Darbar
RestaurantTop Pick
Darbar
Opens Today at 4:30 pm
| Monday | Closed |
| Tuesday | Closed |
| Wednesday | 4:30 pm - 9:30 pm |
| Thursday | 4:30 pm - 9:30 pm |
| Friday | 4:30 pm - 10 pm |
| Saturday | 4:30 pm - 10 pm |
| Sunday | 4:30 pm - 9:30 pm |
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Reviews often mention
Display Allindian(111) darbar(96) chef(92) recommend(48) naan(39) dishes(36) family(34) authentic(30) flavor(30)Page 1 of 2 - 32 Reviews
Kate
Wonderful food & service. The owner & chef came out to our table & was so welcoming. He recommended dishes & they were all delicious. I highly recommend this restaurantView more
Christine
Darbar is more than just a restaurant; it's an experience. For anyone seeking an authentic, delicious, & truly memorable Indian Punjabi dining experience in Montreal, look no further.
Each dish arrived artfully presented, a testament to the kitchen's dedication to both flavor & aesthetics. & the flavors! These flavors were simply extraordinary. The spices were masterfully blended, creating complex & nuanced tastes that danced on the palate without ever being overwhelming. The Korma shrimp was unbelievable, cooked to perfection & the best I have ever eaten. The Lamb Nihari was aromatic & so tender.
It is clear that only the freshest, highest quality ingredients are used, allowing the authentic essence of Indian cuisine to truly shine.
What truly elevated our experience, however, was the delightful surprise of the chef, Simar, emerging from the kitchen to personally interact with diners. His passion for his craft was palpable as he chatted with us, inquiring about our meal & sharing insights into the inspiration behind his dishes. This personal touch, a rare & welcome gesture, made us feel truly valued & added an unforgettable layer to an already exceptional evening.
We are already planning our next visit! Bravo to the entire team at Darbar for creating such a remarkable establishment!View more
Michael
Great restaurant! Delicious & clean tasting food, all dishes were perfectly seasoned & spiced. Portions were on the smaller side from my experience at Indian restaurants, we came out full, but not stuffed.
Special mention goes out to the bangin' bhartha & the chana daal dishes! Loved the addition of kaffir lime leaves in the daal!View more
Francesco
Darbar is a wonderful family-run restaurant that truly cares for its customers. You feel it in the warm hospitality & the consistently excellent food.
The entire team-both in the kitchen & at the front-was kind, attentive, & really knew what to recommend to enhance our experience.
We started with the murg malai, served in a sizzling pot-such a unique & fun presentation! The seekh kebab was beautifully plated, & both dishes were absolutely delicious. The yogurt sauce with the kebabs was light & refreshing, while the spices in the murg malai built up to a deep, flavourful finish.
For our mains, we had the chicken jalfrezie & the nihari lamb. Paired with their crispy, doughy butter naan, the lamb was one of the best bites I've ever had. I literally had to close my eyes to take it in.
We ended with two orders of gulab jamun because my wife loved the first so much-she said it tasted just like her grandmother's, & we couldn't leave without having another.View more
Fran
Stellar Indian food. Original dishes with lots of classic flavors.
Great service as well.
We'll be back!View more
Peter
FANTASTIC!
We have rarely, if ever, had a more pleasurable & enjoyable culinary experience.
Owner / Chef Simar Anand greeted us at our table & spent meaningful time discussing our food likes & tastes. He walked us through his menu & his recommendations. As he talked, you could feel his deep passion for food & his family's restaurant. We put ourselves entirely in his hands, & he created a spectacular meal for us.
My wife has celiac disease & can not eat gluten. When I made the reservation online using Google Maps, I mentioned her dietary restriction in the notes field of the reservation form. Chef Simar knew before he talked with us that our meal needed to be gluten-free & indicated he had made GF naan for my wife. He also said all the dishes are made from scratch, & that he would ensure all food would be prepared gluten-free. For those of us who have celiac or are celiac adjacent, you know this type of care is almost non-existent.
The setting is cozy, the service is beyond excellent, the food fabulous, juicy & perfectly spiced & the cost is SO REASONABLE.
DO NOT HESITATE - GO & ENJOY the entire experience.View more
Brian
From the food to the staff, RestoDarbar offers a truly unique dining experience. The authentic dishes are carefully crafted to excite the palate, with each bite showcasing a blend of flavors & textures. The service was attentive & knowledgeable, enhancing the overall ambiance. As a standout in Montreal, it's a must-visit for foodies & anyone who appreciates exceptional cuisine.View more
Nitin
The Biriyani is really bad, it's just fried rice without any flavour, other North Indian dishes are decent & portion sizes are quite small for the price. Maybe suitable for western palate definitely not the good Indian food I have tasted in Montréal . I am maybe wrong check for yourself & just don't order biryaniView more
Leo
Super endroit, le staff fait beaucoup d'efforts pour proposer un service en Francais
Great place !
