Udupi Cafe

We had probably the worst service I've ever had in a restaurant. We waited for an hour for our food to arrive, without any explanation or apology whatsoever. (While the tables around us did not seem to be waiting an inordinate amount of time.) This was a Sunday night; the restaurant was busy but not full. Even the bread took an hour to arrive. Once the meal finally arrived, we were still missing 2 people's meals, and waited another 10 minutes for them. At one of his few visits to our table (after the food arrived), our waiter took a cell phone call. To be fair, the food was pretty good, but the service completely ruined the evening; I won't be back. more

I'm South Indian and have Uncles and Aunts in Philly that are fabulous cooks. This Udupi is better than the Santa Clara, CA and other Udupi's I've eaten at as I travel on business across the U.S. Their weekend buffets feature an enhanced authentic menu and if you want to eat the best South Indian food like it is made in Chennai then go here. \r \r A suggestion on how to make it authentic like we eat back home: Take cups of sambar and rasam to your table first per person. Then take white rice and the poriyals (that change daily) on plate to your table. Mix the sambar with the rice thoroughly and then eat with poriyal and papads; do the same with rasam as a second course. As a finishing course try the South Indian closing meal to cool the palat and the throat by eating the homemade yogurt mixed again thoroughly with white rice. Sprinkle on some rasam or some poriyal or if you are feeling adventurous, eat it with the Indian pickles (usually very spicy).\r \r Also try their Rava Masala Dosai- even my mom (sorry mom :O) doesn't make it that well at home; must be their industrial grills... more

I've made it a point to eat Indian in every place I've lived and travelled and this is by far my favorite restaurant. I've simply never come across an Indian restaurant that was this consistently good. I make a point of enjoying the lunch buffet at least once a week and, with very rare exception, I always leave fully satisfied. The key to the flavor at Udupi is the freshenss - I've often marvelled that each bite tastes like it was made on my fork the moment before it entered my mouth. And, being a vegetarian, it's always nice to know that I can eat anything on the spread. Having a variety of items on my plate is never an issue. I should note, however, that, while the evening menu is great, the lunch buffet simply cannot be beat. You can often find a wide assortment of dishes on the buffet that are not on the menu (such as the delicious Mushroom Mutter and Broccoli Makhini) and the ability to combine the many flavors on one plate is certainly a benefit of coming at lunch time. The staff is also very polite and accomodating. I am never in want of water or napkins and they always have something pleasant to say. Overall, I can't say enough good things about this restaurant. Pros: wonderful food, great service Cons: evening menu not nearly as good as lunch buffet more

I have tried Udupi twice so far - once for buffet and once for dinner, where I ordered off the menu. Both times were very good; it did taste a lot fresher off the menu though. Everything is vegetarian, which is fantastic, and it seemed like they have some N. Indian dishes too. The appetizer sampler was good, especially the sweet potato item. One of the chickpea appetizers was too dry. The dosai were good, as was the rice dish I had (biti belam batha or something). The almond halwa is the best Indian dessert I have ever tried! Pros: Food, vegetarian, very affordable Cons: Service was a little slow more

One of the best Indian restaurants in the area. The weekday lunch buffet is easy on the budget and the food is always hot and delicious.\r \r They are very family friendly with no smoking anywhere in their establishment and they have severala seats for the larger families.\r \r They always have several lightly spiced dishes for the little ones, and if you need some more heat, just ask them to bring you some fresh chopped chili's. \r \r Dinners are always excellent, but I am always drawn back to the lunch buffet so that I can try out their different dishes. Pros: Excellent Family Dining, No Smoking, Reasonable Prices Cons: None that I can think of. more

Udupi Cafe is one of the places I could eat at almost everyday. The selections are fantastic, the food is out of this world, the staff is friendly, knowledgeable and helpful and the price for the buffet during the week is great. The price on the weekends is too high I think, but that doesn't keep me from going every once in a long while. This is by far the best Indian food I have eaten. I am never disappointed in this place- except when I want to eat lunch late because they close at 3pm. I highly recommend it, infact I wish I were there right now. Pros: Food, great food! Cons: My stomach isn't bigr more

