Everytime we visit Melbourne, we try to have a meal here. The food is absolutely delicious and the friendly staff make it an extra divine dining experience. The serves are more than generous and very well priced. Parking is also sorted with a generous number of spaces. Highly recommend anyone to give this a try.
Best Indian I have eaten in years!! Excellent highly recommend!
Been going here for about 13 years and always amazing. Great atmosphere, attentive service and delicious food.
Great food, excellent host and the only change they've made in the 17 year I've been going to Cafe Saffron is that they get better and better
Loved the restaurant. Awesome food.. nice ambience...very good service ..very friendly owner who cares for customers and food !! Highly recommended.
Its really become one of my favourite restaurant in Melbourne.Both food and staff awesome
First time to this restaurant. What a pleasant surprise. Beautiful food. Great genuine service and good value. Think we have just found our favourite Indian restaurant.
The best Indian restaurant in the southern hemisphere definitely worth checking out when in Melbourne. Awesome kormas, naan and can't go wrong with their butter chicken. Definition of quality food
We have celebrated daughter's first birthday food and service was amazing and very friendly staff . Thanks so much
Very fine Indian food ordered on Uber Eats during the corona lockdown. Good range of dishes. All were very nicely executed. Couldn’t fault it. Would definitely order again.
Excellent takeaway Indian. Vegetarian and beef curries. A little bit pricy but worth it. Garlic naan a little small but delicious. New local takeaway!
Food is always so delicious from here. I have found that they seem to give more bang for your buck when you order take away. Take away is our go to, and is always fresh and hot upon pick up.
Great food & service at this cosy restaurant. One of the best Indian meals we’ve had. Will definitely come back.
The staff at cafe saffron are wonderful, always smiling! Food is delicious and always cooked to perfection! Vijay and his family are the reason we keep coming to this wonderful family own restaurant.
Very decent Indian feed. Have never walked away hungry and food is traditionally tasty. I generally go with the standard butter chicken but have had the goat and lamb vindalu. It’s my new fave Indian joint
Great restaurant, one of the best in Melbourne. Have been coming here for years, prices are very reasonable. Vijay the boss is always so friendly, always comes out for a chat if he has time. A good family restaurant.
What could I say about this ‘institution’ called Cafe Saffron. Consistently, the food we were served are, by far, the best Indian cuisine in Melbourne! I’ve been coming here with friends for over 5 years now and the food has consistently been second to none all times. The subtle curry sauces they create complemented the fresh produce served to us. Be it from vegetables (eggplant), prawns, chicken and their signature dish, the slow-cooked lamb (highly recommended), I am sure these won’t disappoint. Vijay and staff, I thank you for your great hospitality. Your restaurant deserves a place in all Melbourne culinary/hospitality literature because, I believe, your brand of Indian cooking is authentic! More power to you and the business in 2019 and beyond!
My favourite Indian in Melbourne. Friends love the leg of lamb and butter chicken. Never a scrap left over. The malai kofta is a winner too.
Best Curry in Melbourne!
CTM, BC, and the lamb leg, are just amazing! We are regulars here, the serves are generous, and we always leave there feeling like we are going to explode!
And they also offer local delivery which is very handy ... we highly rate this restaurant
The best Indian restaurant ever! The staff is extremely friendly and are guaranteed to look after you. The food is authentic and extremely tasty and the serving sizes are very generous. My family and I have been going to this restaurant for years now and have never looked elsewhere.
This place is Melbourne’s best Indian restaurant and I can say this because I’m Indian. Highly recommend dining here for the delicious food - try the chicken in a coconut, the goat curry or the eggplant curry. Don’t be vanilla and order the butter chicken - so many delicious dishes. And you must dip the naan into the curry - my favourite is the Kabuli. Tonight’s chef was Mrs V - truly sublime.
