Mourya

Decent Indian at a great price, but it’s CLOSED now. I wanted tandoori chicken. :(

If you work near here, it is a good option for a quick Indian lunch buffet. The food is pretty good. As with most buffets, it is a bit toned down. The service is extremely good. They stop by often and make sure everything is going well.
I want to try them sometime for food by order.

It’s fast, it’s cheap, and it’s all-​you-​can-​eat. That is about all you need to know about lunch at Mourya because if you drill down to the specifics, you will definitely find better Indian food elsewhere but if all you need is something quick, it isn’t half bad.
I did takeout lunch here and for $ 7 all-​you-​can-​stuff-​in-​a-​box, it’s a good deal. They have a nice selection of vegetarian options so that’s good if you’re dining with vegetarians. I would skip the vegetable pakoras though because contrary to my popular belief, there is such a thing as too fried. The chicken tiki masala is decent albeit meek — I wished there was a little more punch with the spices.
The hits for me were the chickpea curry and tandoori chicken. The chickpeas were nice and tender but not mushy. The tandoori chicken was nicely grilled and well-​seasoned but still relatively moist on the inside.
The staff were relatively friendly and helpful, especially since all I was doing was takeout, but they told me where everything I needed was. All in all, It’s hard to point out one thing that Mourya does exceedingly well but the sum total of having warm curries over basmati rice on a cold SF afternoon makes it a decent meal.

I went back. I don’t know if they just had a bad day last time, or things have changed, or what, but yeah, things seemed to have changed.
It’s still fast, they’re still nice, there are still lots of vegetarian choices, and the tandoori chicken is still very good. But the entrees, particularly the vegetable and meatball kormas have more texture and substance to them, which was my chief complaint from last time. worth another star, I think.

Your satisfaction level at Mourya would depend on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking to be blown away by gourmet Indian flavors, you ought to look elsewhere. But if you’re looking for quick, relatively cheap, and average tasting Indian food, particularly the all-​you-​can eat variety ($ 8.95), this place fits the bill.
The daily buffet features safe and traditional items; the chicken tikka masala and tandori chicken are both decent options. However, the naan was probably the worst I’ve had… very very tough and rubbery. I bet if you hurl the naan at someone with enough force, you can cause serious bodily injury. If you happen to try the lunch buffet, don’t skip the meatballs. By far my favorite item.
I agree with Andrew K.‘s summary… good but not great. A good lunch value and sometimes good is all you need.

I ate lunch here about a week ago and it was perfectly acceptable.
I was walking down the street and saw the grand opening sign. I always like to try new businesses, so I walked in. I asked for a table for one, and the host pointed me towards the buffet. Oh, a buffet you say? Let me get to work then.
There were about five or six entrée options, plus naan, rice, and condiments. I REALLY liked the green condiment (I think it was pureed cilantro). The naan was good, too.
None of the dishes were very spicy. I like my Indian food on the medium-​hot spiciness scale, so I wasn’t too impressed with this one.
I will most definitely be back because it’s a good value for the money and the food is certainly acceptable.

