It's an unassuming spot in a strip mall with plenty of uncovered parking. We were a party of 8 and came for the lunch buffet, which is huge and consists of two areas one for vegetarian and another for nonvegetarian. The vegetarian food was very good, fresh, but room temperature. We automatically received bottled water, which is atypical as a complimentary beverage but all the better. They had two dessert options, one lentil based pudding and another rice pudding. The service was great, tables were actively being cleaned and reset, and the interior felt clean and comfortable. The buffet was $24, which seemed pricier than expected, but I don't do lunch buffets that often anymore so perhaps this is on par with other comparable places. read more

See all

It was okay. Kind of dreary with some weird quirks I will do my best to describe below, but I do not feel like it was bad or a waste. 1. If you are going for lunch buffet, wait until after 12:15pm to show up. They advertise their lunch buffet as starting at 11:30am. We showed up at 11:50am. She told us in person it would be ready at 12pm (there was at that moment nothing on the buffet at all). She told us to sit down and wait. We contemplated going elsewhere but decided to give them a chance. 2. Water comes in plastic bottles. When she told us to sit down and wait for the buffet, she brought two bottles of water to the table. Then she went back to setting up the buffet. 3. They have zero sense of urgency. As our tummies growled louder and louder, she was in zero rush at all to set up the buffet. I never witnessed anyone so nonplused about hungry diners in her dining room in all my life. If I were to compare her motions with that of a sloth or molasses, I would not be exaggerating. The buffet was finally ready at 12:15pm. 4. The food was okay. There were two "wow" items, a few lukewarm items, and several okay items on the buffet. We definitely got our money's worth, but if we had it to do over again, we would drive 20min to India Palace in Germantown instead of the 5min it took to drive here. 5. Payment procedure is weird. They have a sign on the door saying they prefer tap to pay. She would not allow tap to pay. She insisted on me handing her my physical card so that she could put it into the machine. I did not even get to see the screen while she was tapping on it after inserting my card. As far as I know, I was charged appropriately, but it would have been nice to at least see the screen. As she handed me a receipt to sign, she pointed below where my signature was to go to where the suggested tip amounts were. I tend to be a generous tipper, but I found myself filled with the "what am I tipping for" thoughts you see people express on social media all the time. She did not serve us other than bringing bottled water to our table after telling us to go sit. 6. Don't even hope to get to use the bathroom. While we were there, there was an employee in the locked bathroom washing his/her/their hands over and over and over and over again. It had to be an employee, because there were only five customers in the restaurant, and all five of us were accounted for as we waited for the bathroom we finally gave up on ever hoping to be able to use. 7. No music. Instead of music, they have a loud TV playing some girl's youtube videos with tips for teenagers. read more

Kaveri South Indian Restaurant - They say they want tap to pay on this sign, but if you try to tap to pay, they will insist on you physically handing them your card instead. - Indian Near Me - Gaithersburg, Maryland

I would give it ZERO stats if I could. The lunch buffet was horrible. Goat curry with no goat. Biryani' with barely any meat. Some paneer fritter. No Chana masala. Everything was cold. Rice was cold. Tandoori chicken was meh. There was no service whatsoever. They never picked up our plates. The guy at the cashier was very unfriendly. On the phone the entire time. There were barely any customers. I should have know something was up. I see all the ads. It's a lie. No food. Buffet was practically empty. This was horrible. Do not come here. We came because Minerva is under renovation. read more

Really disappointing buffet experience at Kaveri. The selection was limited -- only a handful of dishes to choose from, which isn't what you hope for when you're paying buffet prices. Biryani' with hardly any meat. Some paneer fritters, Tandoori chicken. No Chana masala or Dal????? Worse, everything was lukewarm at best; nothing on the line tasted like it had been kept at proper serving temperature. Service didn't help either. Our waiter spent the entire visit on his phone and was basically unavailable the whole time we were there. Two stars because between the sparse choices, tepid food, and inattentive service, we felt let down and probably won't be rushing back. For whatever reason, they had the lights off and the place looked really dreary. I haven't been there in a few years, but I won't be going back anytime soon. read more

