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Benares Cucina Indian

4.3 (32 reviews)
Closed • 12:00 pm - 10:00 PM

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BENARES CUCINA INDIAN ATMOSPHERE

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Inside
Shaquille J.

Stopped here while strolling in the area looking for a good dinner spot. The food here is really good and the service is great too. I ordered the vindaloo and it was great for it being non-london indian food lol. The critique i have of this place lies with the ambiance. The dining room was downstairs and it just felt very dark and dreary. I don't recall seeing any natnatural light while we ate. If that wasn't the case I would've rated this place higher.

Mango Lassi
Cameron Q.

We were greeted outside by the receptionist. She led us into the restaurant by going downstairs. The restaurant is gorgeous. My boyfriend ordered vegetable samosas. The pastry was flaky, and they were served pretty fresh. I got a mango lassi. It was very yogurty. Next, we got lamb biryani and lamb methi. I ordered a side of regular rice. The lamb biryani's rice was so wet. They didn't mix the spices thoroughly in the rice. The lamb in both the biryani and lamb methi was cooked perfectly. They did not smell or taste gamey. The quality of the foods were good; but, the amount of spices and flavors were underwhelming for an Indian restaurant. I wanted the flavors to hit me in the face. What's good about Indian food is that when you've leftovers, you can heat it up at home and add some water to it and flavors still there. But, the foods at this place would not be flavorful the next day if I heat up at home and add water to it. Also, I never had an Indian restaurant make me buy rice separately for a dish. Again, I'm not from around here.

Danielle J.

This place is complete WOW. The setting is so intricate and lovely. The food was equally wow with great flavor. Hands down best Saag Paneer I've ever had! Service was friendly and spot on.

Sign above the entrance
Purpose T.

This review is solely based on experience and service; we decided against trying the food. To my surprise while perusing the area, I stumbled upon this eatery ironically wearing the exact name of my favorite indian restaurant in tribeca/nyc - Benares. I had no idea if they were connected or not, but I was instantly inclined to at least check out the menu and see if it's worth indulging. Well, there were several restrictions and stipulations that just did not make me feel welcomed to stay. The service was okay, but I presume due to the time of day (lunch) it was completely empty. That did not bother me, I don't mind at all, makes me feel special and catered to lol. But, sometimes an empty restaurant can also be a not so good sign. Either way, we opted to dine-in and take a chance. After browsing the menu for a few minutes, the server came to pour water (he was very pleasant) and when I began asking questions about the menu I was told after each question "that is not available" "we don't have that right now" etc... So, left with not much to choose from, I decided to pass and politely exited. Perhaps, they should consider presenting a menu with available options and maybe a separate (lunch) menu that explicitly shows what you can order, in real time. Toronto is not hard-pressed for delicious cuisine and endless places to plant your feet under the table. So, for that reason, I wouldn't hurry back to Benares, but maybe next time I'll have an opportunity experience everything.

Phyllis L.

Came here for dinner and was greeted by lovely service and good food. We got the Butter Chicken ($20) and Curry Chicken ($19) with sides of naan, and it was super delicious! The curries were flavourful and packed with plenty of chicken. While this was a lovely experience, I found it a bit pricey even with the quality... you can definitely find better for much cheaper.

Daal Makhani, Butter Chicke, Goat Curry, Garlic Naan, Regular Naan
Reh L.

Over the summer I would constantly walk by this place and drool at the smell of indian food wafting onto the street. When I actually went, I was quite disappointed. The food was fine - just average. Those sweet spices I smelled across the street didn't translate into the wonderfully tasty food I was expecting, and my taste buds got bored of all the dishes after a few bites. We ordered the butter chicken, goat curry, and daal makhani, and all were merely average. The naan and garlic naan are also pretty average. However, the prices were over the top given the small portions; $4 for a single naan is pretty much extortion compared to every other indian restaurant in Toronto! Overall this place had average food at too high prices, and I would give it a miss.

colorful glass windows
Carlos P.

After seeing a bad reviews I was uncertain. The food had some quality and certainty flavorful but not very exciting considering the detail of the setting. I had chicken vindaloo and an aloo bread. Maybe throw in some peas or poppadom with chutney before the food.