UPDATE: I originally gave them 2 stars, but changed it to one after the owner wrote me two angry emails for posting this. I have included them below the description of what happened which follows:
I had a rather unpleasant experience with Mourya Indian Restaurant today. Last month, I bought a $ 30 for $ 15 voucher from LivingSocial for their restaurant, and today I wanted to use it to take two of my coworkers there to enjoy lunch together. After we all enjoyed their daily lunch buffet and were ready to pay, I gave them my voucher. The gentleman at the register said, «I’m sorry, this is for dinner only.» It wasn’t. I made sure before I bought it, because I KNEW I’d be using it for lunch during the work week. I pointed this out to him. He changed his tactic and claimed, «It’s not to be combined with any other promotion or offer.» His argument was that their daily lunch buffet was an offer or promotion. I disagreed, suggesting that anything that was available regularly is not a promotion or special offer. They were still unwilling to honor the coupon. I asked to have the manager involved, because the busboy also tried arguing with us about what the coupon said. The manager informed us that it was for dine-​in only. Which was confusing, because we dined in. Then, after discovering that he really had no leg to stand on, because there was nothing on the voucher that disqualified the daily lunch buffet from the offer, he became very upset and claimed that we were «taking advantage of him». We all continued to try to explain that NOWHERE on the coupon did it say it wasn’t to be used for their daily lunch buffet. He said (in perfect English) to me and my two companions (one of whom happens to also be Indian) «Well, you DO have the benefit of the English language on your side.» What the?
He eventually and grudgingly said he’d honor it, but only after making a big and embarrassing scene in the middle of the restaurant.
I would suggest you only go here if you are NOT using a coupon… and even then, only if you want a mediocre (albeit cheap – $ 8.95) Indian lunch buffet in the FiDi.
ANGRY EMAIL ONE:
Thank you, cheapskates and a woman of your own standard.
You do not know what dining in means, that is you get served, and, like a servant like yourself serve yourself from Buffet table.
I thought you and your cheap friends know enough english, and if you have guts reply to this as I am going to publish this on Unilocal and other places.
The customer is not right as they do not know enough english to decipher and claim their rights.
ANGRY EMAIL TWO:
Quinne,
I thought people have guts to keep their word, of course you have kept your class. Thanks for letting your feeling of knowing actually the meaning of dining in, please see below:
(explaining dining restaurants)
As I have replied before on Unilocal as response, specially your keeping your word. (Actually you said that you will not write if given the deal which was being claimed wrongfully.)
Please tell your supposed to be accompanied persons regarding this letter, also I will get the Social Living people write to you the details of the Coupon which you bought. And buy the way you as a gentle person suppose to hand over the coupon before you be seated. I know the cheesy and cheap type people group you belong to.
I am also forwarding this email to Social Living so that they take you out of their future promotion regarding other coupons.
Last request, grow up and change, and by any means take advantage of situation will catch up with you.
Sincerely,
An humble advisor.
Note: Adam, please let this coupon buyer know that Dine-​in only does not mean to claim buffet during lunch.
Also Adam, I like to avoid such customers like Quinne., Thanks

Good, not great, Indian, near my work, cheap, lots of good veggies. Meatballs were king. Not too loud.

Not sure how this place is compiling over 3 stars, but this is quite possibly the blandest, non-​descript Indian food I’ve ever had. I think this is what they serve prisoners or people in the military in India. You just come here to get full. This is cafeteria food on it’s best day.
Service and everything else is ok. Naan is fresh (always).

I enjoyed my dinner here. I don’t think I’ve ever been to an Indian place where I didn’t like the food. The chicken and lamb were incredibly moist and nicely cooked. The spices were nice.
I think this place is a little pricey for regular Indian food, but the prices aren’t too bad. The décor is okay. The service is very friendly.

Just ok. Let me premise this with the fact that I really really want this place to succeed. We need a good indian place on Kearny.
Went here for the take out lunch right at 12:00. Just beat the rush. It’s cheap like everyone says, but it’s also soupy, like everyone says. I took my time and tried to fish around for the good stuff, like paneer out of the paneer matar. I’m pretty sure the huge line behind me was left with nothing but sauce and my selections soupy even still.
They could also take it up a notch with the flavor. It just wasn’t all that savory and I tried nearly all the curries available. Maybe making the curries less soupy would help a little, but I think someone in the kitchen needs to decide to go bold.
The staff is really nice, so like I said, I hope this place can improve and succeed.
If I go back, it won’t be any time soon and by then I’ll be topped off with high hopes that they made improvements to their recipes.

