Headed to Las Vegas soon? Or are you a Vegas resident looking to expand your culinary horizons? Either way, take comfort in knowing that Las Vegas, Nevada, is a hot spot for Indian restaurants.
With flavors and textures steeped in history and culture, India (which shares its borders with China, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and Bhutan) has food that is rich and diverse. These days, the Southwest and Henderson are at the heart of the Indian Diaspora in Vegas, but Indian restaurants are quickly spreading throughout the entire valley.
If you see a North Indian cuisine-based restaurant, you can bet that they will tout their chicken tikka masala as their most popular menu item. North Indian cuisine utilizes a lot of heavy creams, chicken and wheat. But the thing about Indian dishes is that they change quite dramatically about 20-30 miles to the south of Northern India. In the south, you will find a heavier emphasis on rice, dosas and seafood. Between the two poles, there are a vast array of different delectable recipes.
Indian food actually possesses a lot of health benefits, too – something that Vegas locals and visitors alike can appreciate. With turmeric and curcumin being mainstays as far as spices go, these dishes are helpful for those looking to fight off bodily inflammation.
Whatever your reason is for trying one of Las Vegas’s Indian restaurants, you can give one – or all – of these places a try. There are dishes to meet every palate and every dietary need, so you won’t be left wondering where to eat for very long.
Divine Dosa & Biryani (The Strip)
Divina Dosa opened in late 2019, just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Conveniently located on The Strip, this restaurant is well within walking distance of Resorts World, the Las Vegas Convention Center, and The Wynn. This restaurant has over 30 types of dosa on the menu, clearly making it the main attraction.
A massive, four-foot rice and lentil battered crepe cooked on a custom-designed griddle is idyllic for large parties… or just one very large appetite. There are plenty of sauces to dip it in, too, ranging from red garlic chutney to lentil curry.
The thing about Divina Dosa & Biryani is that owners Kris and Bindi Parikh helped chef Lok make the flight to India so as to source a diverse array of recipes. While there, Chef Lok workedclosely with home-based cooks who taught him how to make their unique homestyle curries and use their indigenous cooking techniques. Chef Lok know how to make biryani that is prepared in the Hyderabadi-style, which pairs chicken, goat or lamb with rice, cooked together in a high-heat recipe.
You can pull up and order via the contactless menu or place your order online.
Clove (Spring Valley)
Just west of the Vegas Strip is Spring Valley, an unincorporated town named for the lucious Spring Mountains. It is now home to Clove, an Indian cuisine restaurant and bar that opened in October of 2021. Their name honors the idea of a clove being a place of gathering, pleasure, business, and family celebrations. It is all about togetherness – and mighty fine food.
Lunch buffet hours are from 11 AM-3 PM, and you can order a la carte from 5-10 PM. Open seven days a week, you can come in any day you’d like or simply order online.
On the menu are an array of vegetarian appetizers such as a two-piece vegatable samosa stuffed with green peas and potatoes. Non-vegetarian appetizers include a lamb samosa, shami kebab, and chicken pakora. Soup and salad combos make for nice, light meals, letting you choose from items like a paneer tikka salad or dal ka shorba (a clove-flavored lentil soup).
Try a Tandoori specialty like the half Tandoori chicken or the Tandoori mixed grill. Vegetarian entrees include a matar mushroom dish and the North Indian-style chana masala. There are also chicken, lamb and goat entrees, seafood specialties, rice specialties, traditional breads and delectable desserts (like pistachio kulf).
Mint Indian Bistro (Off The Strip – Flamingo; Durango)
Mint Indian Bistro is located on Flamingo, near the Convention Center and Strip. Mint’s menu includes a large variety of Indian regions, and its recipes are packed with color and flavor. Signature dishes like the mango chicken curry are served in more than adequate portions.
You can find a bigger Mint location on Durango that is complete with its own banquet hall. This location also serves beer and wine by the ounce and even has a tandoor clay oven situated within the main dining room on which naan and kabobs can be prepared right in front of you.
Mint differentiates itself from other Indian restaurants in the area by offering a large selection of chaat (which is a Mumbai-style street food). And the buffet? It is all labeled according to special dietary needs, including Jain (which is pronounced “Jen”)preferences, which avoids all animal products and anything that keeps a plant from continuing to live.
