. read more

I didn't go home for Easter and didn't feel like cooking on a somewhat hungover Sunday afternoon. Time for some Indian food! I had heard good things about Ambar and it was unsurprisingly open on Easter so we gave it a shot. The place is really small on the inside, there were not many seats so we snagged a table for 2 after paying for our buffet. I liked the place though, it was pretty cute on the inside, complete with authentic decorations and some catchy Indian radio station. I browsed the buffet and everything looked so mouthwatering! I think I tried 95% of the stuff they had out there. I'm going to try and remember (and spell) the names correctly, but forgive me if I'm a little off. The dishes that really stood out to me were the mutter paneer, saag mushroom, the spicy chicken (65 I think it's called?), and the fried dough balls and spongey dessert thing (sorry I have no idea what the proper name is). Overall I was actually pleasantly surprised at how good the food was. Most of it was pretty fresh, much tastier, and even cheaper than the last buffet we went to (Casablanca). Out of the three Indian places I've tried on or near campus, I liked Ambar the best out of Sitara and Casablanca. I love being able to get so many different cuisines on campus, Indian food grows more and more on me every time I have it! Recommended for sure! read more

Awesome food with amazing variety of indian cuisine. It feels jus like havin lunch in a nice dhaba in India! A humble suggestion for non indian patrons...kindly try to opt more for vegetarian options to have a more savory experience. Don't miss on the Chaat samosa and gulab jamuns here! read more

Ambar India - Chaat samosa & Bhatura.. Delicious chickpeas toppings along with savory chutneys and yogurt on the samosa... just perfect. - Indian Near Me - Champaign, Illinois

I am not Indian. I am not Indian American. I do not eat this cuisine very much. But I am a huge fan. Oddly enough, apparently, there are some bad reviews for this place by "authentic" reviewers. I respect these views and have no beef. Having said that, take my review with a grain of salt. I got the lunch buffet. I wasn't expecting too much given that the majority of mid-price-level restaurants in town (especially the ethnic ones) are usually mediocre. Compared to a few other places I have been to in town, however, Ambar was surprisingly great. I'm not an Indian food connoisseur, but I do like to think that I have a decent enough palate to distinguish between crap and good. This place is very good--harsh reviews be damned. I got the buffet. The variety was surprisingly large with different curries, all of which were (again) surprisingly flavorful (yet not too salty). This is a selling point since other "good" Indian restaurants I have been to (including decent Indian restaurants in "ethnic" California) either are too salty or too bland. Ambar hit the sweet spot of flavorful but not crazy salty. Likewise, despite what other reviewers have said (again, I am no expert but...) I found the food quality to be quite good. Meats felt sufficiently succulent and the veggies were sufficiently fresh (looking and tasting). So there's that. And to top it off, the desserts ("Indian donut" balls) and a pudding (possibly canned; yes, no one is perfect) were also a nice end to a filling meal. It set me back only about $10 and the ambiance inside was busy and warm. Service was a bit on the cold side (including the front desk) but I suppose that's to be expected to some extent with the "ethnic" restaurants on campus ("Western" food, conversely, can be overly in your face with all the "hi's" and "how are you's..." so...) Conclusion: for the price, this place is high value. I recommend. read more

Fantastic Place. I tend to Get the Lamb Korma With Garlic Nann(*drools on Keyboard), It is the Best! My co-workes and Friends love the place too. They tend to go for the Buffet which always looks good but I have yet to try since I am hooked on the Lamb Korma . The Staff is also always nice, I enjoy the Atmosphere and if you are not in the mood for sit down they are also on Grub Hub and are Pretty fast! I am a spicy wuss so I recommend Trying something Like Korma and working your way up to the spicy stuff. read more

Decent buffet with tasty vegetarian options suitable for students. The management can do better with cleanliness and variety of food for price charged. read more