The service sucks. They are very slow in everything. Food took an hour or more to be served. Every time the waiter said 5 more mins and that kept getting extended. Due to this we didn't order the desert as we just couldn't wait any longer. On the plus side I the abmiance is good. The food tastes amazing. Just because of the food I gave the high star rating. If you decide to come here. Come with some time on hand. read more

Clay Pit - Indian Near Me - Austin, Texas

I had REALLY high expectations for this place after reading all the raving reviews and hearing my friends swear by its deliciousness for years. I dined here back in November 2009 and I can say, it was okay, but I simply don't get all the hype! The vegetable pakoras are freaking yum, but as my mantra goes - nearly anything fried is delicious. They came out slightly crispy, warm, we ate them all. As for the dinner portion of the evening - my companion and I opted to descend into the cellar as I had read that it was the most novelty-esque area to dine in. And it really was quite adorable - lit by candles dotted along the jagged cave-like walls, the tables were spaced adequately apart to allow for intimate dining - just really perfect. Our waitress, bless her soul, was nice enough, but EXTREMELY slow and forgetful. More on that later . . . We ordered some wine - which was lovely. And I believe we had the Vegetable Ayam and Kadhu Curry along with some Roti - all vegan as designated by the menu. Now the portions were modest and the entrees looked pretty appetizing. But since our waitress was a slow poke (to be fair, it was a somewhat hectic evening) - they were barely lukewarm by the time they reached us. I heartily consumed the two dishes, but to be honest - I didn't feel any magic or spark when I ate them. They were almost borderline bland - none of that distinctively Indian aromatic taste bud teasing - just a nice array of vegetables smother in their respective heavy sauces. Now, I'm not saying it was downright disgusting - it was still good, but I somehow expected a whole new world the way people used to describe this place to me. I think our food arriving pretty much room temperature probably dampened the whole tasting experience. My companion, who was um, pretty intoxicated, was especially displeased with the food. We asked the waitress repeatedly for more water, more wine, etc. and it really became quite irritating after awhile . . . not sure why she was so oblivious to us, but that was poor form! Anyway, The Clay Pit was just average to me. I wouldn't avoid it for the rest of my life but if pressed with my top ten favorite Indian restaurants, this place would not make onto the list. read more

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Never ceases to fail that the only times that I ever go to Clay Pit are with an overwhelming number of people, from a minimum of 8 to a maximum of commandeering the upstairs room for a private party. Although I have been told that the tastes have been some what tailored to the American palate, the food has remained consistently good. I am heavily biased towards vegetarianism when it comes to Indian cuisine and this place does not disappoint. The Naans here are absolutely delightful and I highly recommend the basil and garlic. Most the dishes come in the smallish bowl that leads a first timer to wonder "is that really enough food?" only to find out that the entree with healthy helpings of basmati rice leads to a doggie bag. The dishes come in a variety of spice levels, but beware - extra spicy is . . . well extra spicy. I'm sure that I'll be back . . . with a large party. read more

Amazing Indian Food and Cocktails! We heard about this place from a friend and so we had to try it. We asked for cocktail recommendations from our server and he did not disappoint. He recommended the Lal Toofan which was a rum drink with lots of pineapple and mango. Completely amazing! We started out with the chicken pakoras which were perfectly seasoned and juicy. Next, we both had the chicken tikka masala. Mine was spiced medium/spicy while my husband got the spicy version. Both were spiced to out liking. Nice ambiance and great food and drink! read more

Had to cancel our dinner reservations last minute for another restaurant and called Clay Pit 2 hours before we wanted to dine and they accommodated our last minute reservation even on a weekend. First time coming here and now I know why my friends love it. Everything we ordered was a hit! I had the lamb Roghanjosh with the veggie samosas and I've never been so satisfied with the price and the quality! My sister had the salmon, that was cooked to perfection, the sauce under the salmon wasn't to our liking but it was still really good. We shared the calamari and the FLAVOR? Wow just wow. Only thing I would say is it wasn't as crunchy but still delicious with the cilantro sauce they served with it. The host and our waiter were extremely nice and accommodating since we were fasting and needed the food to come out at a certain time. Overall super satisfied with this dinning experience and can't wait to come back more often! read more