This is our reservation and it was made two week in advance 12/19/2022.
Rick K.

This is the worse new year Eve in whole life. I am front Washington DC and was visiting Toronto. I was staying in Vaughn area and made reservations (see photo) at Benares in Toronto. I called Uber at 9 pm and it cost us $80 for Uber to go to Benares. Once we got there on time the doors were locked and after knocking at doors lot a lady opened the door and said they are closed. She was rude to tell us she is sorry and here we were stranded in cold weather. Next one hour we went from door to to door and could not find any place as all were booked or closed. This is truly non humanitarian and what they did to us.

Decor feels like a palace. Glad it was not crowded. Staff were very attentive and friendly. Foods were excellent. The lentil soup had a lot of ginger which I loved.

The Samosas!

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10 months ago

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6 months ago

Delicious Indian food and a great space with an intimate atmosphere. The staff are friendly and helpful with the menu.

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2 years ago

Very nice dining room, attentive service. Everything my party ordered, we enjoyed. Salmon in coconut curry was especially well cooked.

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3 years ago

Everything is world class. The service the food. And the ambiance. Please don't forget to try the pistachio ice cream for dessert.

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2 years ago

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4 years ago

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2 years ago

Food tastes nice and does have an original and authentic flare upholding its reputation

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3 years ago

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3 years ago

Great food and tasty ! Good service and ambience. Eveu single item was very flavorful and tasty.

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3 years ago

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4 years ago

Delicious food, amazing service, reasonable prices. I'd come back here in a hot second.

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Aanch

Aanch

4.2(229 reviews)
1.4 km•Entertainment District, Downtown Core, Waterfront Communities-The Island
•$$

My partner and I are visiting Toronto for the weekend from Buffalo, NY. We love Indian food and…read moreAanch was a must-try on our trip list. The ambience is warm and inviting but also elegant. The staff were so friendly and checked in often to refill water and ask if we needed anything. They have many options for dietary needs like gluten free, dairy free, nut free, and vegetarian. And the food is INCREDIBLE. I think I said incredible 15 times. Our food came out steaming and insanely fragrant. Beautiful presentation. We got the Butter Chicken with Garlic Naan and Chili Coriander Naan and the Tawa Kathal Masala with Gluten Free Roti. The chicken breast was tender like thigh meat and the jackfruit had the best flavor and texture I have ever had before. Our conversation completely stopped when the food arrived because we just couldn't stop eating and when we did it was to say "this is so good" or "this is incredible." We practically licked our plates at the end. And then our server Sri gave us complimentary Pistachio Kulfi! I love the texture of kulfi so much and the pistachio bits were a delightful added layer. The perfect end to the perfect meal. It was so kind. We aren't celebrating anything in particular, I think they're simply generous with their customers and want to give you the best experience. Absolutely worth a try if you're in the area. Note: We went on a Thursday night at 7:30pm so it was only about half full when we arrived and quiet. The staff were fully available to us and we had no extra wait times. Also, TIFF was happening two blocks away from the restaurant so that may have given us a different experience as well. Peak times might look different.