Mt. Everest (Off The Strip)
Located several miles from the northern end of the Strip, Mt. Everest offers simplified dining with its buffet setup and crimson booths. Newcomers to the restaurant will see a cleanly organized menu that offers some items influenced by Nepelese cuisine, such as chicken chili (which is actually boneless chicken chunks lightly fried in a pepper-infused chili sauce) and the chicken momo (which are a lot like Chinese dumplings).
The tikka masala (which comes with either chicken, lamb, shrimp or fish) and tandoori chicken are patron favorites, which get served on a piping hot plate direct from the oven. The pakora (potatoes, onions and chickpeas) crispy bites are also highly recommended by visitors.
Taj Place (Silverado Ranch)
A great Indian buffet with all gluten-free food, Taj Place delivers exemplary service. While they’re known for their lunch buffet, their a la carte dinner service is just as delicious. Breads are all freshly baked and brought right to your table. The creamy, rich sauces aren’t overly spicy, although you are welcome to try the inferno ghost chili if you’re feeling adventurous.
All items on the regular menu are made-to-order. Spicy foods can be chased down with a delicious mango lassi – a fun combination of mango fruit, milk and yogurt. Hand-painted murals adorn the walls, giving the dining room a neat vibe.
Curry Leaf (West Valley)
If you make a quick trip over to West Valley, head into Curry Leaf. This restaurant evokes contemporary dining in a way that should appease the Summerlin crowd. North Indian staples adorn the menu, but there are a few southern surprises from chef and owner Ritesh Patel. Salmon is scarcely used in Indian food, but with some tomato sauce and rice, Patel utilizes it a delectable dish. A branzino filet comes with a Kerala-style coconut sauce that uses ginger and turmeric.
Curry Leaf has a full bar of selected Indian beer. There is no buffet, but lunch specials happen every day of the week.
Rani’s Kitchen (Off The Strip)
Located inside of Rani’s World Food – a grocery store and market under two miles west of the Strip on Sahara – is this small restaurant. All food is vegetarian and is prepared from homestyle recipes.
With the daily special, you get a choice of two vegetables, rice, yellow lentils and two rotis complete with spicy pickles and onions – all for $12.99. And you can get this lunch on the fly. Get it to go or snag a seat at one of the six tables inside the middle part of Rani’s. This kitchen puts out small appetizers and five types of paratha, which is a flakey, veggie-stuffed pancake served with yogurt sauce on the side. You can also try the chana bhatura, a delicious Punjabi garbanzo curry.
Toddy Shop (Valleywide)
While the Toddy Shop doesn’t have a brick-and-mortar location anymore, it still serves its own unique take on Indian cuisine at local festivals with private catering engagements and pop-up collaborations with other local restaurants. Chef Hemant Kishore creates recipes and uses methods influenced by Kerala, which is a southwest coastal region of India. Kerala emphasizes tropical flavors and especially the use of coconut milk instead of heavy creams. They also use coconut oil instead of the more common mustard oils. That region is heavy on seafood, but Chef Kishore likes to add a lot of flavor and intensity to his vegan dishes, too.
Lazeez (West Valley)
Fast-paced but casual, Lazeez offers quite the line-up of Indian cuisine that borrows extensively from Pakistani and Mediterranean cuisine. Just looking at the menu, you will see a lot of chicken saag and goat curry and chicken saag, plus a bunch of different kabobs, shawarma wraps and gyros. These are each prepared with Halal ingredients for a clean-eating experience. EOn occasion, you will find a hamburger or panini option included on the menu. The buffet (which runs from 11:30 am–3 pm) has evening versions served on Ramadan and specific holidays. You can order right at the counter or online for pickup or delivery.
Nutmeg (Silverado Ranch)
Located in Silverado Ranch, Nutmeg puts a contemporary spin on traditional Indian food inside of its modern-style dining room. The masala dosa places onions and potatoes together in a flavorful spot of mustard seed, turmeric, cumin, ginger and garlic. There is a Goan-style curry that is prepared with cod or shrimp and is presented in a creamy and rich coconut sauce with orange a mild yellow and orange saffron rice on the side. The menu also includes pasta, burgers and tacos. All sauces – even the ranch and ketchup – is made in-house. Nutmeg even makes their own house beer, which is served in flights or as a two-for-one special offered al;l day, each day of the week. There is no shortage of fantastic Indian food in Las Vegas. And there are even more restaurants than those listed above. But these are the ones that come highly recommended by both locals and visitors alike. Take a gamble on one of them. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, but you can certainly take home some fond memories of amazing eats.