Cafe Saffron is probably the best Indian cuisine I have had the pleasure of tasting in Melbourne!! It is a charming, cozy setting and the owner is very kind and generous. We had our wedding reception here and our guests could not stop offering praise to the food!! We will be back time and time again! :)
Delicious food and great staff..!! Consistent taste since last 10 years..!! We had our wedding reception party at Cafe Saffron and the guests couldn’t stop talking about food for months..!! Highly recommended..!! The best Indian restaurant in town..!!
Nice and friendly reception, chicken is tasty. We ordered a whole fish as well, not as good as I had expected and needed to dip into sauce for flavour otherwise not salty enough.
I’ve eaten here countless times over the years and it never disappoints! Consistently fresh, well balanced dishes and lots of great vegetarian options on the menu. Service is on point every time and very nice people.
We challenged ourselves with the banquet, which came with a very large amount of food for quite a reasonable price.
Firstly, both the man and woman who served us were delightful. So friendly, I can say with no hesitation that this place provides some of the best customer service I have experienced.
The food was mostly very good but ranged from average to exceptional. The starters and dessert are all lovely, especially the samosas. The curries and naan are all very good, the butter chicken is a must-try. It is fabulous. I have also not had better mango lassi. However the lamb was dry, a bit tough and flavour came only from the (very nice) sauce on top. The rice is completely passable, not fragrant and very average tasting.
The ambience is just right. It is inviting and tastefully decorated.
Result? The banquet won. Our party of three are smaller eaters than we wish. We doggy bagged the rest. Would certainly come again.
I’m always on the look out for good Indian food in Melbourne and boy do I struggle after trying it in UK. Again, not quite UK, nonetheless we enjoyed our meals.
The friendly waitress served up some papadums while we decided our dishes.
We tried the chicken tikka masala and beef korma, with saffron rice. Accompanied by some delicious Keema naan and Kashmiri naan. I loved the flavours of the chicken while my partner preferred the beef.
Service was excellent, meals were full of flavour and fresh tasting. I definitely see us coming back here!
One of the best if the not the best indian I have ever had. All the food was so yummy. Had the Bombay potatoes, goat rogan josh and chicken Malabar. The nann bread is to die for. So fluffy. Staff are friendly too. Beer needs to be colder.
Always great food and even better service. I wish this guy next to me woulld shut up so i can enjoy my aloo tikki even more. The eggplant and potato curry is awesome.
Incredible food with something for everyone. They were able to customise a vegan meal for my partner and I which was delicious. Would recommend the garlic naan and the samosas!
I came here for my sisters birthday and ordered the goat rogan josh. It was amazing! Not a whole lot of meat because of the bone but the meat was so tender and the sauce was so flavoursome. Quick and efficient service also, definitely will be coming back here 😋
Great Indian food. Very generous and the chef came out to make sure we were happy with the food. Very flavoursome and great place. Recommend this place highly.
Brilliant food and service. I don't eat dairy and the staff could not have been more accommodating, will definitely be back! Thank you lllllllllll
Very delicious and traditional tasting Indian. Reasonably priced. Very quick take away and a variety of well made meals. Very friendly staff, highly recommend!
Absolutely amazing! My family has been coming here for years now and have never had a bad meal. Highly recommend the spinach lamb chops and tandoori chicken. Very good variety of dishes and the owner always has great recommendations. The staff are also extremely friendly and accommodating!
My wife and I love to go to this place. Our favorite Indian restaurant.
Good customer service. Fresh food. Both quantity and quality are great.
The owner has been in this business for a long time and you can see why how well this place is run .
Highly recommended .
Absolutley love this place and always have.
Been here many times, for lunch, dinner and even birthday parties. Fabulous service, authentic food and a good variety on the menu.
The butter chicken will always be my favourite as I haven'y had any better anywhere in Australia.
I regularly come here and get the lunch deal - a hugely generous serving of curry with rice. The Aalu Methi Chaman is always fabulous and the price is incredibly reasonable given the large portion.