Everything went well today. The food was delicious as usual. There was a little bit of change in the buffet choices, but most of all I noticed they had the goat curry which was delicious! I was able to get my favorite Chai Tea. The young man who served was quite polite and helpful. This was a perfect choice for lunch because I was in a hurry and I was able to go in and out. I also quite enjoyed the Indian videos that was showing while I ate. Great lunch. read more

Kaveri South Indian Restaurant - Delicious Buffet meal! - Indian Near Me - Gaithersburg, Maryland

I went here for lunch yesterday. The staff here is very unfriendly. The lady upfront rushed me to order my food. This was my first time here and I wanted to know their specialties/her recommendations, yet she continued to rush my order. I don't understand why, because the restaurant was empty and I was the only one there. After I ordered my food, I walked towards their buffet set up to see what other dishes they have, but I was met with hostility from the same lady who took my order. She screamed at me and told me to go back to the front waiting area. I got my food and went out. I'll never be back again!! Also their naan was overcooked and very dry read more

The paneer kurma was delicious. They were out of naan. The service was atrocious - by the time they brought a menu to my booth, I had resorted to ordering online for take-out. The restroom was dirty and reeked of sewer gas backup. I planned to eat then work for a while and leave a huge tip for the extra time. I asked them for the wifi password, then never saw them again until they brought my check. So I never connected and never got any work done. read more

Husband and I came in on a weekday evening. We stumbled upon their dinner buffet. Pros -Unfortunately, I don't know any of the names of the dishes at the buffet. I did try a little bit of everything. I really enjoyed the food. It tasted fresh and loved the unique different types of spices used. -There were so many vegetarian and non-vegetarian options -The customer service was outstanding. I'm not sure if it's the owner or manager but he really catered to us. Explains the origin of the food or dish to showing us how to eat the food properly to get the authentic experience. Felt like a mini food tour. -Prices are reasonable. -Ambiance was quiet. This is not a fancy restaurant and had catchy Indian music playing. Cons -Wished they had labels and a small description of the food to know exactly what I was eating. -Parking lot is tight read more

Today a large party of 20 people went for lunch to Kaveri a South Indian restaurant. It was the most unpleasant experience of going to a restaurant. The chef was not there and only one person was providing service. Poor girl could not keep up with 20 people. The food was horrible and not fresh. No bowls or katoris for Sambar or Rasam. We were given plastic condiments containers (1 oz) to have the sambar or rasam. Since the chef was missing, it took over an hour for the dosas to come. The stuffing was served in one ounce condiments containers. I give this restaurant 2 Thumbs down. The chicken and goat curry had a thin film forming on it. Leading me to believe that the food was not fresh. The dessert had an over dose of sugar. The only thing that was good was the chai. In closing my recommendation is to save your money. Buying samosas from a local Indian store is a better option than going to Kaveri. The biggest surprise was that there was NO coconut chutney in a South Indian restaurant. read more

They have weekend buffets , Tuesday indo - Chinese buffet and thursday Dosa Buffet. They have their upcoming buffet menu on facebook page one day before so you can always see what they offering . the names are very complicated but look very tempting . Now the food is good , i wouldn't say great, A lot of dishes are different from what they are named . You always have a great start to the buffet but by the end of it always seems like something was missing and feel unsatisfied. Staff is very attentive, welcoming and nice. Regardless, We would still continue going here. read more

This is one of my favorite South Indian restaurants in the DMV area. Their lunch buffet is a must try here. They have a huge spread of deliciousness in their buffet menu. You can think of anything and they have it. I started off with some idlies, mutton and egg curry. It's a staple South Indian breakfast for the meat lovers. Reminded me of my mother's cooking. Then I went to the live dosa counter where the chef made crispy dosas. I tried it with the coconut chutney, chicken curry and sambar. So good! After some appetizers, I went straight to the biryani section. Two delicious biryanis to die for - Chennai style chicken biryani and Hyderabadi style mutton biryani was so good. Highly recommend it. Chicken kabobs were very good too. For deserts, I tried the kheer and the gulab jamun. It was amazing. Absolutely authentic. They also have banana leaf lunch once or twice a year during the Indian festival. Highly recommend this place. Service is great and love the ambiance. read more

