I've moved away from Knoxville and hadn't been to Sitar in several years, so I was anxious to see…read moreif it was as good as I'd remembered. Friends and I met for the lunch buffet. Some of the art has been updated inside, but it is remarkably the same as always. The service is a little terse sometimes, but not rude or ill-intended. They're just way focused on efficient table turning. The food was still excellent, even compared to Indian restaurants in much bigger cities and much fancier places. The lunch buffet remains an excellent value as well. I'm thrilled to have eaten there one again and hopefully introduced a friend to a new favorite.

Sitar has one of the most delicious Indian buffets I've ever experienced outside of India. And the…read moredinner isn't half bad either. It's been a family favorite of ours for over a decade. The tandoori chicken comes out sizzling, a tasty skillet of chicken with onions and peppers. The basmati rice is very good. But I think the real star is the Dal Makhani side that comes with the tandoori chicken, a beautifully complex black lentil dish! I highly recommend it!

Service was spectacular! By far the best service in Knoxville. The chicken breast in the chicken…read moretikka masala was quality chicken. 10/10 will be making this a regular place.

After two trips, one for dinner and one for lunch, we will…read morecontinue to come back. I like it. I don't love it. The Vindaloo dishes are my favorites here. And tandoori chicken. The rest in the lunch buffet ALL have one of the spices that I don't care for. Others really rave about Aroma and I see why. I wouldn't know "authentic" from not, but the dishes here don't seem super American-ized and I appreciate that. Of the several options for good Indian food in the area, we'll keep Aroma in semi regular rotation, but it won't be my first choice usually. The restaurant is always clean and the service is great. The parking is busy at lunch, less congested at night.

Food is always amazing, and the service is great! Very helpful employees whether you know what…read moreyou're looking for or not. a great hidden spot tucked away in Turkey Creek, definitely deserves a try!!!

So... For a few years my wife and I would frequent, "Bambay Palace" in Turkey Creek. Then one day…read moreas we were going to order delivery, we realized it had changed name and management. To be honest, I kinda lost interest. I'm a creature of habit, and when I noticed our "go to" Indian food restaurant had changed name and management, I lost interest. Then last night, I again looked for a local Indian food restaurant that delivered because I LOVE INDIAN FOOD!! Sadly, my wife not so much. But that's another story lol.. So I got on my Yelp app and up pops Taj Indian Bistro. I checked the menu, had my wife have a look, and she found a dish that she thought she might like. And for whatever reason, DoorDash delivery was offering free delivery, so I thought "what the heck" I'll give them a shot. I have to say, I was skeptical about a few things on their menu. Do they serve dishes with rice? Or do I have to add it to the order? Are the portions small? None of those questions were answered in the delivery menu. But I gave all of the above a shot. Then: THE FOOD WE ORDERED WAS EXCELLENT! Of course rice was included. The Onion bhaji was amazing and almost too big of an order for one person! The Garlic Naan bread was perfect, and our main course dishes were TOP NOTCH (my wife didn't care for hers, typical.) After her mentioning that "It's Ok..) I tried it and it WAS ALSO DELICIOUS !! If I had anything negative to add, it was DoorDash. I personally HATE delivery services. They're all a major ripoff. But Taj is my new favorite Indian restaurant. We'll dine in next time.

The cashier was super nice and was very helpful. They recommend options and answered all of all…read morequestions. The food is a bit pricey but it makes sense as it's in a food Hall. I wish there was more meat I felt like for the price in the portion of it was really disappointed. The food was yummy. I did not really love the naan. I just think the place really throws me off as the portions in the meat just didn't represent how much we spent.

I tried the choley masala. I didn't like it. I ordered mild and we found it too spicy to eat. Raw…read morecayenne was the primary flavor. Did not taste authentic. The rice that came with it was hard, undercooked and did not seem fresh. Small amount of rice but the choley was a generous portion. Service was fine. Place was clean.

I am so sad he closed. I know he had some problems, but we NEVER had a bad meal. And there are NO…read moreOTHER INDIAN places nearby, outside of Knoxville and the wonderful Spice Hut in Lenoir City. Sad to learn it is closed.

Okay, the owner Abbas is an interesting guy. If we all took the same approach to life as he does…read morethis world would be a great place. As far as the food goes, it's Pakistani home cooking. I went there only half hungry and split three dishes with a buddy of mine and I couldn't stop eating it, that's how good it is. Abass is the chief cook and candlestick maker. He does it all and he needs your support, His prices are good, and his food is fantastic. Go by and visit him and plan to eat there once a month to support him. He's not trying to create ambience or some sort of special experience, this is all about good home cooking Pakistani food.

Definitely worth the moderate drive to try some of the best Indian flavors in the area. The…read morerestaurant is unassumingly attached to a gas station, but don't let that deter you! Hands down the best Indian food I've had in the Knox County surrounding area. 1 dish is enough to feed 2-3 people - and I wanted to try multiple dishes, so I definitely had to ask for takeout containers and even then I had lunch and dinner for the next couple days covered! I went during dinner hours, but they do offer a buffet everyday from 11am to 3pm - which I will try next time to try more flavors at an even more affordable cost. Food did not come out extremely fast - so a good sign that it is freshly made to order and not just reheated frozen sauces with protein thrown in. The kababs came out sizzling and biryani came out steaming! The lamb was not gamey at all. The hospitality was quick and pleasant also!