Great food, friendly service, and reasonable prices. We went there on a midweek night and the place filled up very quickly! I'd definitely go back!
Easily the best Indian food in Northern suburbs. The tandoori platter was delicious, fresh and quite filling.
Chabahar murg was a definite win. Awesome taste, fabulous presentation and good quantity.
We came out with full tummies and happy hearts.
Quick meal on my own and excellent can't fault it very obviously a family run business with passion for the customer and quality food. Had the Chicken Bhuna hottest strength.
We have been visiting this Indian restaurant for several years. We visited two weeks back in a large group. As always the food was superb, service was excellent and the owner always ensured that the clients were satisfied.
There has been consistency in food quality and new recipes are introduced from time to time.
Overall one of the best Indian restaurants in town.
Probably the best Indian I've ever had in Melbourne!! It's a shame I don't live close by anymore because no other Indian restaurant measures up! The owner is so friendly along with al the staff. Highly recommend!
My favorite place
Although I've noticed some of my fav curries change recipe
To the point where its completely new
I'm guessing there's a new chef in town
This is my favourite Indian restaurant, we often get delivery from here. Always fresh and super flavoursome. My favourite is the tomato soup and the coconut fish curry.
Recently placed an order where we asked if some dishes had dairy due to dietary requirements and they were extremely accommodating and made the dishes with out dairy specially for us. Highly recommended!
The quality of the food is great and there is a good variety on the menu. The baby leg of lamb is a must try. Great menu item for dine in or take away. Always great service too.
We came here after wanting to try this place for a while and we were definitely satisfied. The staff were extremely friendly and talkative and the service was brilliant given it was a busy Saturday night. We weren't waiting any longer than 10 minutes for food to come out - sensational. Food were spectacular. From the mixed kebabs, the spinach chicken, the lentil curry, cauliflower with green peas to the garlic naan, it was faultless. Definitely a must try if you're craving an Indian fix and happen to be in the Ivanhoe area.
Outstanding food and service. This is the best Indian restaurant I have eaten at, and I've been eating here for 17 years. You can't beat them on service, and that's why we keep coming back. Wide selection of tasty vegetarian dishes and a mouth-watering lemon rice. I give this 5/5.
Consistently nice suburban Indian food with decent meat quality. Staff are always lovely and friendly. Good for both eating in and take away.
Came here for a friends birthday. It was quite a trek but was well worth it. The lamb rack was delicious, & the Cochini Jhinga was a definite standout. Great night was had by all
Food is awesome. Especially Sikandari raan, chicken curry and mutter methi malai. Entrees are great treat too.The owner as well staff are very friendly. Packed restaurant lacks space. Been here few times and recommend all to visit.
Hands down the best Indian restaurant in Melbourne! Do a yourself a massive favour and order the chicken in coconut, you'll be ordering a second and third helping of it.
Two Bears And A Fork
+3.5
For us, there's nothing like a good Indian meal to top off a hard day at work! Smiling faces greeted us at the door and lead us through a packed restaurant to a table tucked away in the corner - and yumbo food started coming out to appease our growling stomachs! Overall, we had a great meal (as usual) *except* we were shocked with one of the curries! Click the ↓↓ link below ↓↓ to find out which one!
Cafe saffron is located on Main Street. Food is very good . Service is good . Owner Mr Negi is very friendly. Channa masala and aloo matter are good . Breads are also good . Raita is too sweet and qty is small . Recommend for indian food .
Excellent service when we went for an early weekend family dinner, including a complementary little treat for the kids at the end of the meal. The food is authentic in flavour and heavy in style so don't over order! Extensive north indian menu, with lots of interest in addition to the staples you'd expect. This place apparently has plenty of regular, satisfied customers judging by what we overheard as people were welcomed in. The obligatory tandoor chef viewing window is popular with kids!
Excellent service and good food ;) Would certainly recommend. Their grilled meats are certainly one of the best I have eaten.
Must try their pistachio kulfi yummylicious!!!