Clay Pit - Kothmir Salmon, Coriander Calamari - Indian Near Me - Austin, Texas

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My boyfriend and I made reservations here for his birthday dinner since we heard so many great things about it: ambience/mood, food, and service. We got none of those things. When I put down the reservation on OpenTable and left a request that it was his birthday, I was expecting them to make it special (some kind of extra attention in a private table or even people singing happy birthday to embarrass him like literally every other restaurant in the world). None of that happened either. Why even encourage us to distinguish to the restaurant with comments/requests if they are just going to be ignored? We arrived on a Friday night and there wasn't even a wait anyway. After reading all the rave reviews about how great the ambience was downstairs for dates/special occasions, you can imagine our disappointment when they seated us on the general floor next to tables of students wearing baggy tees and nike shorts (no offense to them of course, that's exactly what I wear on campus). But you can imagine the discord in environmental expectations and intention. The waiter was a very no-frills type of guy. He also kept checking up on us when we were still looking through the menu, and when we asked questions about drinks/food items, he had no excitement or even cared to truly explain. It was all done with a very "whatever" attitude that really killed our mood as well. I'm sure he's a good person and all that, but he really should not be working there with that kind of attitude. Lastly, the food wasn't even that great. Dare I say even Teji's was way better (especially for the price too). The food here was just not as flavorful as expected. The only thing that really wow-ed us was the potato pancake appetizer dish. The lamb curry and whatever dish I got (don't even remember the name because it was so underwhelming... think it was some kind of soupy dish with veggies only) were BLAND. And the naan? Meh. Some people say that how good the food tastes also depends a lot on your experience as a whole. I don't know if I believe that entirely, but after this experience, I can't deny it either (although I think even the food itself was meh regardless of sucky experience and waiter). It was a well-rounded horrible experience. We had a re-do of his birthday meal at Perla's instead (: read more

Great flavors and great variety. I came here for lunch buffet and I enjoyed it very much. I liked all their chicken dishes and even their rice was very tasty. We came at opening time so there weren't too many people. I would definitely recommend you to come at opening time to beat the line if you don't have a reservation. This place is also great for very large groups. The pricing is good and the service is great. Even their bathroom is very clean. I would definitely come back for more. read more

Clay Pit - Lunch buffet. - Indian Near Me - Austin, Texas

Not much parking, but totally worth it. The food is amazing and it such a good place to bring friends and family together! They also have a cool wine cellar that is quiet, but is a little hot. read more

Ordered via UberEats tonight - took a little while to get here but worth the wait. I def rank them Top 3 Best Indian spots in Austin. Very generous takeout portions. Really loved their paneer tikka masala + veggie pakoras. read more

Lamb Boti Kebab 4 stars Soup 4 stars Basil & Aloo Naan 5 stars Cucumber Salad 2 stars Lamb Biriyani 1 star Chicken Tikka Masala 1 star read more

I love the Clay Pit for it's lunch buffet hours and close proximity to campus! I've only been here for the buffet hours and I think the meal is well worth the price for only about $12 (after tips)! The buffet menu is different every day and I love coming here on Fridays for their chicken tikka masala! It's delicious and the veggie korma is also really sweet with the coconut milk!!! The tandoori chicken is usually on the menu everyday and it pretty good as well although sometimes it may get a little dry. I also love their tomato soup! It's rich and creamy and it is almost like a curry! With the buffet there is also unlimited nan!! They always have their mixed salad bar and their rice pudding dessert. I would recommend getting there early for the lunch buffet as after 12 or 1 there is usually a wait for about 15-25 minutes! Also they don't seat you until your entire party is here! The service was a little slow, but I think that was just because there were so many people in for the lunch buffet. Overall, this is a good Indian restaurant and the buffet is definitely worth it! read more

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This place has decent food, though I would not call it authentic Indian food by a long shot. For me, the place is overpriced and underwhelming. I ordered the vegetable korma - I generally really appreciate korma's rich, savory, sinfulness. I got the korma at the *hot* spice level, also. What I got was nearly an abomination to my palette. Sure, it was rich, but the sauce was crunchy (they did not grind the cashews/almonds into a fine/semi-fine paste in the korma to make it a divine, sinful sauce as one would expect in traditional korma) as they did some half-assed rough chop of the nuts. This really detracted from the dish as the sauce was not rich enough and the vegetables were overshadowed by me constantly grinding cashews in every bite. Second, despite ordering *hot*, my dish was anything but - rather, I got a dish that bordered sweet. This place is an elegantly-presented façade: sure they have a nice atmosphere and service, but the food is not good Indian food by any means. read more

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It's always delicious, especially the chicken tikka masala. Cocktails, samosas, and naan are great, too! We go there every time we're in Austin. read more

