Solid downtown choice that's not a burger.
DO:
-My vindaloo was tasty
DON'T:
-Chef's special nan was whatevs. Some some dough (pun intended) and just get regular nan.
PARKING:
-Street parking
-Paid garages/lots
-Center downtown
Tried the chicken vindaloo, an eggplant-based curry (forget name), and the chef's special nan. Everything was satisfying without any big complaints. I think it's a great option when you're in downtown because usually it's either a burger, a burger, or a burger. I'm not hatin' I love burgers, but sometimes I want Indian. Check it out.
Lunch Buffet. With Special Tea ( Chai Tea- cardamom spiced little sweetener and perhaps some cinnamon and either half and half or a heavier dairy product than simply milk.) The lunch buffet had rice and their dishes had a strong flavor of the vegetable ingredient- such as cauliflower, or spinach, or peas. They had chicken curry and masala as well. It's in downtown. When you sit down, you might need to ask them for a menu.
Review Source:There are no two ways about it: Â Akash just isn't quite as good as it used to be. Â It's been trending in that direction for a couple of years now, and I don't see any evidence of a turn-around. Â
Compared to a few years back, the food on the buffet just doesn't seem as fresh. Â It's gotten quite salty, and the flavors have gotten a bit muddier. Â Even the appearance of the food has gotten kind of monochromatic: Â Almost all of the dishes on the buffet are the same shade of dull brown. Â The food here also seems to get heavier and heavier.
This is not to say that Akash is bad. Â Akash still provides a good bargain for a lunchtime Indian binge, and it retains the advantage of being the only downtown Indian restaurant (that I know of) and a nice alternative from the many interchangeable sandwich shops. Â I also consider it a plus that Akash seems to offer a few more veggie dishes than some of the other Indian buffets around town.
Lunch buffet price is now $10, which is on the higher end for Cincinnati, but it's almost certainly attributable to higher downtown rents.
I personally stumbled across this place just walking around downtown looking for something for lunch. I went it and the place smelled good so I figured I would give it a try. For 10 bucks for a buffet was not bad for the quality of the food. Not very spicy but still had a decent flavor. I have gone back one more time since the first time. It is a family run restaurant. They all seemed very pleasant and keep my water glass filled both times.
Review Source:Wow. Â Really really good. Â Came here for dinner a bit back, got my standard Indian Dish - Lamb Rogan Gosh. Â Came out, and wow it was nice and saucy, a bit creamy, very tender meat. Â The rice with the sauce - awesome. Â The garlic naan - pretty damn good.
The place itself is kinda weird - for dinner, they left the front area empty and had everyone sit on one side of the room so it doesn't feel like anyone else is really there. Â Probably for lunch it gets full, but for dinner it definitely has a weird environment - going there on an early relationship date with possible discussion gaps might not be a good idea. Â
I walked in hungry, and walked out full -and I'm a big guy. Â Great food, good price, giant place, just be aware that it is often empty at night. Â Basic bar inside.
Akash is, I believe, owned by the same family as Ambar and so the food
and menu are pretty much the same. Â I love going here for the lunch
buffet because then I don't have to choose between palaak paneer, saag
mushroom, chicken tikka masala. Â I can have a little of everything!
Although my favorites aren't always all on the buffet, there are always
enough delicious choices to make me happy. Â And full. Â Very full. Â And
happy.
A French colleague of mine recommended Akash as the best Indian in downtown Cincinnati with a great and cheap lunch buffet. And it was exactly that.
I like places that don't try to be more than they are. Akash is a place for lunch buffet, where you could do work lunches or just meet up with friends. You have a lot of space to sit and you can really take your time.
I loved the buffet; I had rice with the chicken curry and the meatballs in a sweet sauce. I also tried the bread and then rice pudding. It all tasted really good and the best thing was that it was only 10$pp for the whole meal. I was very stuffed, had had a relaxing lunch and was a very happy customer!
I'm going for the 5 stars because I can't think of anything they could have done better!
Indian food located Downtown and open until 9:30pm; it's as if Akash descended from the sky (which is actually the translation of Akash in Sanskrit!)
