Indian Delight

Although they try to make your experience dining there be the best, I was not at all amazed by their food. I‘ve eaten at several Indian restaurants around Iowa and this place has some of the most poorly prepared entrees of them all. Most of what I ordered appeared like it came pre-cooked and was just heated up and served to the customers. They are still relatively new so hopefully they‘ll learn to give their customers a better experience.

Indian Delights DOES NOT have a buffet. Any comments about buffets are about India Palace, the other Indian restaurant in Ames. Indian Delights has a variety of dishes, ranging from mild to hot and spicy, and Dipak will make it even spicier on your request. Everything that comes out of the kitchen is authentic and delicious. The owners give great service - they genuinely want to give everyone the best eating experience possible.

Being an Indian and connoisseur of Indian cuisine, I must say that Indian Delight is a disgrace. This is a typical Indian restaurant that caters to the taste buds of the people who can‘t handle much of spice. If you walk in for lunch buffet, most likely you would see scores of non-Indians and incredibly hungry Indian students (who lack the skill of cooking their own Indian food). On any day, I cook much better curries than the ones served in this place. Go there if you are afraid of optimal level of spiciness in Indian cuisine and go there if you are a poor Indian ISU student, who lack the ability to cook a decent meal at home and want to pig out just for the heck of it.

This is the best Indian food! It‘s a great place to go on a date for really amazing food. And they have a large wine selection too.

It was amazing! I‘m from Chicago, where there are a TON of Indian restaurants, and this was by far one of the best places I‘ve been too. The chicken tikka masala and the samosas are absolutely delicious. I highly recommend them. My son, who is a very picky eater, loved the the tikka masala.

Have dined many times. Strongly reccomend you to check this restaurant. Resonably priced; good value! Nice environment! Drinks are available too!

Me and girlfriend absolutely love this place. All of the $8 entrees are must haves. the Samosa Chaat is delicious as well. this place has such a unique flavor that I am dreading having to leave it when I move. I can‘t really recommend the Biryani entrees but just because the cashews and raisins make a strange combination with the rest of it but it was still good. In my opinion it‘s the best restaurant in Ames.

Super food everytime and great service from the ISU student staff!! Love it all, but my faves are appetizer: Onion Bhujia (onion rings meets Indian flavor), entree: Lamb Biryana( very complex flavors in the rice and the lamb is spicy and delicious) side: chana masala & spinach panere, dessert: mango paradise( will take you to paradise for sure). Love it!

Indian Delight has wonderful, authentic Indian food, friendly staff and a charming owner. Your food is cooked from scratch, so can take a bit, well worth it though! Nice decor inside, and outside tables for good weather. My favorite restaurant in Ames. They also provide take away, great for parties or home meals with an Indian touch.

I have had Indian food in Texas, massacheutts, illinois and many places in Iowa and this place is so far above all the rest it is unbelievable! I wish I could have put 7 stars on here. The service was handled with perfection. The owner is probably the nicest and most knowlegeable chef I have ever met. The atmosphere is classy, elegant, and comfortable. The prices are well beyond reasonable. This restaraunt is a world class type restaraunt you would expect to find in New York or London.

Great food and great people! The owners are so nice. They come to your table and chat with you to make sure everything is alright. I‘ve tried a lot of their chicken dishes and love them all. Butter chicken is probably my favorite. The Beef Vindaloo was delicious, too. Wanted to try Indian beer for the first time and enjoyed the Kingfisher.

I have been here for lunch four times in the last two years. The food has always been excellent and each time the chef/owner has come out and asked us if we were satisfied. The prices are reasonable and if you like food with flavor/spice, give Indian Delight a try!

The food is always fantastic. The menu has a wide variety of foods sure to please anyone.

Been coming here for over a year now. Always good service, great food, nice table wear with candles, and a nice, clean atmopshere. Wine‘s are a good value especially for Ames. 10 dollars a bottle for white zin is a steal!

