Namaste India Garden

I went in on a Saturday afternoon and although the ambience isn’t too Indian, the food definitely is! I first ordered for a paneer tikka masala which not only had the right blend and was cooked well, but also had just about the right texture. Only wished I had a bit more to savour.
I then had decided that I had to try the dosas as well and thus went in for a Spring Dosa. Although it was not what I expected, it was a different mix of veggies and the coconut chutney was simply the best!
A highly recommended dine in place if you want to feel what Indian cuisine tastes like :)

My fiancée and I walked in to Namaste almost on a whim– we were hungry and craving Indian food! From the minute we walked in, we were immediately hit with a very strong smell of spices. We started off by ordering the Gobi 65, which was delicious! I ordered the Vegetable Curry, with garlic naan. My fiancée ordered the palaak paneer. Both dishes were delicious and very filling– we went home with a little bit of both. The vegetable curry was a little spicier than I typically like, but still very delicious. My fiancée said that the palaak paneer wasn’t as spicy as she would like, but it still tasted good. I also ordered a Sprite, which was very syrupy and not very carbonated. The bathrooms were well maintained and clean. All of the staff was friendly. Overall, it was a fantastic meal and I would definitely go back again.

I’ve been here twice, mourning the loss of my favorite south Indian place, and this place has filled the void quite nicely.
The first time I went, I tried goat chettinad for the first time in my life. The portion was large, and made sense given the price. They had fluffy, delicious Naan bread. The most remarkable thing was how legitimately friendly the staff was. I didn’t feel like someone off the street– I had been there for 10 minutes and felt like a regular.
The second time I ordered off the «Indo-​Chinese» menu, specifically Gobi cauliflower. I could eat that every day, without hesitation.
The price is a bit stiff, but for the quality of product and service you get, it makes all the sense in the world.

Namaste is quite good; I’ve been here several times for lunch given that I work close by, and would rate it as my favorite Indian restaurant in Cleveland that I’ve been to thus far. I was pleased to see a South Indian place go up in Lakewood, given that most of what you encounter by way of Indian food is North Indian, particularly in any medium sized city. I also appreciate their offering of Indo-​Chinese dishes, which are also not prevalent in the plethora of cuisine in most towns. Their chettinads are full of flavor and absolutely delicious (I would recommend the goat), and I’ve always had very friendly service. They’ve got a great menu selection, and I’ve yet to try anything here that I haven’t liked.

The Chicken Chettinad was sublime. I ordered it ⁸⁄₁₀ hotness and it did not disappoint. Most of the other Indian style restaurants I’ve ate ate have been mostly northern so a lot of the dishes on the menu I had not had before. The Chettinad is my new favorite! Paired with a Southern Teir 2xIPA and I was in heaven on earth. Can not wait to take some friends here!

I liked it. I love Indian food and eat it quite frequently, but this time I went way out of my comfort zone and ordered a dish that was essentially cloves of garlic in a delicious sauce. I won’t even try to spell the name. Anyway it turned out to be shockingly mild for pure garlic and the sauce was delicious. I’m sure that whatever magic they applied to make such a harsh ingredient so delicious, when applied to more naturally palatable items, would yield even more amazing results. I was there with a group of about 10 and everyone was more than satisfied with their dishes. The service was attentive and made sure we all got all the attention we needed. I will be back for sure, though next time I will go for something a little more in my wheelhouse. Palak Paneer? Oh yeah.

Great Southern Indian style cuisine paired with a passionate staff! If you are looking for melt your face off spicy, try their sister restaurant down the road, India Garden around the corner from Vosh in Lakewood, it has Northern Indian chefs.
This place is all about slowly simmered spices that pack flavor more than heat, and is really well known for their Dosa, specific to the southern parts of India, and the Gobi Cauliflower is a great starter. Really anything you get you can’t go wrong, but the Goat Korma was a favorite.
Throw on BYO wine, and this place is a new favorite!

Really good buffet we had on a Sunday afternoon. We went instead of watching the Browns game one Sunday because my wife’s brother was in town and he doesn’t really do football. Well, the Browns won, so I guess we should have gone back every week to keep that tradition up.
Food was really good and fresh — which is most important with buffets.

Two words– eat here. Seriously– really delicious and wonderful, helpful, informative staff/​owners. So glad we stumbled upon it!!! The two chicken curry dishes were amazing and I overheard the manager recommending the cauliflower– so now that’s on my food bucket list. Best Indian food I’ve had in Cleveland, hands down.