I prefer not to post negative reviews, but I also want to help other Yelp users. I also prefer to send feedback directly to the restaurant, which I did and I received no response. So here is the message and experience from Clay Pit. We had dinner at your restaurant last night and did not have a great experience. I wanted to provide feedback but did not want to post on Yelp. First, the food was amazing. My GF lived in Austin years ago and put your restaurant on our list of 'must-do' while in town on vacation. The food did not disappoint! However, as you may be aware there was an extreme delay in getting served. Almost an hour for entrees. We saw a couple come in after us and left assumedly not wanting to wait it out. I know things happen and hopefully, this was a one-off. Our meal was comped, which we appreciated but at that point was the least you could do. Our server was kind but woefully untrained. She made comments like, "Yea, that other table ordered before you and they don't have their food either." and "It should be out soon, let me check." The manager apologized and was sincere. Perhaps let us know this is not the normal Clay Pit experience and here's a gift card. Please come back and give us another chance. Finally, the decision to allow 'ghost tours' in the restaurant (the basement) during peak dining hours during COVID? That was a bad call. That's it. Next time in Austin we may stop in and see if things are better. After no response from the restaurant, probably not. read more

Nice ambiance, nice music, nice staff, good alcoholic beverages. Haven't tried the food but enjoyed the experience

Butter chicken really flavorful without being too spicy. The curried vegetables were the best ever. Ride was good with a lemon flavor. The naan a little on the thick side. Ambiance great. Service great. read more

This place deserves 5 stars. Best Indian food in Austin. Seriously. Best naan. Friendly and knowledgeable wait staff. Always enjoy it!

Best Indian food in Austin and definitely in my top ten favorite restaurants in the city. My favorite thing to order is the butter chicken but everything is super amazing. I like that there are different areas of the restaurant: inside, bar, basement. Don't miss them gem! read more

This place always seems to impress me when it goes to their dinner menu. There is a large selection and everything is seasoned very well. The Mr was hoping to get his rack of lamb Ned rare and it came out med well. He commented that it was still delicious. That was the only complaint at the table. I had the mixed grill and found the dish and the portion to be better then I expected. The taste was full flavored and I am happy I order it. The staff is really friendly and helpful. They take the time to explain the dishes to help a newbie like myself find the perfect dish. The only issue I have with this place is that they have a lunch buffet during the week. I am not a fan and the few times I have tried it I wasn't happy. Yet I love all the items they serve at dinner. Go figure..... I can not explain it. I can only report it. read more

The worst possible customer experience can be felt in this restaurant. Their rules of reservation are pathetic. Its not enough if you book a table n b on time. Remember they wont seat u yet. All your party members have to b right on time...u r kidding!! what if my wife or friend is parking the car n they are a couple of mins late. Yes ypu wont b seated!! Also, 1 more tip to dine at this amazing hobbit..'reserve' the table at any cost. On the phone they ll ask u to walk in. If you walk in after 8, they ll not entertain you even though the restaurant closes at 9. Good luck..u must be privileged to dine at this place!! read more

I have been to this place 2 times trued different food and OMG love it! Love the costumer service the spice and everything really cool place.. read more

I thought it was great! What I had: - Curried Mussels: delicious! I really enjoyed this. And it comes in a yummy curry sauce, and you should def grab an extra order of garlic naan to sop up the leftover sauce. - Samosa Chat: it's basically a veggie samosa cut in half and placed on a bed of garbanzo bean chutney. The samosa was kind of dry, and the chutney was good. However, having had it once, I think I don't need to have it again. - Seafood in Garlic & Red Wine: It was good! The shrimp especially was great, but the white fish was a dry. The curry was good but not as good as the curry sauce in the mussels. - Dhingri Mattar Paneer: THIS WAS MY FAV!! This was so delicious. It came with basmati rice, but the curry was so good and thick that you didn't really need the rice. I'd totally get this again. Overall, it's a homey, casual place that serves great food. I'd love to come back again. read more

I'm not vegan anymore, but I still love Clay Pit's vegan and vegetarian selections! In fact, I usually order a vegetarian curry or biryani on my frequent trips. They also have a fantastic happy hour in their front bar area, including tasty appetizers, fruity cocktails, local beers on tap, and wine specials. Ask to sit in the basement. It's like a romantic dungeon. read more

I've never been disrespected in such a way. Gladly, my experience there was no more than 2 hours of misery that I'll never go through again.

It's one of the best Indian restaurants I've ever been to. I wish there was a location in Houston. I got a mango margarita, which was delicious. The samosas were delicious. I got the seafood dish under House Specials (can't remember what it was called). It had shrimp, mussels, calamari, and fish in a curry sauce. Tasted great. My husband got the goat biryani. It's one of our favorite dishes. Definitely didn't disappoint. We will definitely be back next time we're in Austin. read more

Clay Pit has the best korma in town, hands down. Probably even the best korma I've ever had. It's the only thing that keeps me coming back, because it's definitely not the service. Do yourself a favor and order to-go. The service is painfully slow. I go twice a month, more or less, and they're very consistent with the underwhelming speed of service. I'm talking a minimum of a 45 minute wait for your food, everytime. Their record was 2hrs. TWO HOURS. The managers are usually super sweet, and won't hesitate to make it right though! Just keep in mind that the servers have no control over the kitchen and their lack of sense of urgency? Lack of labor? Who knows what's going on back there, but improvements are definitely necessary. read more