After locating the restaurant on Yelp, we discovered that it's right across the street from Cadillac Ranch. I've been past here hundreds of times and never knew about this golden Indian cuisine.
The menu was filled with options for mains as well as a dozen naans. I decided to try something new: Bharta, an eggplant curry with a side of garlic naan. My friend and I were getting take away and the food was prepared right quick. It only took 15 minutes, and we had a comfortable seat at the counter while waiting.
Once home, we unpacked our sack of food. My curry came in a plastic 16 ounce container, and it was so full the lid was bulging up! A heaping pile of rice was boxed up as well; more than enough for us to share. Everything was piping hot. I went easy on the spice level and enjoyed tasting the vegetable flavors in the curry, as well as the sweet eggplant. My friend's Masala was loaded with spice and he loved it. We both contently settled into Indian food comas after our delicious meals.
Of course, with those gigantic portions there were leftovers. These reheated perfectly for lunch later in the week.
I'll definitely be back to Akash, particularly because it's so close. I wish the parking situation was better though. There's no street parking in front of the restaurant (it's all valet due to Cadillac Ranch, Bartini, etc.). Perhaps I need to stake out the side streets...
Price per person: $15.00
What! WHAT! Delicious Indian food in walking distance from my house? How did I not know about this.
I always thought I had to go to Clifton for my nearest great Indian food. How wrong I was! Right across the street from Fountain Square lies a an unassuming restaurant. Â You'd walk right by it if you didn't know it was there (as I have many, many, many times.)
Inside though, it's a giant restaurant! The place goes back forever, with a really nice bar to your right. We actually ordered to go and sat down at that bar waiting. The staff was very nice, chatted about what we'd like and made some suggestions. The food took about 15 minutes to come out and it was so hot it was burning my hands through the bag. Loved it!
I got my staple of Chicken Tika Masala and it was delicious. Creamy, rich and just the right level of spice (I think I got a 6 and it was perfect.) My friend got another dish and we took it to go. Because they assumed we were together, they filled up a plastic white container full of rice (and when I say full, I mean it was hard to close it was so full of rice.) This could have been an issue if we were going to two different places, but it was fine for that night.
The food was delicious and hot and awesome. And it made some damn good leftovers the next day as well.
My only real issue was with the naan which was smaller than some of the naan you get at other Indian spots around the city (and I'm a man who loves my naan). Beyond that though, this is a giant win of a find and a game changer all around.
So many Indian restaurant choices in this city, and Akash is a definite must for a delicious sit-down, menu order lunch or dinner. I got the Chicken Tikka Masala, which was creamy and delicious and a little spicy - exactly how I like it. The naan was warm, buttery, and delicious. The atmosphere is upscale, but still casual in atmosphere. You should definitely go.
Review Source:This is the only time I have had Indian food so I can't fairly review the food. I can say that the food I had was pretty good. I'm sure that doesn't mean anything to you avid Indian foodies. We went during lunch and they had a buffet, which was PERFECT for me since I couldn't possibly order anything from the menu being as I had never had the cuisine before.
We were the only two people in the place, other than the 3 people that I saw working. Two of them were older Indian people, which gave me the feeling that it was a family owned restaurant, I could be wrong. The tables had linen clothes and the napkins were linen as well, which I thought was a nice touch. The woman, dressed in a sari, checked in on us occasionally and refilled our water glasses. She was very nice. She stood back, paid close attention, and only came over when we clearly needed something, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Who wants to be interrupted in the middle of a bite or sentence? I don't!
I can't speak for those of you that have had Indian food on more than one occasion, however I definitely recommend Akash for anyone that wants to try Indian food, but doesn't know where to go or what to order. Try the buffet!
So glad there's a good indian restaurant in Cincinnati. I couldn't find one in Cleveland, so it makes very happy to find one here. The place looks a bit dark and it was really quiet the past 2 times that I went for my take out.
