Rajdoot Restaurant

We order from Rajdoot frequently, if is always timely and amazing food! Love this spot. Butter chicken is fantastic

I ordered the butter chicken and eggplant bartha. It tasted VERY different from what I had had at the same restaurant about 10 months ago. Although the chicken in the butter chicken was fresh, the butter chicken did not have the same creamy taste. It tasted like they had taken some canned tomato soup and heated it up with some spices and maybe a little cream. The Bartha eggplant simply did not tast the same — and there were extra tomatoes which made it taste funny.

We were here for an early-​ish dinner on Saturday night. 5:30 or so. It was fairly empty. Parking is on 25^th Ave, with assigned spots, so didn’t have to pay which is always nice.
The first thing we smelled when we got out of our car was DELICIOUS Indian spices = always a good sign! (I hate when you get to a restaurant and all you can smell is grease)
The restaurant is cool, airy, and clean. If not somewhat in need of an update for dècor and general repairs. The walls where we were sitting had huge gouges in them and the paper was peeling. The wall hangings and decorations are in a somewhat state of disrepair.
We had the buffet.
The food was FANTASTIC. Fresh naan. Fresh curries (at least 8 varieties), homemade pickles and homemade chutneys. Very authentic cuisine. BEST Butter chicken I have ever tasted.
The Goat curry (while not for everyone) was particularly delicious.
The vegetable pakoras were phenomenal. The samosas were VERY heavy (very thick heavy batter) and overcooked — almost too crispy, but just this side of overdone, so were still edible.
Fresh pappadums were light, crispy and delicious.
Tandoori chicken was fairly standard, although — juicier here than I’ve had at most places.
There were several desert options (my wife said the Gollab Jamun was fantastic!).
And of course the usual yoghurt and cream type things.
Drink menu is HUGE. Nice cocktails.
We didn’t try the chai or Lassie (since I’m lactose intolerant, and i didn’t bring enough pills with me) BUT we WILL be back.
The only things pulling this rating down were the dècor and the fact that they have a large bar area with a HUGE TV playing sports, and it seems that between the time of our arrival and the time we left there was a HUGE amount of traffic in and out to watch the game that was on, then out to smoke, then in to watch the game and out to smoke etc. etc.
I’m not a fan of tv’s in restaurants — but it seems that you can’t avoid it in this day and age!
The food saved this place for sure! I stick to my mantra that the best food is in little (or in this case fairly large) holes in the wall.
Service was o.k. Not horrible, not super expedient, but hey — at a buffet, what do you want?
Bathroom is small and cramped, only one urinal, and one proper toilet. This can be somewhat troublesome, especially when the spices kick in and you need relief! But it was clean.

The food was amazing! Got there right at 5 for piping hot delicious food. They make naan fresh for the table each time you ask, samosa was unreal and there was a spicy creamed spinach dish that I could eat daily!
Service was on spot!
Would highly recommend!

Big disappointment. Used to be the best Indian restaurant in town. Went with 7 friends for the Saturday buffet around 6pm. Service was dreadful although place only partially full. Wait staff were sullen and inattentive. Food on buffet ranged from okay to not recommended. Samosas were cooked to inedible. One bright spot — the naan was outstanding once we could find staff to bring it to the table. Would suggest you spend your restaurant dollars elsewhere.

The portion sizes were little less for the price compared to other indian restaurants i ate. The food was decent. Lamb & prawn Biriyani were good but the prawn/​shrimp in the biriyani is so bland. They would have added boiled shrimp with the Biriyani rice just before serving. It has a pleasant atmosphere.

Went there for dinner, service wasn’t exactly quick or friendly but still adequate. Decided on the buffet as it was super popular. Now I do understand that it will be a bit more mass appeal kinda stuff on the buffet but this was a bit ridiculous. Tons of selection certainly can’t fault them there, nice fresh naan brought to your table but the food on the buffet was just soooo bland. To the point of you would have a tough time identifying what you were eating. Just so mass appeal, everything was mild, the same flavour and it was noticeable that some of the dishes were old. That being said I may give them ago with the ala carte menu, but never again with that buffet. Again so many good Indian restaurants around, if you want a buffet don’t go here.

So I ordered food for lunch through Skip the dishes after looking at its reviews. The most horrible INDIAN food I have ever eaten. We ordered Baingan Bharta and the Bhuna chicken. The baingan bharta had a weird smell to it, nothing that would remind me of eating roasted eggplant. I just hope that I don’t fall sick after eating this food. The bhuna chicken on the other hand was not a bhuna chicken, it had the gravy of a vindaloo mixed with something else. But tasted awful. I really hate restaurants when they mix something else and call it a bhuna. I ordered a bhuna and that’s what I should be getting. Never ordering from this place ever again.

This a great neighbourhood spot when you’re looking for something fun, casual and convenient.
I have been many times and will return. The food and service has always been pretty good. The prices are not bad either (especially if you go for lunch).
I’ll keep going back to this place.

Absolutly fabulous Buffett. My wife and I went here on a Saturday night and were greeted by our old friend «Milton» that used to own Mogul Mahal on 17^th Ave and 26^th Street SW. We found this encouraging as Milton made some of the best butter chicken in Calgary.
We found the food very flavorful and fresh. The rest of the staff is very friendly and accommodating. We have been back serveral times since and we will be regulars here.