This Place RULES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good food. Butter chicken is awesome! Naan is fresh and price is right we will come back.

Entrees are around 8 bucks and that is a full plate of rice with a big bowl of sauce to dump over the whole thing! Some apps are only 3 dollars and made to order. Cannot go wrong. They also have wine by the glass and a decent Indian beer! Great for a place to just hang out, have great food, and a few drinks. Right off of cy ride route bonus!!

I absolutely love this place! The chef knows exactly what he‘s doing! Everything is made to order and delicious

Best food in town. Wonderful cook, personable staff, and interesting place.

Without a doubt one of Ames‘ best kept secrets. The food is excellent, the restaurant is clean, the chef comes around and visits with customers. This is a place we will keep coming back to.

Food is home made. No buffet here which is good.

I love this place! Went last night amazing food and always leave happy!

I would eat here every day if I could. Reasonable prices and many varieties even for a vegetarian :)

Eat here! This is a bright spot in Ames. If you don‘t make it here you are really missing out. It can be a little slow, small staff, but grab another beer and enjoy your company because it is worth it!!

The Samosa Chaat on the appetizer menu is fantastic!

Came back from Ames and several hours later the samosas were still on my mind. Great service, amazing atmosphere. Very friendly and caring owners. Overall truly the best place in Ames. The food was amazing and i truly recommend Indian Delights as a great place for an iformal lunch or dinner with friends and family. Will come back soon!!!

PS: Farmers market in Des Moines tommorow(saturday) will feature Indian Delight stand with, you guessed it, samosas!

R. M.

Nice atmosphere for dinner date or to just hang with friends. The butter chicken is awesome!! I also like ginger chili chicken. Entrees are about 8 a plate. Cheap for good food!!

Service was great.

I ordered the Ginger Chili Chicken and my girlfriend ordered the Poori Chana Masala (spicy chickpeas). The orders were delicious. My one complaint is serving size, which were fairly small albeit satisfying. I guess I have an American expectation to have leftovers after a dinner.

The Naan is $3 and all you get is one flatbread in fourths. Not worth that much!!!

However, will eat there again anyday!

We are going there right now to eat. hahhaha beat that!! -Lily and Rose

Husband and I love this place. Order the onion bjua, butter chicken with rice, and the halwa and you will have a great night!!

We went to this place so many times with different order but were not happy. Compare to Chicago i would give this food 1 star. service, cleanness 5 star.Visit Cousin Of India if you go to Chicago, you will have a real test of Indian food if you love quality not price.

Indian Delight is my favorite restaurant. I love to cook Indian cuisine, but I can never duplicate the richness of the food that I get at Indian Delight.

My wife and I wanted to try this place after passing by several times. Once we finally ate there we became instant repeat customers! This seems to be more common of the patrons than not as we have seen many of the same patrons there on several occasions. We don’t eat out often, but this is a place we can’t pass up. We eat there at least every two weeks or so. The food is as authentic as you can get anywhere in the area-- I challenge anyone to find a place as authentic without traveling out of state! (The nearest I‘ve come to a place this good and authentic is in Chicago-- but the prices in Chicago were nowhere near as reasonable.) Mr. Biswas obviously takes pride in his work and his service and expertise in his field are obvious! If you haven’t been there yet, you are definitely missing out!

Fantastic meal, friendly staff, wonderful decor! And the prices are very reasonable for such awesome food! Can‘t recommend this place enough :)

this was an amazing dinner and great prices too!!

Sincerely anyone who gives this place a rating under 5 is a fat ass...The food is amazing and reasonably priced..thank the cook that you actually get some kind of variety in Ames..
p.s. if you want tons of cheap horrible tasting food i suggest Mcdonals,wendy‘s ,etc.

Great food. Expect a little wait because the food is prepared to your order. wait. Good wines.

What a fantastic experience! The owner/server at this restaurant took great care of us. Free Appetizer to start out the meal. What could be better than that! We took our servers advice and got the Butter Chicken. Delicious! Portion size is way more than we could eat, prices are very resonable and the place is spotless. Make Indian Delight your weekly outing. 2 Thumbs up!