I can't comment on their service much since it's take out, but I can vouche for their food - good. The first time I got aloo gobhi, and I loved it. But they added diced ginger pieces in there. It's really hard to pick out, and I hate ginger. Next time I'd tell them to leave the ginger out for sure. But even if they cant, I'd order it again because I really liked it. The second time, which is today, I ordered Curry Lamb with Cauliflower. Okay, I LOVE cauliflower. But regardless, I think the taste is great. The lamb was decently tender (maybe not the best ever), and the cauliflower with the sauce just made this dish amazing. The portions are decent, at least it was for the takeout that I got.
I actually look forward to eating here whenever I am on a business trip. And I'll be sure to visit again the next time I am back in Cincinnati.
Akash falls into the category of "average Indian lunchtime buffet". Unfortunately, for Cincinnati city workers and visitors it also represents the "only game in town" for Indian food.
Ten bucks will buy you a comfortable table, reasonable ambiance and friendly service but they come with a selection of Indian dishes that vary from "that's quite tasty" to "woooaaaaaaah, did they drop their kitchen's entire stock of salt in this saag?"
If you have the capability to venture further out from the immediate downtown area, take a trip to Dusmesh in Clifton which offers a far superior buffet with more choice and at a cheaper price.
I'm loathe to say that Akash is bad - because it really isn't - but quality across the items appears to vary wildly from dish to dish and day to day. Of course, if you're hungry enough you won't care.
How have I lived downtown for months and not heard more about Akash? Good quality Indian food. The menu is very similar to Ambar and tastes about as good. The spice level is great- I ordered a 6 and definitely got it. The only complaint I had was the naan seemed rather flat and one order only gets you two smallish pieces- it wasn't bad at all, just not as good as I've had it. There is a big dining room, and at least when we went for dinner, it was fairly empty.
Review Source:I had one night in downtown Cincinnati and a hankering for curry and naan, so I checked Yelp and picked Akash. Â Nice interior, friendly service. Â I had veggie samosas, naan, and chicken vindaloo. Â All were very good. Â The naan was just right-soft and slightly chewy. Â The samosas were crispy outside, mist, soft and well seasoned inside. Â The vindaloo was pretty spicy, as I requested. Â It was a bit different from vinadaloos i am used to, more tomatoey (to coin a word) and with some citrus in it, Â but good.
Review Source:This is the best place for takeout downtown. It's always ready about 10 minutes after you order. The food is what you expect if you're a Cincinnatian who eats Indian food; the menu is identical to Ambar, Guru,and that one other Indian place in Tri County that I can never remember. I don't know that I'd go as far to say that it's the best Indian food in the city, but it's consistently good.
The staff are always super nice, and the dining room is HUGE and almost never full, even on the weekends. Thus it's good for groups, especially last minute ones when you have no reservation. I've walked in at 8pm on a Friday night with a party of 10 and been seated immediately.
I should note I never come here for lunch, so I can't really speak to the quality of the buffet. But, I've never been disappointed with the menu selections. Heat scale here is 1-6, but even a 5 is easily palatable to an American who likes spicy food. Â (I've never been brave enough to order a 6.)
For us local downtowners, going all the way to Ludlow and Hyde Park can be such a task. So, the quick 'walking solution' for Indian food on 6th Street suits me just fine. I can't believe this place isn't filled with people on the weekends.
They are the same owners of another spot in Ludlow (name escapes me), but the food and service is consistent throughout -- all around delicious. My favorite is always to get the platter for a appetizer, which is a collection of fried potato, bread with a side of the (3) delicious sauces.
Their Saag is the best I've had anywhere and, you can't forget the Garlic Naan bread. Wagh, my mouth is watering just thinking about it!
I love Indian buffet for lunch! Not everything on the buffet is always my favorite, but there's guaranteed to be at least a couple of vegetarian options (usually a Dal), Saag Paneer (Spinach w/ cheese hunks), and a Chicken Curry and/or Chicken Tikka Masala. Add to that, rice and naan along with a couple fried appetizer nibbles and your usual assortment of sauces, and you've got a solid deal for around $10.
You can always order off the menu for lunch instead, but I like taking advantage of the buffet to try new things (otherwise, at any of this family of restaurants, I'll go for the Chicken Tikka Saag every time).
There's always a table available and no wait for food with the buffet, so it's definitely a weekday option (fair warning though, more than 1 trip through the line could lead to napping during afternoon meetings).