See all

Today i ordered their special mutton and daal tadka. I used my uber coupon to pay for the food. The mutton was full of just gravy and bones and it was not worth the money i paid for. Their quantity is also less. I would not recommend read more

South Indian restaurant with burnt, seriously, burnt idlis and no sambar. The explanation was the heaters had taken away all the moisture from the idlis! Masala dosa came with one tablespoon of Masala. About 2 to 3 tablespoons of chutneys were in the dishes and there were over 15 people in the restaurant. Food was not replenished so people were scraping the bottom to get nothing. Overall a very bad experience on the day after Diwali. It is not cheap to dine here and $$ are better spent elsewhere. read more

Ordered catering for a party and it was excellent. I have subsequently ordered food for take out and it has always been high quality. Great South Indian food. read more

The food was bland and unappetizing. We ordered a rava dosa and mutton sukka appetizer. There was only one other couple in the restaurant but our food took a long time to come to the table. We definitely will not be back. read more

We walked into a big empty restaurant with large tables and booths. Clara smelled the Indian food It smelled great Lily smell the incense burning when you first walk in. We hear the Bollywood Indian music video of the tv and watch mesmerized until the food comes. The palak paneer was so good same as the curried chicken, the chicken was buttered chicken so it was not as spicy but still all the food was a bit spicy so if sensitive to spice will need to choose carefully. The dosa is my father's favorite. We try it a bumpy, crunchy sort of bread. In conclusion we think that there should be more people here and you should definitely try the palak paneer and the curry chicken. read more

See all

I have been here three times , two times for dosa night . First dosa night it was crazy busy and had to wait for long time to get appetizers and other stuff however Kartik and Vaishu were doing there best to bring appetizers and dosa right on time and they did such a good job I went again . It was quit this time and I really enjoyed the appetizers ( changed menu) dosas and probably one of the best kheer . The price of dosa night has gone up but worth every penny . I will be back for more dosa and amazing customer service . read more

The food is ok but I do not enjoy the service here. I wanted to order a spicy meal and the person at the host stand refused to allow me to get the meal spicy because he did not think I could handle it. I have heard some other people have also received poor customer service here. I went once, and the food was not good enough to warrant a return. I prefer to eat somewhere that lets me order what I want without criticism. read more

Kaveri is a fan favorite with the work lunch crowd. The Gang of Four (my coworkers and I) eats here so frequently, they know us and greet us like old friends. They recently had a name change, but everything else is the same, the staff are the same and the food had remained excellently delicious. On the weekends, this place is so busy they use the back dining room, it's so beloved by the population. The saying goes, "if a restaurant is visited and loved by the people of the same culture, that the food comes from, that's a reassuring stamp of approval." My husband is Indian and he enjoy their food. Add to this, I've a good friend and co-worker that craves good Indian food, and he loves Kaveri. The lunch buffet during the week is around $15, and there are lots of options and what they offer frequently gets updated with new dishes. By changing up their food, they keep their customers coming back for more, it never gets boring. The one change we noticed, were more desserts, which I love. During, our most recent visit, for dessert they had ladoos and chumchum. The staff also go to each table offering fresh dosas, in addition to naan and papadum. If you have any doubts, that you should stop by for lunch, put those aside!!! This place is a real treasure and their staff help make it so, along with their scrumptious food. read more

See all

My husband went for an office event. They were around 40 people, pre booked the restaurant for lunch buffet. The vegetarian starters just had gobi Manchurian which was finished when they reached at 12:45 pm and they did not replenish even after asking 3-4 times and mini samosas which were extremely oily and black from inside. There was sambhar and rasam but no dosa/uttapam/idli/vada to go with it. Paneer gravy in main course didn't had any paneer pieces. Salad was kept not at a very visual place so no one took it. In last 10 years that we have been in the area, we haven't had such a bad experience and that too when it was a pre planned event. I'm surprised how can the owners/managers not see the problem and do something to rectify it. I will not recommend this restaurant to anyone, please don't waste your time and money. read more

I went an hour before closing and it was still amazing! Food was fresh and delicious, perfect spice level too. I'm from Phoenix and this was the first Indian cuisine place I saw out here and I was very satisfied. I had butter chicken and garlic naan, definitely recommend! read more