When ever we eat there the service is the best; the food wonderful; the spices prefect. This is real food and the cook does every dish as it is ordered. Therefore, it takes time--like all good food--but it is well worth the wait. I eat all over the country and his food stands-up to any restaurant I have eaten at--Indian or otherwise. We had our party catered by the restaurant and it was wonderful, everyone was impressed. Hats off to one of the best restaurants in Ames, for that matter Iowa.

The best restaurant in Ames!!! The owners are very nice and greet me every time I visit. Portion sizes are generous and the food is AMAZING. I highly recommend the Lamb Biryani. My eight year old son also loves the food he always raves about the Butter Chicken. It‘s the best Indian food I have ever had!!

I enjoy eating Indian food regularly and have found Indian Delights to be on par or even better than most places. It‘s great to see that everything is made in house and fresh. The staff and owner are very courteous and always make sure we are satisfied with our meal. Food is delicious and the chai is amazing. I will be visiting here often!

AMAZING food, having never been to an Indian restaurant I had no idea what to expect. If you don‘t like spicy food, just ask for mild when you go, that‘s what I did and everything was perfect. great service, great food, GREAT price = perfect date night with your special someone!

Excellent food and very personalized service! We went for lunch and got our food super quickly. Highly recommended!

Girlfriend loved this place. Got us a bottle of wine, an appetizer and two entrees with tip for around 40 bucks! Food and service was good. Take your girl here you‘ll thank me later.

Finally a place in town where I can ask for spicy food and have it actually be spicy. I am surprised about the complaints about portion sizes as no one I was eating with commented about not being full at the end of the meal. Service was great as well, perhaps it is just luck of the draw as apparently some people had poor experiences.

I‘ve been to Indian restaurants in several countries, and this one is absolutely one of the better ones I‘ve experienced! Friendly service, very good food (had 2 main courses, that‘s how good), very low prices, food came quickly. Will recommend to anyone!

It takes them forever to bring your food, I had to wait close to 50 minutes for my food and the taste was not very good.

Nice restaurant good food. Hidden treasure in Ames. This is a nice place to take your girlfriend or wife for a dinner date.

Tried to eat here on Sunday. The sign said open from 5-8 on Sunday night. When I arrived at 6:10 the place was shut. I later found out, that they displayed at the art fair. Hey dude in America we put a 10cent sign at the door informing our customers, if we care for them..........

Wow never thought I‘d like Indian food. Loved the fresh naan. Guy before me hasn‘t a clue what good food is. Go and you won‘t be dissapointed!

Tasted like shit. Took us an hour just to get the food. Water was warm. Service was awful... The food was simply bad. Ended up going to Taco Bell. First time I ever did not tip. Serving portions were very small. Rice was nothing special by any means. The Nann was pita bread warmed up. I would give a 0 star if they let me.

I had a fantastic experience here over the weekend when I was passing through town. I always seek out Indian food when I travel, and this was some of the best I‘ve had in years. I started off with some veggie samosas, which were very clearly fresh and made in-house. The Malai Kofta Curry was incredible, and I also tried some of the shrimp biryani, which was quite good.

On top of it all, the staff was attentive and friendly, and the chef personally ensured that we were satisfied with our meal. This will be a regular stop when I‘m in town from now on.

First time eating Indian food ever and this was great. Staff friendly and helpful explained everything on the menu. Had the chicken curry and it was fantastic. Good place to take the wife or girlfriend.

This place sucks cock balls. The owner/cook doesn‘t know how to cook Indian food at all. All curries are simply made using bottled pre-made mixes from the store and the naan is simply purchased from the grocery store and reheated. That‘s not naan, it must be made in a tandoor to be a real naan. It tastes chewy and is a total rip off in price. What a crock. We need a good Indian restaurant, this is not it.