D and I came for a Saturday night dinner. It was a cool fall-​ish day so we thought Indian food would be nice and warm and perfect for the day. I was pleased to find some dishes I was not familiar with on the menu.
We parked on the side street right by the place and as soon as we got out of the car, we could smell the spices. Smelled so good and I couldn’t wait to get in there and start eating!
When we started eating, the food was so good and really hit the spot on this cool day.
We started with the Gobi 65 — I had no idea I could love cauliflower so much. Wow. Get this. Just do it. And, definitely use the lemon that it comes with and the sauce.
For our meals I got the Mysore Masala Dosa — impressive, large portion. Wonderful flavors. Had a spice, but not spicy-​hot. Warm flavors. So good. Loved it with the white sauce that came with it, but all the sauces were good.
D got the Chicken Chettinad. The flavors were warm and so developed. Went great with the regular naan. I love naan. Naan, naan, naan.
The portions were big enough that we both had lunch for the next day. The whole meal cost about $ 53. Not too bad for price, seeing that we got enough for lunch too. I will absolutely be back to this place. Frankly, I’m embarassed that it took me this long to try this place out!

I’m already a huge fan of India Garden, so I had a feeling that this restaurant, which has the same ownership, would be a great addition to the Lakewood restaurant scene, too. I was right!
The portions are very large, and like India Garden, not cheap. But totally worth the value. We started with Gobi 65, which are like chicken wings, but made with cauliflower instead of chicken. A great alternative to a game-​night appetizer for those who want to be a little bit healthier.
Then we split the traditional southern India cuisine, a dosa. The owner was walking around making recommendations. We were leaning toward the Mysore Masala Dosa, and he recommended the Rava Masala Dosa because it’s crispier. It wasn’t very crispy, so I wonder how the Mysore one would be. But the filling was delicious — potato and peas, I believe.
We also got an order of the Navaratna Korma, per the owner’s recommendation. Delicious. This may have been my favorite thing we ordered. Mild and manageable for the non-​spicy eaters. Of course, we also had garlic naan, one of the best I’ve ever had (super garlic-​y). We were completely stuffed with the three orders, probably could have done without an appetizer.
Check this place out for sure!

We have made two trips to Namaste so far and I am impressed! As others have noted, we have a dearth of authentic, fresh, and healthy Indian restaurants in Cleveland. Namaste fills that void — and thank goodness!
Everything at Namaste is fresh and flavorful. You will be awash in fragrant spices, but unless you request it to be hot & spicy, the food is served on the mild end of the Scoville scale. But mild, in this case, is not the same as bland.
At Namaste, you can taste the individual spices at play in your dish: amchoor, asafetida, cumin, coriander, and cardamom! You can see the spinach leaves in your Palak Dal and identify the nigella seeds, too. This stands out when you compare it to many Indian restaurants where your dish has been aggressively stewed for hours to the point of being an indistinguishable glob of greasy (but delicious) mess. (Yeah, I’m talking to you Saffron Patch!)
I’ll tell you (for the 20^th time): you seriously need to try the Gobi 65. Don’t mess around. Maybe get two.
I’ll look forward to visiting Namaste again and trying some more from the menu!

I’ve got to say this is my favorite Indian place, and probably my favorite Lakewood restaurant at the moment. Unfortunately, I can’t come here everyday because it’s a little too expensive for that. Both times I have been here I ordered the Andhra Chicken Curry. I’m not sure what makes it Southern Indian, but it’s a lot like most chicken curry dishes that I have had in the past, just much better. Both times I have been here I tried a different appetizer. First we tried the Masala Dosa which you can see in the pictures. It’s a big rolled crêpe. The Masala one had potatoes and other veggies inside. It came with dipping sauces and was awesome. The second time I came here we had the vegetable cutlet. It looks like an egg roll but was a very delicate fried vegetable roll. This was also delicious. Also, you must get the naan with your meal.
The service is great as well. I’ve been coming here for Sunday brunch and they serve the dinner menu at that time. I could probably come here more often if I just go during the lunch menu. I just wish this place was closer to my place of work.

Nice Indian restaurant in Lakewood. I had the rava masala dosa. It’s about 12 $ but the dosa is huge! You could definitely get two meals out of it. In fact I’m looking forward to eating the other half for breakfast tomorrow.
I only tried the idli and dosa. I think this place is known for its South Indian cuisine. Theres ample metered street parking that’s free on weekends. If you’re here stop by Lakewood Park, less than a mile away to see great views of downtown cle across the Lake.

Okay. This was delicious. I was apprehensive to try indian food in Cleveland (simply because I hadn’t tried it before!). Wow. I really recommend the Gobi 65 (cauliflower never tasted so good) and palak paneer. Great food. Friendly service. What more could you want? Come on, check this place out!