Kaveri South Indian Restaurant - Indian Near Me - Gaithersburg, Maryland

The food was very delicious! Some of the best chicken and biryani I've had. Service was polite and attentive. read more

Kaveri South Indian Restaurant - Buffet - Indian Near Me - Gaithersburg, Maryland

Today we went to this restaurant. All meat pieces were very hard and big. It was clear that it was old and reheated. No refill for biriyani. Rice of the biriyani was very dry. One can easily identify it was reheated several times. All other veggies were also old. White rice was dry as well. Vada was good, onsite dosa was good. Halwa was good. On a Sunday, when buffet restaurant was not that crowded, we should have decided and gone. Surely not worth the cost $24 for few fresh food that was cooked today with rest of them - old stuff. I got stomach upset in 30 min to rush to public rest room. Not sure what they have put. read more

The lunch buffet at this place is superb. I make it a point to come at least twice a month. The assortment of dishes and the quality of food is consistently great. If you like Indian food do your self a favor and check out this restaurant. read more

Loved this place. Very friendly staff. I asked for egg parotha (not on the menu, but a favorite of mine) with chicken curry. It was outstanding. Ordered two sweet lassis -- they were that good -- and Madras degree coffee. I didn't try the lunch buffet. . Heartily recommend this restaurant. read more

Kaveri South Indian Restaurant - Indian Near Me - Gaithersburg, Maryland

See all

My wife enjoys SOME Indian food provided it is NOT spicy hot (that omits a lot of great Indian food that I love). My wife does like to go to Indian Buffets where she can sample several different dishes. We tried this restaurant one day because our first choice was closed that day. The people operating the restaurant were delightful and anxious to please ... but the food was .... greatly disappointing to me. First, the food was NOT hot temperature wise. Second, I know real Indian food, this was NOT! I tried the allegedly spicy dishes and they were wimpy. I far prefer the buffet at Minerva Restaurant that is at most a mile away. read more

No service whatsoever. Was told sit where you like. No one came to our table to take food or drink order. We finally helped ourselves at buffet which was all cold and nothing exciting. Waved the server down to get water and coke, will not return. The noodle dish was slightly slimy as of it's gone bad : hopefully the m not sick after eating here. read more

The first time I ate here it was great. But yesterday, apart from the appetizers none of the curries were good. When I told the chef the sambar was not warm, he is just visibly upset and although they heated it up, the taste was nothing like the last time. The fish curry was pretty bad, but they made a new one - still just fine nothing that great. I was told by someone that the servers here do not receive the tips that customers leave - instead the owner takes it all. No wonder things are going downhill here. read more

I tried the Sunday Banana Leaf Buffet and did not get what I expected. I expected some hot and spicy South Indian dosa, idli and vada but didn't get any served until I asked towards the end. They did not have coconut chutney to go with and two mini dosas were served cold. Madu vada was good, served warm and crispy. Lime pickle and other condiments were good. Biriyani was not good, dry and flavorless. Parota was dry and I guess it's cooked from frozen. Most servers were friendly and deserved a tip. $24.99 per person was not at all worthy for the type and the quality of food served. This is the least worth buffet I have tried. Overall cleanliness of the restaurant and the restroom was okay. They should have a separate sink for hand washing as the food is expected to eat using hands. read more

Kaveri South Indian Restaurant - Indian Near Me - Gaithersburg, Maryland

Amazing restaurant! The food was delicious, especially the Paneer 65 and their dosas. The service is amazing and they were very accommodating to our dietary restrictions; they even sent out someone from the kitchen to confirm. Everything was made fresh, with no pre-made sauces. We felt very welcomed and the environment was very comfortable and homey. Great restaurant for families, especially those with young kids. A must try when you are in town. This is probably one of my top choices in the DMV! read more

I got food yesterday first time from a his restaurant. Kadai Paneer was cooked without adding bell pepper. Naatu Kodi fry prepared with regular caged chicken. Spoiled ragi was served. It smelled badly. I ordered extra nan but nothing was given. Restaurant charged for all items but not given half. This is fraudulent restaurant and cheats customers. I don't recommend anyone to get food from it. read more