The service was really good and the food was really tasty. The Dahl was amazing. Perfect amount of heat and spices. Will come back here definitely
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It was a decision between Thai or Indian last night and looking through the window of Cafe Saffron (the word 'cafe' preceding it was pretty deceiving), we were sold. The setting was warm and inviting. The moment we walked through the door, the wonderful aroma from the tandoor was our maitre d'.
The menu had a wonderful spread with lots of choices (as many choices as a Chinese restaurant's 1001 offerings) but after studying it the main theme was the tandoor with variations across seafood, meat and vegetables and in entree and main categories. The accompanying papadums were also pretty good. Not too oily nor dry. After flipping back and forth the menu for about 10 mins, we decided on the fish pieces, pumpkin and roasted baby leg of lamb. Service was prompt and the food was delish! The fish pieces were extremely tender. Leg of lamb just fell off the bone and the pumpkin was a surprise number as we were expecting pumpkin pieces but instead they were sliced very thinly across skin and all.
The only negatives were the raita was a bit too sweet especially for what we ordered. On its own it would have been a great desert. The other thing was the masala tea which for $4.50 was just a tea bag with some spices. Was expecting it to be brewed. However all in all it was a pleasant experience. Will be back to try the rest of the tandoor offerings.
Love this place. We eat here a lot as it's the most authentic Indian in Melbourne.
The decor is a little dated but totally in keeping with the Indian theme.
The waiting staff are so welcoming and the Owner is just lovely!
Make sure you book on weekends as it gets busy.
I love it here! The family run business is lovely and food authentic. Some favourite reasons to go here:
1. Not too salty!
2. They use ACTUAL vegetables, not just lentils
3. Extensive menu
4. Friendly staff
5. BYOW :)
6. Chilled environment
7. Staff help out with recommendations
8. Portion sizes are deceptively large
The shiny cloth serviettes are not my favourite and the wait time can be a little long but I think the portion sizes and quality of meat and veg make it worth coming back again and again. Definitely give it a try :) Price is on the higher side but again, indicative of the area and quality. Big thumbs up!
The Hungry Excavator
+4.5
Definitely my go to place for Indian now (it's nice to mix it up with the cuisines hey) because it was absolutely flawless. Price was absolutely value for money too as we were insanely full to the brim by the time we left.
Delicious. Best Indian in ivanhoe
Lovely experience everytime!. I come here every year for my birthday and have always had a nice experience. The food is the best Indian I have had and the atmosphere is authentic too.
Good work!
Simply awesome, great fare, service and reasonably priced
Really pleasantly surprised by this place. My partner and I ordered the cheapest option vegetarian banquet and received enough food for four people! The dishes were all mouth-watering and the chef even made us some special nut/fruit naan. The service was friendly and chatty too. Recommended!
We have only ever had takeaways but the food is very good. Great selection of vegetarian mains, with lots of different flavours. As a lifelong curry fan from the UK I have tasted many good and bad meals and this is one of the best I've had in a while.
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Good, but not great.. Went here on a busy Friday night in Mid May. Restaurant was busy with the restaurant 80% full and lots of take away orders being collected. The menu is big but note that many of the traditional meals have less than traditional names. Plenty of seafood offerings. The restaurant feels a little dirty and the service was acceptable. The attentive waitress, noting that we were struggling with our choices, suggested a banquet. We went with it. We mentioned that we were very hungry and she obliged with a massive banquet starting with samosa and chicken tikka (both excellent). For main we had a chicken saag (not bad), beef curry (OK) and a pretty amazing Lamb leg (Anaar E nimki) which was cooked with sweated onions..very delicate. Vegie curry was good. All this served with Naan and rice. Naan was OK but not crisp. More food was offered but we were completely satisfied (2 blokes over 90 kilos/6 foot plus!). 2 x Banquets, 6 x VB's = $90.00. Not the best Indian food in the area but good value if you're hungry.