I shared a wonderful meal with a friend at Indian Delight. I‘m a relative newbie to Indian cuisine, but my friend suggested I try the chicken biryani and it was delicious. He had curry chicken and said it was great, too. The chai was wonderful, as well. The owner and staff were extremely courteous, and the restaurant was very clean and cheerful. Prices were about what they would be for dinner at other sit-down restaurants, and the portions were generous. I‘d recommend it, and I‘ll be going back, soon.

I‘m still learning about Indian food so I was very grateful for the waiter and the chef‘s help. The food was excellent - good portions - and the atmosphere was really nice. I was surprised at how reasonable the prices were too!

Between the two of us, we had begooni, butter chicken and poori chana masala and all were really great! Also had spinach paneer that was a little spicy for me, but it would not be for most people.

I will be going back and I hope others give this restaurant a try!

Excellent place to eat. Even though the menu is somewhat limited, the dishes are very good.

I highly recommend the Chai, it‘s one of the things I always get when I go here.

Love this place!! Order the ginger chili chicken full strength and you will know the meaning of spicy! Try their onions with tamarind sauce! Basmati rice cooked to perfection every time. Good nan but I prefer the rice with the meal. Peach tea is awesome and the surroundings is relaxing. Very clean establishment, well prepared food, generous portions, and good prices. Indian Palace has nothing when it comes to good food at a great price. We will be back!!

This is how Indian food should taste and should be served. Decent size, tasty flavorful portions, with great hospitality. This is simply the best Indian restaurant in the Des Moines area.

I had been told for several months by friends to go to Indian Delights, but I was used to Indian Palace, and rarely change restaraunts I like. I am SO glad I finally went! I stopped in to take some food to go, and the employees and owner were very friendly. I had about a 15 minute wait, and while I was waiting, not only did the owner engage me in conversation, but one of the employees made me fried eggplant because the wait was going to be a little longer than expected.
The hospitality was above and beyond, and the food was terrific! The Kosala was perfect and spicy, and the somosa‘s were not greasy. I had a terrific experience, and hope the restaraunt is here for years and years to come.

Simply the best restaurant in Ames ! Service is great, atmosphere is relaxing and the menu in not compilcated. I would eat there every meal if I could afford it.

Delicious. Friendly. Clean.
Enough said, go and enjoy.

This restaurant is incredible! Spiced beautifully. Portions are great for health and figure (I really cannot stand folks who complain about portion size!) The owner is a really cool guy who truly cares about food and always comes out to be sure you are happy. There are spicy dishes and mild dishes to fit all palates. I have been waiting for several decades for a good Indian restaurant to come to Ames and finally we have one. Please try it and tell your friends about it too. Last but not least, you can get a whole bottle of wine with dinner for 15 dollars....2 glasses at any other good restaurant would cost that much.

Compared to the other place in town this is better if you wanna taste indian cusine. Food is okay, mildly flavorful (you can get a hint or two of herbs and spices). The menu list is short and the prices are high (i say this because for the same prices you get more at places like red lobster etc on the duff) and there is no buffet to pig out. I wish i could give this a 4 but for the above reasons.

I‘ve had better Indian food elsewhere but this is good for Ames. The menu selection seems limited from what I‘m usually accustomed to (they didn‘t have Matter Paneer which seems to be a staple at other places) but the food was nonetheless excellent. Both of our dishes were...hot! We like it that way but I can imagine those that don‘t like their dishes to be so spicy may want to request that the spices be toned down.

One CON is that we both had beers with our meal and both drinks were...warm to slightly chilled. Word of advice: turn up the cooler!

Another CON is that the rice is not automatically included with your dish. We had the choice of either naan bread or rice so we picked one of each which left us satisfied. I think the portions were of good size. Both me and my BF could not finish our entire plate plus appetizers.

All in all I would recommend this place. The food was good. The owner/manager made sure to greet our table and there was good service and the place had a relaxed atmosphere.