Last night we (20 people) went to Kaveri for Dosa night. It was awesome!!!!! First we started with the buffet and like the Dosa night menu they had savory and sweet options with a varied range of spice levels. For Dosa night they had about 4-5 types of savory dosas and 2-3 dessert dosas (I had the chocolate dosa and it was my all time favorite dosa EVER :-) ) For all 20 of us our disas came out super hot and so fresh and tasty. They also had 2 other desserts - custard with fruit and halva. Amazing. Our party was so large we requested the party room and it was perfect - totally private and the service was excellent. read more

I am all in when it comes to this Indian restaurant. Their food is really good. I might have to say that the day of the special banana leaf meal was slightly chaotic. It seemed like the owner was frustrated with the chaos, but spoke to the customers to ask if anyone needed anything. The options for this special meal was a huge platter. I never expected to have so many contents for a meal. All food tasted good. Not a great fan of the fish fry made. read more

Kaveri South Indian Restaurant - Pongal special banana leaf lunch - Indian Near Me - Gaithersburg, Maryland

See all

I am a foodie and have traveled worldwide. Kaveri is absolutely amazing. You have to try the Weekend Buffet with over 25 vegetarian and Non-vegetarian dishes, to include butter chicken. They seem to have it all! What's more, everytime we visit there is something exciting and new to try! I love discovering new flavors, which credits Kaveri's innovation. Kids and Adults will find something they love, especially the complementary mango lassi. The owner and staff are wonderful, provide excellent service, and appreciated that we visited. This is truly a gem. read more

This place has the BEST Biryani I have ever had the pleasure of eating. Customer Service: the customer service here is amazing. The owner is always friendly and courteous when I come to pick up my food. One of the many things I love about this place is they actually listen to their customers. I absolutely love spicy food. I mean extremely spicy and this is the ONLY place that delivers every single time! Thank you for your fantastic service Taste: the food is absolutely delicious and even though I ask for extremely spicy, you can still enjoy the flavors of the food even with the added spice. I absolutely love this place and can't say enough great things. read more

The food was okay, I found myself annoyed with the lack of requested silverware. This wouldn't have been an issue if I wasn't at work, unfortunately I was so it was an issue. Also, the byriani was unpleasantly hot, I'm a fan of heat but this was far too hot. It was to a point where it was unpleasant to eat and overwhelmed any flower in the entirety of the dish. The dish itself was... eh, I can say I was disappointed with it as well, it was just not that flavorful. Perhaps if it were, I would have tasted more than just pure heat. I normally enjoy Indian food but this didn't really do it for me. read more

It's near my Dr's office so I decided to check it out, the menu offered an extensive number of South Indian dishes, there were so many to choose from. I ordered the biryani with chicken very spicy! The rice was so flavorful and the chicken was spicy and flavorful! I was also curious about the Chettinad egg curry it was good but they hadnt given the egg a chance to absorb the spices. The garlic naan was moist and delicious went really well with the egg curry! One of the better authentic Indian since Minerva had closed. Glad to have checked it out and will be back to try others. The staff was nice they delivered the food out to my car. read more

Just tried their Special Sunday Banana Leaf lunch...it was amazing. They seem to have 12pm; 1pm; 2pm; 3pm slots to have this wedding style at table service. They have both Veg and non-Veg. Every item tasted very good or above. Service was great too...any item you need again, just ask. Looks like new owner doing good job in all respects. Hope this restaurant maintains its consistency. read more

Try this place if you're looking for an authentic South Indian cuisine, good taste and it stays true to south India. Would recommend biryanis, curries and for all Indo-chinese lovers, do try their chicken noodles, it's very close to what you get in India, keep in mind, the food tends to be a bit on the spicy side which is authentic south India palette, but in case you don't like spice, you can mention that and they do tone it down. Their bucket biryani too is worth trying, I feel it's reasonably priced and a good value for money. The only reason this place doesn't get 5 stars is the appetizers, I feel they can do better in terms of taste. But overall, check this place out and you won't be disappointed. read more

I enjoyed this meal more than when it was Godivari. The decor is still drab and has an office building or cafeteria vibe, something I think they should slowly work on. The curries are on the spicier side. I also really enjoyed their onion dosa with all the dipping sauces, especially the tomato chutney and the potato chutney. read more