Excellent. We have been eating here for several years and this is definitely the best Indian restaurant in the area. The meats are tender, curries flavoursome and rice perfectly cooked. There are cheaper options around in Heidelberg but not quite as good quality as Cafe Saffron
Love the variety of meals. You can always come here for a great banquet , and roll out of here. constantly bring new customers here and everyone loves it . service is great. would love them to extend and have a larger venue as sometimes we are abit cramped for room
A long time favorite. Cafe Saffron has served up great Indian food for the last 10 or so years. After a few years break (because the kids refused to eat Indian) this has once again become a favorite. Prices have increased a little and the baby leg of lamb which used to be one the best meals we had eaten is on the small side and not as good as it once was but other meals make up for it. Bookings are normally required and be prepared to be squashed because they really pack the customers in which can also have an affect on the speed of your meal.
Very good potato and pea samosa with the dipping sauce that goes really well with it! Curry was alright but samosa the best!
Good, but just.. Service was polite and friendly, but that doesn't erase delay and error.
Had what most people call butter chicken, lamb/spinach curry, eggplant&potato curry and some garlic naan. All were very good, naan was lacking that...woaaahhhhh baby that I'm used to in almost every other indian restaurant.
as much as the food was great, $17 for a main about the size of my fist, i think i counted 8 small pieces of lamb? is well above what they should be charging, considering theres plenty better and bigger serves out there.
Above average Indian fare-quality can fluctuate on weekdays... Good Indian food, the grilled lamb with coriander and mint marinade is a crowd pleaser. They do bookings for large groups (I've been for different people's birthdays and they've accomodated 8-15 people) without forcing you to take the banquet option (as some restaurants do for groups above a certain size). The quality and service can vary throughout the week but on the whole I would rate the place as above par for Indian cuisine.
Tasty!. Delicious authentic dishes with so much flavour, a must try!! I usually get the prawn chef special, yum!
Easily the best Indian restaurant I've been to, and I love Indian food. Very unassuming little place in Ivanhoe. Food ticked me pink, it was just Devine. Would recommend shafting the tandoori chicken.
Consistently good quality Indian food. Our favourite Indian restaurant and after a longer than necessary absence the food was still great. The three vegetarian dishes we had very very tasty and meat dishes we've had in the past have also been nice (and I'm sure still are). The curries are lovely with a delicate combination of depth and flavour, and the drier dishes are equally good. It seems that the food is freshly cooked to order although no doubt sauces are prepared in advance to ensure quality and consistency.
The service is attentive and staff very friendly. You get enough time to finish courses without feeling hurried but at the same time they check that you're okay. The interior of the place is also cosy and pleasant.
Cafe Saffron is an old favourite that was worth revisiting and we'll make sure not to leave it that long next time.
Always a favourite. Great food very friendly service. Love it!
Very good authentic Indian taste, spices are balanced giving the real flavour and aroma.
Very good restaurant with a very reasonable price tag. Will keep going again n again, thanks.
Highly recommend this restraunt. Excellent food, service, friendly and attentive staff. Lamb shank was perfect: soft, juicy and flavoursome. Good vegetarian options. Food can be as spicy as you want it, but we had a few doubters that were converted due to the mildness of the spices.Overall an excellent experience.
Recently had a group dinner at this restaurant. The food was amazing, but it was the service that made this restaurant standout. The staff were all so attentive and patient, you could see the smiles behind the masks
Fantastic and very affordable take away. Our “go to” for Indian. Unfortunately with two kids it’s a little hard to dine out these days but take away travels well (we live 15mins away), food is always fresh and very tasty! We love Cafe Saffron 😍😍😍
Probably the best Indian Restaurant experience we have had in Melbourne. The food was awesome and the service friendly and welcoming. Our first time there however will certainly be regulars moving forward. Will bring others along for the experience next time. Do yourself a favour if in Ivanhoe and give this place a try. You won't be disappointed.
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