The service is always great, the chef will come out of the kitchen & greet guests when it's not too crowded & is willing to accommodate dishes !View more
Gregory
We had the pleasure once again of an evening at DarBar. This time we asked Chef Simar to choose our food for us. He treated us to some new dishes he is experimenting with. We are so glad to have made that decision. It's difficult to imagine the food could get even better, but this moved the meal into the handful of my "Once in a Lifetime" experiences. All I can say is PLEASE try out this fabulous place, especially if you enjoy Indian food. & do take the plunge & let the chef show you what magic he can produce. Original review: This is an unassuming little gem tucked away in an interesting but somewhat run-down stretch of "The Main". The food is wonderful! The spices are complex & the heat in the dishes is deep & embracing. Just what one would expect from the very best Indian cuisine. Service is very attentive & the owner is always willing to discuss his vision for the food & the restaurant. In addition to the overall quality of the food, there is great attention to detail. For example, our bowl of rice was not merely seasoned & fragrant, it contained pomegranate seeds that had been marinated in rosewater, so there was an interesting note of sweetness & crunch from the flesh & kernels of the seeds. Nothing on the menu could be considered plain. Everything is an adventure in flavours & textures. Montreal is home to countless great places to eat, so it's quite an achievement for an eatery to stand out, but DarBar certainly does in my opinion.View more
Kristin
Extremely warm staff running this charming restaurant. Chef came out to introduce himself & to wish us farewell. Many options including vegan/vegetarian. We tried a variety of dishes & all were delicious .View more
Manisha
Food was amazing with fresh locally sourced ingredients. Traditional hearty dishes with a modern twist & a wonderful backstory to the restaurant. Owner/chef helped us choose our dishes & told us a bit an about the restaurant. He's a lawyer by day & chef by night & you can really taste the passion on his dishes.View more
Jordon
This is the best 5-star Indian restaurant I've been to. You can tell it takes a lot of prep work to make these dishes. So much flavour!! My girlfriend is pregnant too, & the owner even came over to make sure she was eating certain foods that was allowed for pregnant women.View more
Kiki
Had an absolutely wonderful evening there recently. Lovely kind staff that are able very knowledgeable about the menu & can provide tailored recommendations. The food was absolutely divine - we had the murgh malai, shrimp rogan josh & malai kofta. Not a single miss. The balance of spice, heat & the exquisite presentation of the dishes served - we were thoroughly impressed. This place definitely deserves more praise!View more
Harry
It's was not bad but certainly not good! There are other Indian restaurants with a higher quality of dishes, we were quite disappointed when we went there! On top of this, it's quite expensive so I would not recommend going thereView more
Shriya
Hi - I came from Toronto to Montreal with my parents who had come from India. Wanted to treat them to the best Indian place in Montreal & hence chose Darbar. I had done some reading on Darbar in my quest to find a nice place for Indian dining & was pretty impressed by what I read on the exec chef / owner's hospitality & his background story about parents. The food was good; loved the shahi paneer & butter naan(softest i have had ever); & of course the rasmalai. The garlic naan was a miss. The food is cooked fresh after ordering & takes time which is told at the time of ordering itself. We had also ordered aloo go hi , dal fry & sweet lassi which were good. Because I had told everyone in my family about the stories & posts I have read about the owner & seeing that they went & interacted with every table except ours was pretty awkward & embarrassing. My husband was just asked from afar how the food was but for each table while we were seated ; the owner went & chatted up, explained the dishes & made the guests feel comfortable. Even though the food was good; this experience left a sour taste.View more
Annalyn
I had the pleasure of dining at Darbar this past weekend with a group of 9 to celebrate my sister. The experience there was absolutely amazing & I cannot say enough about how enjoyable our time was! The service was fantastic & everyone truly made us feel welcome & well cared for. The family aspect of the establishment was clear & helped the whole experience feel even more delightful. The head chef, who owns the establishment, was involved every step of the way & made several recommendations, while coming out to explain the dishes when they were served. Every single thing we ordered was fantastic. The experience felt so personalized & intimate & we will be talking about this meal for some time to come. Thank you so much to the team & family that makes up Darbar for such a truly wonderful experience!View more
Geoff