Short review/TL;DR version: Excellent Gushtaba. Great Dilliwala Butter Chicken. OK Pineapple Pakora…read moreChaat. Decent Naan. Toronto Review 11/Many: I went to this tiny Indian spot with another prior to going to the game at Rogers Center, so my meal was a bit more abridged compared to what I would normally do in an Indian restaurant. The service was fine, and it took a little while for us to sit, but soon enough we were in a nice corner overlooking the bar area downstairs. As I wasn't sure whether I'd have a beer at the stadium, I didn't bother having a drink, nor did the other person. Overall, the food was tasty and a bit more unique than a typical Indian spot. However, I didn't love the appetizer, and I found the naan just alright. Our only appetizer was the 17.99 CAD Pineapple Pakora Chaat with masala pineapple fritter chaat, lachha aloo, papdi, saffron-pineapple yogurt, mint-date chutney, and slaw. As with the rest of the dishes, the food was well presented. There was a nice mix of textures, which included crunchy, soft, and others. The best parts were the aloo and pineapple, and I wish there were more pieces of the latter. In terms of flavor, in comparison to other chaat I have had before, this was on the sweeter end for me, which made it a bit less balanced. Overall, it was good, but not great. My main dish was the very tasty Kashmiri Gushtaba for 28.99 CAD, consisting of goat meatballs slow-cooked in a rich Kashmiri white onion-cardamom gravy. The very soft meatballs were the easy highlight and my favorite part of any of the dishes I had that night, as they had a nice mélange of spices/masala. The gravy was thick and slightly buttery, with a complex blend of flavors, including, I believe, a hint of ginger and something smoky, along with the listed cardamom and other more subtle spices. This was delicious and was perfect over rice, though this isn't included and is an extra 7.99 CAD. The other person had the 26.99 CAD Dilliwala Butter Chicken, with said chicken enhanced with smoky ginger, garlic, and green chilies. The menu also has a milder option of butter chicken sans said extra flavors for a dollar less. I tried a bit of the chicken, and it was pretty tender with a little heat, but less so than my dish. The gravy was also complex, though I preferred my dish overall. They had some interesting bread options, but we stuck with a classic Garlic Naan for 6.99, which was pretty good. While lacking ghee, there was plenty of garlic flavor with some nice crispier edges. However, I found it a bit chewy compared to other spots. In terms of the number of Indian spots I've been to, I'd probably put it in the lower-middle to middle range. If I were to only rate the main dishes, I would probably leave a five-star rating. However, the appetizer was only just okay, and the naan was only decent. Also, our main dishes definitely needed rice, and that's an extra few dollars. In short, I liked the concept of the restaurant more than the execution, with this spot reminding me of a better version of Baar Baar in NYC. Excellent gushtaba, though.

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Aanch - Bar area

Bar area

Aanch
Aanch

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Kothur Indian Cuisine

Kothur Indian Cuisine

3.7(127 reviews)
2.4 km•Church-Wellesley Village, Church-Yonge Corridor, Downtown Core
•$$

The food was very mid…read more We got the Bhel Puri, the Chicken Tikka Masala, and the Goat Xacutti. I love indian food so I was excited to try the Goat Xacutti as it's something new but it ended up tasting exactly like the Chicken Tikka. And the Chicken Tikka didn't taste like what Chicken Tikka usually tastes like. They both tasted like and amalgamation of every curry all mixed together. It was flavorful, but there was no distinct flavor. The Bhel Puri was yummy, but they served us wayyyy too much for only a party of 2. The garlic naan was fine. I also ordered the sweet lassi, which was tasty. The seating was fine and they had a coat rack which was nice. It's open late (till 11pm) which is convenient and why I might come here again, but otherwise the food did not stand out to me at all.

I first heard about Kothur in the most unexpected way--while trying to switch to a cheaper data…read moreplan at a Fido store. Midway through the painfully slow setup process, the entire store started filling with the scent of something glorious. Rich spices, buttery warmth... it was the kind of smell that stops conversations. Everyone working there was Indian, and they were all clearly just trying to wrap up my account so they could dig into whatever just got delivered. I had to ask--where's that food from? "Kothur," they said, almost in unison. That was the recommendation, and it stuck with me. I walked by the place once. The exterior didn't scream "hidden gem." Thought about ordering delivery a few times but never followed through. Life, you know? Today, I finally went. From the outside, still nothing to write home about. But walk in, and it's a different story. Clean, cozy, and exactly the kind of no-fuss Indian spot you'd expect to stumble upon in the heart of a big city. The food? Solid. Spices landed right. Everything was warm, comforting, and satisfying. It's not trying to reinvent Indian cuisine--it's just doing it well. If you ever find yourself sniffing the air near a phone shop and wondering what that divine smell is--it might just be Kothur. TL;DR Not flashy. Surprisingly good. Smelled it before I tasted it. Worth it.

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Kothur Indian Cuisine
Kothur Indian Cuisine
Kothur Indian Cuisine

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Benares Cucina Indian - indpak - Updated October 2026

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