We moved from California (haven for good Indian restaurants) and we were very disappointed with the food. we tried the lunch buffet on a Sunday. On the positive note, the place was friendly with kids. Pros: great with kids Cons: food more

I've been to many Indian buffets and this restaurant stands out as one of the few serving South Indian cuisine. Unlike most buffets, the food is Fresh! The chutney's aren't runny, but thick and flavorful. The food is extremely flavorful, not a watered down version for the typical American palate. The ambience is casual, modern, and clean. And for the price of $10 on the weekends, a great deal. The large number of south Indian customers is a testament to the quality of food. This is a great place for a casual lunch/dinner. Pros: Fresh food, Inexpensive more

First, the food is fabulous and served with style. Beautiful presentation, nice atmosphere. While not overly romantic (it's a little bright), it's still a nice place to bring guests and the decor is comfortable. A lot of people's reviews seem to indicate that the service is bad...maybe I'm just hopelessly charming or something, but I've always had great service overall. They've been really nice about accomidating dietary needs (I'm vegan) and things like that. Some of the best indian food I've had anywhere, including San Francisco (can't remember if I've had it in DC or NY, but I've eaten in a heck of a lot of restaurants.) Very accomodating when we've brought large groups too! Pros: The food is fabulous, The food is beautiful, Nice atmosphere more

Udipi Cafe serves an amazing variety of traditional southern Indian dishes at the lunch buffet. The buffet menu is constantly changing and there are always tasty new deserts. Udipi does not scrimp on the ingredients, like many Indian restaurants do, and the food is always top-quality and fresh. By far the best Idian restuarant in the Triangle!! Try it and you are hooked!!! more

I was very impressed by the food at Udupi. It was the first time that my husband and I have had this regional Indian cusine, so we where unsure of what to order. The male servers offered no help or suggestions and seemed to get impatient with us. We finally guessed at what we ordered and it was very good. A female server came to our table after our food was served and she was very nice and patient with our questions. So, I give a thumbs up for the food, but the service could be improved. more

I have been to Udipi a number of times, and have never had any problems with the food - buffet or off the menu. The food is always hot, perfectly spiced/seasoned, and served in enough quantity to appease me. The atmosphere is not the best, I'll grant that, and the waiters are not the best English speakers, but I do not care. The food makes it worth it! Pros: 100% Vegetarian, Broad selection, Moderately priced Cons: Atmosphere lacking, Waitstaff ESL issue more

I had never experienced Southern Indian food before, and I found that I had been missing out! Try the appetizer sampler to taste all of the wonderful selections, and the sauces that come with it - yum! I was also impressed with the breads that come with the dishes. I can't wait to go back! Pros: wonderful flavor, nice atmosphere, friendly service Cons: closed mondays, wish it were in ralgh more

I thought the food was very satisfactory for a buffet style lunch. I went for the Saturday buffet because my friends recommended it. I have not had a lot of Indian food so I can't make much of a comparison, but I thought everything I tried tasted very good. The group of people that came with me enjoyed the food as well. As a non vegetarian I was impressed. I would not recommend this as a place to take a first date, but if you are looking for good food Udupi is a plus. more

My neighbor, when I was growing up, was Indian and cooked many Southern India dishes. For large events, the whole extended family would cook- everything was delicious. At Udupi I easily recognized all the dishes but they were all awful. Too salty and too greasy. I've tried it 3 times, just to be sure, and I always feel nauseaus afterwards. The staff seems very rude, too- I've had problems getting orders corrected, etc. I wouldn't recommend trying it unless you are curious. Pros: Other food nearby Cons: Terrible Food, Terrible Atmosphere, Terrible Atmosphere more

The food here is amazing. Go. I went for the lunch buffet. This is the best Indian food I've ever had. more

The is the best exclusivley vegetarian Indian restaurant in the area. Delicious and spicy too! Great buffet, friendly and clean establishment. Be sure and try a mango lassi with your meal as well. YUM! Pros: ample parking, easy to find, great buffet more