I love the Chicken Korma at this place and the fresh naan bread. The Chicken Korma has subtle and interesting spices and the chicken is really tender. The Mango Lasse and Chai tea are our favorite beverages. We go all the time. My son who is vegetarian also loves it since there is a lot for him to eat too. There is free parking in the back in a neighborhood that is getting shorter and shorter on parking stalls.
We are now regulars and have a card that gives us a discount after a few meals.

The food was great… until my girlfriend and I got food poisoning. I contacted management and they offered a $ 20 voucher to come back. No thanks.

Good service, not bad for Canadian standards. Had the dinner buffet, would give it ³⁄₁₀. The food tasted like it was made a few days back, reheated over and over again. The tandoori chicken was old and so hard to even chew. The dessert was okay, but the overall food and curries were an absolute NOT GOOD! Overall I was very disappointed. I would not recommend this restaurant at least for the buffet.

Went here with a large group of people on sunday and had a fantastic time!
We got the buffet, which was well stocked and everything tasted fresh and warm. The food wasn’t as spicy as other places I’ve been to, which was actually nice. It was still spicy, but I didn’t need to chug a glass of milk afterwards.
Nothing fancy, but the service was fast and very polite. I’d drop by again if I find myself in the neighborhood.

I find myself going back to Rajdoot all the time. The food is good but not mind blowing, their waiters grease back their hair with a little too much gusto and the prices are just okay but it all comes together when I get takeout. You can’t say no to their takeout portions, which are huge in comparison to their dine in portions even though they’re the same price.
Thanks Rajdoot for always making my takeout Indian date nights a tasty, belly busting good time.

We used to love going to this restaurant. We had a hankering for some good Indian food and went there recently. What we found was watered down, reheated and repurposed food (tandoori chicken stuck in a sauce. The chicken was tough and tasteless. Only a couple of dishes in the buffet actually had meat, and in every case it tasted very old. The biggest disappointment was the food was absolutely devoid of any seasoning.
The décor is getting old and even though there are new owners they still have celebrity pictures up on the wall. If Anthony Hopkins really ever did come back, he would permanently go on a Fava bean diet.
The washrooms were filthy and stunk. Stay away from this place, there are many excellent Indian restaurants in Calgary, this is one anymore.

I do love a good Indian place and thus I was excited to try Rajdoot with a deal site coupon I found that sounded like an amazing deal.
The problems with Rajdoot:
1. The restaurant was fairly empty for a mid week dinner time slot — 5 tables and maybe two regular takeout orders leaving — there were at least 2 people serving and a manager hovering and yet the service was so slow. Our appetizer took 45 minutes, our meal took an additional hour, the dessert was faster — 20 minutes. We had a fixed menu and they knew what we were going to eat from the moment we walked in — why did it take so long? We also didn’t get drink refills or checked up upon in this time — which is unacceptable.
2. I understand that some servers don’t have to write down an order — but ours does and yet he didn’t. He confirmed our dessert and then delivered it to the wrong table. The other table called him back to say they hadn’t ordered them and he promptly picks them up and delivers them to our table without saying anything. This is food that had been left with other customers for several minutes — is that not a HEALTH violation?
3. Waiting for our bill was a painful experience but I didn’t have cash to leave and walk out. When I got my bill they were suppose to charge for tax on the voucher and then to cost of our drinks. The bill came with the drink charges and then a «open food» charge significantly higher than any voucher tax would be — it was 22% of what I paid for the voucher — and they assigned tax on top of that open food charge bringing the tax rate higher ! At this point (over 2.5 hours later…) I just wanted out — I didn’t want to wait for the manager so I paid and left. I assumed it was an accident… however I’ve learned they have done this to several other people as well. tisk tisk rajdoot.
All and all the food was not bad — but by the time we ate I could have eaten the table. I’m not used to eating my dinner so late in the evening so I was starving. What they served was lower cost to prepare Indian food you’d find on a buffet. I wouldn’t be surprised if it were leftovers from their lunch buffet. Still quite good. If it weren’t for other issues, I’m almost try the place out again for a buffet.
Overall my experience was painfully slow service with a side of health violations and fraudulent charges. Not a good combo… we will not be back.
Review 1 of 30 in Unilocal’s 30 Day Challenge

Just a review on the décor and location, as it’s in a happening area for a tourist like myself.
Felt like being in India, glittery indian art, décor, and the feel too.
Nice acknowledgment when I walked in, just to grab a take out menu.
Also nice they have their own parking lot w/​a few spots, albeit it’s a ½ block away.
next time i’m in town, would like to try them out.

Started with Fish Pakoras – moist and tender. For entrees, had Saag Lamb, Prawns Korma, and Eggplant, all were delicious — spicy and flavorful but not overwhelming. Basmati rice was a bit dry and lumpy. Mango lassi was slightly more tart than I’m used to. My son enjoyed it so he insisted we come back.

I am afraid I wasn’t very impressed with this restaurant, so unimpressed that I had even forgotten I had a meal here months ago. In fact I only realised it when I passed the exterior the other day.
The service person was aloof and although the restaurant was empty he didn’t seemed that excited to have clients. He nonchalantly cast menus at us and casually informed us about a buffet that wasn’t even prepared yet.
So we decided to share two dishes from the menu and I believe one was a spinach dish and the other a chicken curry but both dishes were so small and so tasteless, I actually have no memory of them to comment about it here.
I just remembered the huge price tag at the end, for the drinks, naan and basmati rice. So once again to reiterate, indifferent service, small portions and heavily priced
For good Indian food downtown, please make your way to the unbelievable lower priced heavenly dishes at Mirchis, across from Safeway. Refer to my past review.