Again went to Indian delights and again had great service and food. For those who say there isn‘t enough I say maybe your eating at the wrong place. Golden corral would better suit your needs. I get enough to satisfy my hunger for about thirty bucks for two full grown adults. The only drawback is their drinks can get really expensive especially if you ordered something with a kick. I usually stick with water because of this issue and it‘s better for me anyways. Give this place a try won‘t regret it.

Good points: Baigan bartha was tasty. Clean and pleasant atmosphere. The owner tries to be friendly.
Bad points: I spent $55 for 5 people (including 3 children) and we were still hungry. Portions are very tiny. Very expensive. Charged around $3.50 for a small bowl of rice. Didnt provide rice with entre. But I saw that another family got free rice with their order. Naan was horrible. They just heat it and serve the frozen naan from a Indian grocery, but and one Naan costs more than the entire forzen Naan packet you could buy in the grocery. Not worth it. Go to RedLobster, you can have better food and still spend less that what you spend in Indian Delight.

I had a wonderful experience here! The food was so good! The owner came out to talk to me and the waitress was very accommodating. Only good things to say about this place!

Portions were not worth the price on the menu. Service was horrible and I would not recommend this place to anyone.

Service was horrible and the food was not much better. Many people have had a good experience at this place but I was majorly disappointed. My beef was so tough that eating the few poorly-spiced pieces I was able to choke down made my jaw hurt. If you absolutely have to have Indian and you are stuck in Central Iowa -- well, just don‘t do it. Drive to Chicago.

The owner is fabulous! The food is the best Indian food for miles - even MUCH better than anything in Des Monies. Depak (sp?) is the owner who will personally come out to your table while dining to ask how the food is. He cares and listens - if you have a worthy suggestion he takes note of it and integrate it if needed. Try the chai - it is EXCELLENT. I have been to both North and South India and he can make both dishes very, very well. I wish him the best!

GO HERE FOR GREAT INDIAN FOOD! We have tried both places in Ames and Indian delights is the best. The atmosphere is a nice change from the loud resturants in Ames. The food is amazing. I had the ginger chili chicken, hubby had the beef vindalu, and we both had the onion appetizers with tamarind sauce as well as a couple of their peach teas. Total 29 bucks for the whole meal Out of this wolrd flavor! Chef tries to great every table and ran a clean kitchen. The other restaurant was very loud, the food was very bland and greasy. Please try Indian delights. You won‘t regret it.

My experience at Indian Delights was excellent. Amazing authentic food, the service was great, and the added touch of the owner coming out to check on us really sets this place apart. I‘ll definitely be back.

Delicious indian cuisine in a relaxed, yet sophisticated atmosphere. A real treasure for the Ames community!

My son, who has eaten Indian food in Kuwait and the UK among other places, says that this restaurant would hold its own against anything in London. I‘ve eaten here numerous times, and have yet had a dish that disappoints. Especially good are the alloo gobi and masoor dahl. All appetizers are top-flight, with my favorites being the vegetable samosas and begooni (eggplant). The owner often checks in personally at each table.

This is some of the best Indian food I‘ve ever tasted - much better than Indian Palace. The portion sizes are just right - but that might not cut it if you‘re the sort of person who wants to take some home with you when you go out for dinner. If you want tasty, authentic Indian food, give this a try.

The food is great and the atmosphere pleasant.

You must try the chai here. It is delightfully fragrant and a treat to drink. I have never been disappointed in the food at Indian Delight.

Finally, some great Indian food in Ames! Our food was perfectly prepared, flavorful and with just the right amount of heat. Portion sizes are generous; we ordered 2 entrees and a side and came home with enough for another meal. The service was also great and the owner even came out to ask if everything was acceptable. We plan to make this a regular dining spot and if you love Indian food you should too!

Indian Delights is perfect to take out someone to dine and have a good experience quality and service alike. The food is awesome, the place very nice and stylish with the kitchen open to the public you can see anytime who‘s taking care of your food which is always good. The owner very nice man came around to make sure everything was good. The portioning was good too, unless you want to pig out then this place is not recommended for you go to buffet instead. Overall 7.50 for an entry is very affordable for a college student like myself and the food is amazingly tasteful.