Far away from authentic Sub Continent food and service is pathetic. Served cold mostly. Do ask for whole wheat bread. Default bread is not edible. read more

Ordered pickup because I didnt have time to wait. Arrived 10 minutes after the pickup time scheduled. Waited an additional 20 minutes for my entire order to be packed up. Meanwhile portions of my order sat in a tied plastic bag on a rock wall near the main walkway, not kept warm. The host seemed completely stressed out and unable to deal with the lunch crowd. He was fussing at waiters and the other hostess. I can understand being crowded at lunch. But dont tell me an order will be ready at a certain time and then make me wait for 20 minutes of my 30 minute lunch. I couldn't tell you anything about the food because I never got it. Hopefully I at least get the refund I was promised, bit I'm not holding my breath read more

This is the best Indian restaurant I have been to in the Austin area. The lunchtime buffet is amazing and has so many choices. Try it you will be happy you did. read more

Amazing food and service. Never been disappointed and is a favorite whenever I travel to Austin

Updating my review. I have not contacted the restaurant nor received any benefit/compensation based on my last review - so this is not a biased update. We have been to Clay Pit couple more times since the last review as we weren't able to find any better Indian restaurants around Austin. Tikka Masala at Clay Pit somehow tastes better than anywhere else and the portions are very generous. During those times, we had different servers who had accurate information for the lunch special and the happy hour special. The lunch portion for Saag curry was great as well! read more

I don't ever think we would have found this place if it wasn't for a friend to recommend it. If you like Indian food and you are in Austin, I would recommend checking this place out. Definitely my top 3 places for Indian food in Austin. If you do go here, I very highly recommend getting a table in their basement and not on their main floor. It is a completely different experience and well worth it (the rest of the restaurant to me seems too crowded)!! The food was delicious, the service was very good, and the drinks were perfect. Definitely recommend checking this place out (and again, going to the lower floor) read more

One of our favorite places in Austin. The food is so flavorful! Not only is the food amazing, but the atmosphere is super cool. A great date night spot out in the city! read more

I am an Indian and this is one of the worst Indian food I have had in my life. I had ordered butter chicken, naan, samosa chaat and tea. Everything tasted terrible and I felt like throwing up. Actually you can't even call this an Indian restaurant as there were jalapeños in my butter chicken. Naan was flavorless and uncooked. Chaat and tea had a horrible after taste. Avoid this place!!!! read more

Pretty sure everyone already knows the food is great here. We come here when family is in town and everyone is always pleased. Drinks are great. It's a very cool building with an interesting history. I would say- and this is going to sound loony- the energy can be weird in here. My family has weird fights at this restaurant and I always feel a bit overwhelmed when we eat here. It's famously haunted, and I'm not saying the ghosts cause family squabbles, but if you are the kind of person who sometimes feels like a place is 'off' you might want to prepare yourself before you eat here. read more

An Austin staple. So good. Every time. The curried mussels and bengaltini are a must.

Excellent, fresh food at a very reasonable price point. Great service, comfortable atmosphere, very innovative cocktails!

Placed an order for pick up yesterday for essential employees lunch at 11:20. Arrived at the restaurant at 10:45 and waited until 11:15 to go in and grab my order so they didn't feel rushed by me and I wouldn't be waiting around other people. Only, when I did walk up around the side of the building, I didn't see anyone else. The door wasn't open. I called the restaurant, no answer... tried again... nothing. So I called grub hub since they were who I had to place my to go order with. They had my order and explained that they weren't sure what was going on. Then someone walked up letting me know they weren't open. I explained I had grub hub on the phone and had placed a pick up order for today at 11:15, and if they were closed, why had I already paid and not been notified. Grub hub blamed the restaurant, the guy from the restaurant blamed grub hub station they told them 3 weeks ago they were only doing dinners. But nobody gave a damn about the position I had been put into. Grub hub said they would refund the money, but that didn't solve the fact that I was late, I had to find another restaurant, place yet another order, then wait for another restaurant to prepare THAT order. Making me 45 minutes late!! Seriously!?! I won't be going here again, or giving them our business. read more

Clay Pit - I think it's safe to say this is not MY FAULT! #grubhub # claypit - Indian Near Me - Austin, Texas

Great service. Food was delicious, with great pricing. The ambiance is great for any night of the week.

Beat Indian food ever. We drive over an hour to go to this place to eat. Their food is good and the spice level you get can be customized to your preference. read more