The Great Indian Food Letdown…read more Listen -- I'm fully on board with a hole-in-the-wall serving up incredible food. That's my favorite kind of find. And maybe we caught this place on an off day, but for me, this was just... okay. And I genuinely do not understand what the rave reviews are talking about. Coming from Houston, a city with roughly a thousand Indian restaurants where almost every single one delivers, this felt like a real step down. Yes, it's attached to a gas station -- fine, no judgment there. They clearly put effort into making the inside feel a little charming. But our table was sticky and gross, and the bathroom matched. Not exactly the first impression you want. And it left me wondering: if the front of house can't notice -- or doesn't care -- that things are dirty, what on earth is happening back in the kitchen? As for the food, we ordered my personal benchmark trio for judging any Indian restaurant: Samosa Chaat, Palak Paneer, and Dosa (when available). They had all three, so I walked in optimistic -- maybe this sticky-table situation was about to redeem itself. Spoiler: it did not. The Samosa Chaat was fine, no real complaints there. But then my Palak Paneer arrived, and I genuinely did not recognize it. It was a strange brownish color -- think baby poop -- and the flavor bore zero resemblance to any Palak Paneer I've had in my life. I didn't finish it, and if you know me with Indian food, that tells you everything you need to know. My husband's dosa fared a little better, but the chutney tasted off, and there was only one variety with no clear indication of what was even in it -- whatever it was, it wasn't good. Traditionally, we're used to getting both coconut and mint chutney on the side, so this felt noticeably incomplete. Honestly, it was such a letdown that I'm not sure I have it in me to give this place a second shot. I'm just sitting here mourning the fear that I may never find great Indian food again after moving here.

An absolute peach of a restaurant and probably the best Indian restaurant in this entire region,…read morenow that several others have shut down completely and started getting bad ratings. The dishes are extremely super expensive for the quantity although everything tastes great and perfect. THE FOOD: We went in for lunch on consecutive days and tried out different items. We had Naan, Roti, Paneer Butter Masala, Veg Starters platter, Methi Mutter Paneer. Everything tasted so good. Everything costs ~ $20 as well and the breads were at $~$6 each. All of them tasted good and no issues. The starter platter was the pick although the quantity was very less for that price point again. Next day we tried Idly, Paneer Biryani and guess what the Paneer Biryani was so delicious and with mild spice it was perfect. It was well cooked and not much of random masala that will make the rest of your day bad. It came with a thick raitha which was decent in quantity. The Idly were a quick filler and Sambar was decent again. The price is the biggest concern here. I just hope they address it. SERVICE & AMBIENCE: The restaurant was not so crowded by the time we went and staffs were courteous. Although not sure how they jumped into conclusion that every Indian who visits them speaks Hindi, and they start to converse without even asking if we understand. That behavior was kinda off. But the service was quick. We didn't wait much. The ambience was good as well. Clean toilets. BOTTOMLINE: A great restaurant if you are visiting Gatlinburg, Smoky mountains and the surroundings and craving for warm and appetizing Indian food. Very pricey for the quantity so plan your meal accordingly. Great service and setting. Would visit again! MY PICKS FOR YOU: Paneer Biryani, Veg Starter Platter

What an unexpected surprise in Pigeon Forge of all places. They have a "Vegetarian Menu" section…read moreof their menu where vegan options are further noted as "V". Gluten free is also noted, We got the Madu Vada, donut like savory appetizer which came with two vegan sauces. For our mains we got Aaloo Gobi Masala and Mixed Vegetable which both came with Basmati Rice. Also included in the order was Tandoori Roti (not gf) They have "Today's Special Dosa's" (not everyday, if they do, a menu for them will be on the table). We've been twice so far and once they had them and once they did not. We've had the same server both times and he is very knowledgeable in vegan accommodations and ensures our meals, including sauces and the like are vegan for us. On our last visit, he gave us a dessert "on the house" and rushed back to tell us it wasn't vegan because it had butter or ghee in it and whisked it away. He offered us a free coke in its place, but we politely declined. We have 1st gen Indian friends who have trained us on Indian food, and the food is very traditional and delicious. The spice level is just right, but if you're not used to he heat in Indian food, you may want to request a lower spice level. The decor is pictures of Indian spices and Indian geography, it's well done. It's nice to have an Indian restaurant of this quality in East TN.

I have gotta say, I read the 1 star reviews and I cant disagree more. The only one I can kind of…read moreunderstand is the little amount of meat. However, Americans eat a lot of meat, most countries do not eat that much, especially non-western. Authentic Indian food isnt giant portions of meat held together by a bit of gravy. The server we had was so nice, we had a nice conversation about dollywood and other things (because I kept talking) she recommended the dishes that are popular and answered questions I had about some of the more authentic vegetarian dishes. I got the onion bhaji(?) Garlic naan, lamb tandoori, and a paneer and pea dish. The naan wasnt the best but everything else was better than I expected in a small town in the middle of Tennessee. It could have been slightly more authentic, but then people would be complaining about that, too. If you like Indian, understand international cuisines, and are tired of eating heavy diner/steakhouse/mediocre barbecue, then absolutely go here. It was delicious.

What a pleasant meal! The aromas of smells that hits you when you walk into the building lets you…read moreknow its going to be an amazing experience! The food was filling and was so tasteful. The flavors are great and you won't be disappointed. Service was fast and the waitress was very kind and present whenever we needed!

Still delicious! Got more berry waffles (2) - one for me and one for the kids to share and my…read morehusband got the Elvis. He thought his was good too. He says it's like dessert. I am not going to argue since it is pretty sweet but we (the girls and I) don't put the syrup on ours like he did. Overall super good even the second time around. Maybe it'll become our tradition to get Waffley Good waffles every year when we pick up my race packet. Started in 2021 and continued this tradition in 2022!

Hands down the absolute best chicken tenders I have ever had. The loaded steak fries are super…read moreyummy also. Thank u ot was delicious!!!!