I enjoyed my food & drink at Darbar. I really enjoyed the fact that the head chef is out & about. The head chef was actually the person who took our orders & gave his personal recommendations. I didn't like that when the chef was taking our order, he was very excited to tell us the types of naan (& make recommendations) but he doesn't mention that the naan costs $6(or $8) extra. So when I got hit with an $8 naan charge, I felt blindsided & a bit taken advantage of. I would've gotten the rice with my butter chicken instead. I also didn't love the time it took to be served, but I think that's more a personal thing. I'm sure some people love the time between dishes to give time to schmooze, but I was antsy by the time the main course came. It took over an hour after the appetizers to get the mains. Overall, I don't have any complaints about the food itself, I just feel like it was expensive for what it was. I think it I had known about the naan I would've done things differently & been a happier customer. Or at least I would've anticipated the charge. I complained & they took off $2, but I should've been more assertive about it. I didn't leave feeling good about it. I guess my feedback if the staff read this: when presenting the types of naan, mention the added costs. Specially if you get the impression someone is new.View more
Pratima
What a treat! The food was mouth watering incredible! The chef & owner was so hospitable & welcoming. He not only was in the back, but was also managing the front & serving. Treated us to a new dish he's curating on the house. Presentation, taste & texture of all of the dishes were on point. A hidden gem in Montreal. Definitely coming back. We ordered: tikki chaat (not currently on the menu), chicken saag gosht, lamb nihari, the most incredible malai kofta (nothing like I've ever tasted before), & bhindi. For dessert we had mango cotton candy kulfi with bits of spicy red chili chocolate ganache, & bourbon flamed gulab jamun.View more
Colleen
The madras curry was phenomenal, unlike any curry I've had. The cocktails were also exceptional & very well presented. The service was also very friendly & warm, & the chef told us about the ingredients in our dishes. Would recommend!View more
via LibroSuperb fresh food wonderfully prepared. Great friendly service & helpful education about the dishes. Very reasonable prices for the quality & quantity! Small space was comfortable but inevitably conversations carry in a full room. The music was very pleasant & helped with this. Outstanding overall - we will return!
Eric
Just great high quality food expertly prepared. The head chef was also the server & explained everything well. From classic dishes to his own take with whatever fresh produce is delivered that day, the freshness comes through. Not a pretentious place, just comfortable & surprisingly good value. Very small room so voices carry.View more
Shakira
AMAZING!! Absolutely fantastic service, delicious food & a great ambiance. Nice & small, just perfect! Can't wait to come back to try more dishes!View more
7iesz
I recently dined at this Indian food restaurant, & it was an absolutely delightful experience from start to finish! The ambiance was inviting, the staff was attentive & friendly, &, most importantly, the food was out of this world.
From the moment I took my first bite, I knew I was in for a treat. The flavors in every dish were rich, authentic, & bursting with spices that transported my taste buds straight to India. The menu had a fantastic variety of options to choose from, & each one I tried was a culinary masterpiece.
The butter chicken was creamy & flavorful, the biryani was fragrant & perfectly cooked, & the naan bread was soft & pillowy. I can’t forget to mention the mouthwatering delectable mango lassi, which were the perfect way to start & finish my meal.
The presentation of the dishes was also impressive, showing the care & attention to detail that the chefs put into their craft. The portion sizes were generous, ensuring that I left with a satisfied belly.
I can’t recommend this restaurant enough to anyone looking for an authentic Indian dining experience. Whether you’re a longtime fan of Indian cuisine or trying it for the first time, this place will exceed your expectations. I’ll definitely be returning soon for another unforgettable meal!
TNT CCLView more
via LibroThis is the best Indian food I have ever had It is delicious & is very much cuisine (not food) - you can taste the individual spices. Our waiter was fantastic - he spent time with us, talked to us about the dishes, gave suggestions of what to do in Montreal. This is our second time at Darbar, & we will be sure to visit every time we are in Montreal.
Pedro
What an amazing experience, first of food was so delicious, we tried different dishes & all of them had such an amazing flavour, made freshly & with care. The service matched the food. Few times I have received such a friendly, anthemic & honest service where the server's priority clearly is to help & accommodate. Will definitely go back again.View more
via LibroDarbar is a beautiful hidden gem. The ambiance, music & decor, right down to the dishes & cutlery are so uniquely presented. The owner & entire staff are so friendly & kind. The food is authentic Indian & simply delicious. I look forward to our next dinner here.
via LibroFamily owned restaurant with traditional dishes! ambiance is great (floor tables & up ones) first look at the restaurant you couldn't tell it is so great... hidden gem. The food was amazing
via Librogood food & service but they've changed the menu & got rid of most of the old favourites. I will probably try other nearby indian restaurants that have the tradition dishes
via LibroThis is the type of restaurant we love dining at. Family run with absolutely amazing food (which mom is making), amazing wait staff who were able to explain all dishes ordered as well as make recommendations on the order so as not to duplicate too many flavours. It is close quarter without the cramped in feeling. Everyone in the restaurant was clearly enjoying themselves & their meals. From the appetizer to the dessert & tea everything was exceptional.