The only thing I've ever had from the buffet that I thought was really bad was fish curry. Everything's well labeled, so sample everything else and maybe you'll find your new favorite!
Ate here last night based on a Yelp review. I was very impressed. I ordered the vegetable samosas, which were fantastic, as well as the malai kofta, which was also excellent. Their "spice scale" goes from 1 to 6, I was told -- I ordered a 4, and it was exactly as I wanted it: very spicy but not detrimentally so.
Prices are good based on serving size and the service was prompt (although I was one of 5 people in the restaurant, so they weren't exactly being put to the test.)
This place was right on the border of 'Meh' and 'A-Ok'. There was nothing particularly bad about it, plus it's Friday, so I'll round up.
My problem with Akash is that their lunch buffet has a relatively poor selection. While they did have goat curry today, everything else was pretty typical. Chicken curry, saag paneer, etc. This is a far cry from some of the places up in Clifton and actually is a bit more expensive. I suppose that is what competition will do for a restaurant: Akash has pretty much a monopoly on downtown Indian lunch, while the Clifton restaurants have to battle tooth and nail for customers.
If you're downtown and have a hankering for Indian cuisine, you could do worse than Akash. I just wouldn't go out of my way for it, though, especially considering the abundance of superior options elsewhere.
We were traveling through from southern Ohio to Louisville and needed somewhere to eat for dinner. Â Used Yelp on my phone to find something nearby and decided on this restaurant.
It was on the day of the memorial day festival and so the restaurant was empty except for us, everyone was having carnival-type of food. Â Another group came in as we were finishing and that was everyone we saw.
Ordered extremely basic food being new to Indian food. Â I thought it was good.
The waitress didn't have to work hard since we were the only people there.
Phenomenal Indian food, great prices, convenient location.
The only sad part was that they close for lunch at 2pm. Â So we put our order in at 1:55pm and then had to take the food away.
Papadum was solid, but not exciting. Â Vegetable samosas were delicious, fried, and massive. Â The chicken saag was creamy and warm, perfect on a cold winter workday. Â My friend loved her chicken tikka. Â And the quantities were plentiful - for $20 we got enough food to feed 4-5 people. Â I enjoyed it so much I carried my leftovers all the way home on a plane to eat for dinner.
If only there was a place like this in Cleveland. Â I would be in heaven.
Akash is probably the most visited lunch spot of my ex-coworkers. Every other day of the week there were several people trying to convince everyone else that mid-afternoon, Indian food-coma sounds like a GREAT idea. The half mile walk back to our office was always a bit slow. During our last visit I picked lamb out of the lamb paneer and dreamed of saag.
Inside this downtown restaurant is sort of dim, nothing too special as far as décor. The posters on the wall are apparently some very famous Indian singer or model. The buffet was always very good and if you arrive before noon you might not have to wait in the line for longer than a minute or two. Fair warning for those arriving later, a ten minute wait for a buffet kind of defeats the purpose. Another good thing about early arrival is the staff is able to easily seat larger groups.
Urban legend says each floor of the building creates a level of spiciness. For tender tongues, be wary of anything above a level three.
Great place for lunch buffet if you're near the P&G GO for around $10/person. A good variety of dishes, almost always including a deliciously creamy saag paneer. Never have tried this for dinner, but the Entertainment Book offers a buy 1 get 1, entree for dinners. Akash also offers delivery to P&G if you order for at least 10 people.
Review Source:This Indian restaurant in downtown Cincinnati serves good homestyle Indian food. I am quite an Indian food connosieur coming from years of eating it in New York City/Queens and Toronto. We ordered Chicken Tikka Masala, Saag Paneer (spinach and cubed cheese) and Dal Makhani (lentils). The sauce for the Tikka Masala was excellent although the actual Chicken Tikka while it was good was definitely not the best cuts of Chicken Tikka I have had.
The lentils for the Dal could have been a bit firmer. The best of the 3 overall was the Saag.
The decor was in the middle for an Indian restaurant, not fancy but not dirty.
Our waitress was very good
While not on the list of my all time favorite Indian restaurants I will definitely eat there again.
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