It’s probably a 3.5 star place, but I’m giving it 4 because of the really harsh early reviews this place has received.
The Rundown
–Service: Extremely friendly staff/​owners.
–Price: super cheap! $ 7 all you can fit [take-​out], $ 9 all you can eat [dine-​in]
–Competitors: none. Since the previous Indian place in this spot went out of business, we’ve all been craving a curry fix. The new truck Curry Up Now has some of the best Indian fusion I’ve ever tasted, but the lines are super long and sometimes I just want traditional rice/​naan/​curry.
Buffet Dishes:
Bangan Barta — best of the things I tried. very tasty
Meatball Korma — the meatballs pretty good, better than I expected
Vegetable Korma — Very creamy! I’ll have to try hard not to overindulge on this one
Chicken Tikka Masala — White meat that’s a bit dry. Pretty tasty sauce.
Palak (Saag) Paneer — Mostly filler, very very low on the paneer when I came by at 1:30. I’m really hoping there will be more cheese when I come by at an earlier hour.
Veggie Pakora — a bit batter-​heavy when I had it, but a good selection of veggies
Naan — average
Docked:
–1 star because the dishes are generally not very complex in flavor, and there’s no brown rice option (boooo)
–0.5 stars because there are no spicy options on the buffet

An all-​you-​can-​eat-​buffet or take-​away-​whatever-​you-​can-​fit-​in-​a-​container type of place. Far from fancy or really home-​style Indian food, Amber still reigns as the maharaja of the FiDi Indian cuisine. However, given that FiDi lunch options are kind of weak, this is a good place to go if you want to stuff yourself for not a lot.
Vegetable Pakora: Deep fried anything is pretty good so pakoras with that extra spice are always pleasing. Could have stood to be a little crispier though.
Vegetable Korma: Creamy sauce, but limp vegetables… perhaps cooked too much?
Dal: Standard. The margin between a mediocre dal and a great dal is so small anyway.
Saag: Maybe I’m too into Americanized Indian food, but they could have at least added some paneer! A little soupy and lacking in texture without.
Naan: Not fresh off the tandoor, but not stale. Did the job.
Chicken Curry: A light broth rather than a thick creamy sauce. Enjoyed the contrast and probably well suited for a buffet since it makes a nice taste, but not something you’d want as a whole main. The chicken was stewed, not firm like from a tandoor.
Tandoori Chicken: Red and roasted, on par.
Chicken Tikka Masala: Probably the signature Indian buffet or takeout dish in the States. Did not disappoint with its richness. Was hoping a more traditional dish would have been around to usurp this though.

I’m giving Mourya an extra star to compensate for what I think are unfairly stingy reviews from other folks.
Is it the best Indian food I’ve ever had? –Nope. Know what, though? It’s pretty darned good, and ESPECIALLY for $ 7 for all you can stuff in a take-​out container. It’s tasty and not greasy. …really tasty, as it happens (I’m stuffing my face as I write). It’s clean and it’s a nice space.
I’m stuffing my face with hot, healthy, tasty veggie food for seven bux. I pay almost that much for a cup of soup at Max’s, for heaven’s sake.
You know what else? The owners are nice – really nice. It’s clear that they’ve put a lot of work into this place (they’ve taken over the space from two closed-​down businesses) and they’re obviously very eager to please. If there’s something you’re disappointed with, tell ‘em – I’m betting they’re receptive.
This is partly selfish – I want them to succeed because I want to be able to bop over there often for a happy, healthy, tasty, cheap meal.
P. S. They’re more than a buffet – there’s a regular menu to order from.
P. P. S. They tell me they’re going to be opening for breakfast and dinner soon. Sweet.

Good solid Indian buffet at the right price. The curries are tasty, but not amazing. If you like your Indian food really spicy, this isn’t going to do much for you (though they do have chili paste to add if you like).
I loaded down my plate with rice, pokora, chicken tikka, chicken curry, and a few other things, and left feeling stuffed. Nice, clean restaurant with friendly staff. For 8.95 all you can eat (6.95 if you are taking it to go), it’s good enough at a great price.