I’ve gotta get something outta the way first, I don’t really know shit about Indian cuisine. Basically, what I’m trying to say is that you shouldn’t expect me to be comparing my experience to «that time I was in Mumbai» or with «the lamb I had that was baked inside a hole in the desert sand in Pakistan». Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had my share of chicken tiki masala and curry sauce on various meats, I just won’t be diving that deeply here.
Namaste India Garden reminds me of what Aladdin’s would be like if they did Southern Indian food. The atmosphere is comfortable in that stripmall’y sort of way and the dining area is brightly lit with light from the big front windows. It’s clean and decorated with Indian artwork (I’m guessing).
I don’t know what makes this different from Northern Indian food, but that’s what they supposedly specialize in here. I really didn’t recognize any of the dishes on the menu using familiar words like «chicken» and various vegetables to guide my choices. There are also helpful descriptions underneath each of the dishes and when we asked our server for recommendations he was more than happy to assist.
On the service side of things, no complaints to offer up. We were immediately greeted with a smile when we walked in the door and our server was both attentive and friendly.
We started with the Punugulu (deep fried lentil balls). These little golden brown goodies were something I could snack on for hours. I Didn’t find the actual balls themselves to be all that flavorful, but the two sauces served with them — a coconut curry and tomato chutney) were delicious. A single serving is shareable.
Next we shared the Rasam soup. This was like a very spicy vegetable-​based broth. Incredibly salty and loaded with spices. If you don’t like heat in your food, you should probably stay away from this.
Before I delve too deeply into our entrees, I’ve got to mention something. The entrees, all of which come with jasmine rice, are more than enough for 2 – 3 people, especially if you get Naan (which you should). Just keep this in mind when you’re ordering. We opted for two entrees because we wanted the leftovers. Moving on.
Get the bread, you’ll need it with the sauces. We got the garlic naan. A bit more like crispy flatbread than the chewey pita-​like stuff I’m used to, but still damn good. I really liked the charred, crispy bits, too.
My wife, not a fan of heat, went with the Palak Paneer. It’s a slightly sweet spinach sauce (thought I tasted some coconut in it) served over little cubes of Paneer cheese. The cheese’s texture reminded me of firm tofu and it didn’t really have all that much flavor on its own. The sauce was very tasty, though, and made for a nice Naan dip.
I ordered the Lamb Chettinad. Bits of lamb in a thick, stew-​like sauce. I loved the flavors, so complex and filled with big spices, but the lamb was a bit of a disappointment — chewy, fatty and not all that tender. I don’t think I’d order this one again.
If I had one gripe it would be with the choice of serving vessels for the main courses. They used these boat-​shaped, shallow curvy things, both of which were filled to overflowing — literally. Sure, they look fancy, but not all that practical for sloppy, saucy foods. Bowls people. bowls.
Well, that’s about it. My first foray into Southern Indian food was a pretty successful one. Aside from the misstep with the lamb, everything was delicious, plentiful and crammed with flavor.
P.S.
The music was a little strange. If I remember it was some sort of top 40 crap. Call me silly, but shouldn’t ethnic places have some ethnic music in the background?

Ever since Charkha closed, we’ve been searching for a replacement. Happy to report the search is over! This place is awesome. We shared the gobi 65 appetizer which was fantastic. We also shared a rasam soup which was great and a dosa which was the best dosa I’ve ever eaten. For entrees (I know. We seriously pigged out) I had a vegetable chettinad and the husband had a chicken dish. The chettinad was delicious with a very nice kick to it. The only downside to the restaurant is that they don’t serve alcohol, but there is a place across the street where you can get beer and bring it to the restaurant. For me, this is hands down the best Indian in Ctown. I literally cannot wait to go back.

Best southern Indian cuisine in the Cleveland area. Authentic as it gets here.
Might seem pricey but for what you actually get its fair. Two entrées, rice and some nan might run you $ 32 but when you take into account the portion size and quality, it is well worth it.

Verryyy impressed by Namaste’s Southern Indian cuisine!
I admit, when I think of Indian food, I often think of your typical Tikka Masala type. I eat it quite a bit, but that’s generally what I think of.
Namaste was refreshing in that it was different! I brought a large group and we sampled a wide selection of foods. We looooovveed the South Indian dishes — which we used as appetizers. The Dahi Vada was indeed a donut in yogurt sauce. I really liked the Punagalu balls served with coconut and tomato chutney. There were plenty to share and had a really nice taste. (and they too tasted great with the yogurt from the Dahi Vada)
For the main entrees, we tried a few of the Kormas and Curry’s and the winner was Chettinad. It had a deep stewey taste and nicely complimented the lamb or goat that we paired it with. They were all good though!
In short, this may well be my new favorite Indian restaurant in Cleveland. That’s saying something!
Service was great and with our larger group they were even happy to split the check. Bonus points there, Namaste — so thank you!

Super excited to have a south Indian restaurant in town! The interior was clean and modern and the dishes were all nicely presented. I would definitely come back.
No changing tables.