Grade A dining for sure. About time ames got an Indian restaurant it can be proud of. I will most certainly be back for more.

I love the food here!! I honestly do not believe that the food is to rediculously priced. If you got 75 dollars worth of food im not sure what you bought but it wasnt dinners (most priced at $7.50), which being a poor college student myself is still cheaper then going out anywhere in ames for the quality of food, service, and fine dining that Indian Delights offers. I would suggest dining in rather then take-out to recieve all the atmosphere that the place offers. Well Done!!

I was unimpressed with the quality of food, the service, and while the owner was attentive he was also a little too defensive when I addressed my concerns to him. The butter chicken was a mix of nice, flavorful sauce but strangely mealy chicken. The portion sizes were disappointing for the price of the meal. Also the decor is frankly uncomfortable. It felt more like a hospital than a restaurant, far too much white. I may go back for a second try, but my experience here was far weaker than at India Palace, where I have never had an unsatisfactory meal. And their service is also much stronger. Indian Delight is new and may be experiencing growing pains, but they must grow and mature much faster to survive in this business.

There is no comparison between Indian Delight and India Palace. If you want tasty food that is also healthy, Indian Delight is the place for you. If you are used to feeding at a trough (that is, pigging out on large quantities of greasy artery clogging food - butter chicken, deep fried bread, lentils floating in fat, vegetables smothered in cheese, etc.), go to India Palace. India Palace prices are comparable to those of much better Indian restaurants you find in New York, Washington DC, or the Bay area but the quality of the food is a lot worse. India Delights offers tasty, healthy, Indian food in adequate (but not pig-out) portions.

To the guy or gal who posted on Nov. 15th....

Really? You know that outside of the midwest, people judge a meal based on more than simple quantity. Some of us salivate when presented with an appropriately portioned (albeit still big!) meal that tastes FLAVORFUL!!! Not everyone needs a whole trough-full of food to feel satisfied.

Seriously...check this place out. India Palace is ok but this is really good food and well worth the money (and really it doesn‘t cost that much!!) for real meal.

This Indian Restaurant is great in terms of the quality of food and takes you closest to the authentic Indian Taste you can find in Ames. But What really is a big turn off is the portions that they give for the money you shell out. Once I ordered food worth $75 for take out and it wasn‘t even enough for four people. I felt really deceived after spending that kind of money and not even feeling satisfied. I could have had buffet at India Palace for one week spending much less. They really need to understand the fact that their customers wont return after having such experience.

Food quality is great. Easily beats Indian Palace. What drops them a level is the price/portions and to a lesser extent service.

It seems the staff doesn‘t quite have the hang of waiting/serving yet. It can take a bit longer than usual for the waitress to come by and check on the diners for water refills or ask how the food is. It‘s not quite a smooth operation yet. Hopefully they will get the hang of it.

In terms of the portions, I expect to get filled up for a $9 chicken biryani. Again, the quality of the food is excellent, the meat is great and there is nice surprises added such as cashews and raisins but the portion only filled half a to-go box and I was far from sated once finished.

I could maybe see spending $7 on that portion but not $9 and I‘m not a huge eater. The price/portion will keep me from frequenting them too often which is a shame since I live so close by and could easily become a regular.

I think this place should strive for similar price/portions offered by New China in Boone. That place has hit the mark perfectly in those terms as well as quality.

I‘m from Cedar Rapids originally and there‘s a place called Taste of India that has similar quality but larger serving sizes and I always leave there happy. Best place in Iowa for Indian food.

Great place! Doesn‘t have as much variety as Indian Palace but they make up for the lack of quantity with really great quality. I like IP but the food here is SOOOO much better. Give them a try!

They have a fairly small number of items on the menu because they rotate them, but everything I have tried has been very good. The only problem I have with the place is that it has a very limited beer selection.