401 Nirvana

Gr8 fabulous restaurant. Menu items are very innovating. We tried the Orange Kulfi. I will recommend this item. Good service and ambience.

This place is alright. As someone who has been to a ton of other Indian restaurants (and been here multiple times), I can say with certainty that this place is just average.
For starters, their un-​spicy food is always on the cold side because of the vents right above the tables. Also, their oval dishes seem spacious but are deceptive: they are shallow, which makes their portions actually on the smaller side. Finally, their service is sub-​par. I understand they’re leaving on Monday… but they seem ambivalent about simple things like water or plates; we had to ask multiple times for these things!
Ultimately, they won’t be missed… by us anyway.
Update: 6.29.14
We had a
certificate and decided to come back for breakfast. What a mistake. Their sassy waitresses were ambivalent and did not seem to care when the home fries came out burnt. «I talked to the cook and he said that the whole batch came out like that. They aren’t burnt, it’s just the oil,» said my waitress. Wow, is this a joke? What happened to the customer is always right?!
I ordered the Nova Benedict, which has 2 poached eggs, smoked salmon, spinach, and hollandaise sauce, all on an English muffin. Sounds amazing, yet when it came out, I was severely disappointed. There was no hollandaise sauce, the spinach was wilted, and the tiny pieces of smoked salmon were salty and tasted old. I had to wait 20 min for the hollandaise sauce and received no apologies concerning the sauce or the burnt home fries.
I do not normally wish ill on any restaurant but this one deserves to close. And they will, tomorrow. Thank goodness.

I enjoy Nirvana food so much that I arranged for a special event at the Restaurant.
I found that the owners…
are very flexible about reserving space to suit your party needs.
will create specialties for you that are not on the menu.
Ask for their MoMos! Chicken or Vegetable. Both Nomi!
Friends came from all over and everyone loved the food.
There were spicy dishes to satisfy my «friends of spice».
There were mild dishes for my «mild» friends.
Many wines were brought that went very well with all the dishes.
As usual, everything was wonderful.
We had hand made, fresh MoMos, Saag Paneer, Goat Biryani, a dark looking Dahl, fragrant Basmati Rice with Ajwan and a very filling Chicken Korma.
The Paneer was nice and moist — Other places can give you such dried out paneer.
The meats were succulent. The spices were subtly superb.
The accompanying sauces were great. I’m a big fan of accompanying sauces.
We also had a «Bread Basket» to go with the meal.
They surprised us with a delicious Mango sort of Flan dessert.
Oh, always ask for Chai. They make a very mild Chai. I always ask for Honey to go with it. Yum.

The food here is fabulous. I try to get something different each time and everything has always been ⁵⁄₅ stars. The owner (I’m assuming she’s the owner, she’s always there) is very sweet and welcoming. Tonight we had the pleasure of being waited on by Ina. In the future I’m always going to ask to be seated in her section, she was so helpful, personable, and never let my soda run dry.
Foods I’ve tried there and loved (also including stuff my husband has ordered and I’ve tried)
Chicken Tandoori
Chicken 65
Chicken Vindaloo (spicy, has a kick to it)
Chicken Tikka Masala
Kerala Pepper Chicken (SPICY!!!)
Bird Nest Chaat (ok I actually didn’t like this but only bc it had raw tomato on it which I hate. The husband liked it though)
Garlic Naan
Potato naan (I forget the Indian name in the menu)
Lamb Roganjosh
Lastly, for dessert the Orange Kulfi is to die for!
Enjoy!

Conshohocken, PA
The idea of this place is amazing, but not sure how it works out in the future as I was passing a busy packed restaurant nearby on the walk there. I picked up my strawberry lassi after coming from another Indian restaurant and finishing my laundry nearby and saw this place I originally wanted to come to was right down the block! It serves American breakfast and lunch but a Indian dinner. Unusual combination indeed. I can’t wait to come back to try a main course and appetizers. My lassi was good not too sweet. I was in the mood for a lighter version of a milkshake n voila an Indian restaurant pops up! Writing this review right now more so for those to know this place exists in Conshohocken. PS. Wednesday nights they gives a tasting sample of another dish when you order. I like the atmosphere. 4 stars. After parking on the street BE VERY Careful in this area… Don’t trust these pedestrian signs. Cars are zooming down these long streets at night especially. They can’t see you. It is not drivers fault as this place should have stoplights because people may not be from the area and don’t know where these pedestrian signs are hidden in the evening. Conshohocken is kind of baiting both those drivers who are unfamiliar with road and the innocent pedestrians. Hopefully someone does something about this.

The absolute best Indian food! My parents lived in London for years and have raised my sister and I on Indian food and this is by far the best place! If you haven’t had Indian before, the waitresses have great advice and guidance. Love love love it here… AND it’s BYOB, even better!

Had dinner here for the first time tonight. I’m new-​ish to Indian food, so I am still figuring out everything I like. Everything we had tonight was really good and the waittress was super nice. The décor is interesting, having formerly (or, kind of, co-​currently?) been a diner, but I liked it. Our booth was comfy with a big window and America’s Funniest Home Videos playing on the TVs.
We ate the Gobi Manchurian appetizer (fried cauliflower) which was really good. I might have liked a little bit more of the sauce they had on them, but it was tangy and crunchy and just a little spicy.
Dinner, we had Kerala Pepper Chicken, which was good. We asked for it spicy (as opposed to mild or medium) and I don’t think it was too much. Again, I am new to Indian food, so I don’t know if spicy is supposed to mean REALLY spicy or not. Anyway, it was good and did have some heat.
We ordered the Lamb Korma, but were brought the Lamb Saag. The waittress came back a minute or two later and, before we said anything to her, acknowledged the mistake and told us the korma was being made and we could just keep the saag, too. Bonus! My fiancé loved Saag Paneer, so he was happy. I liked it ok, but I’m just not so into Saag. He said he loved it, though. The Lamb Korma was awesome. Creamy and the lamb was tender and not too fatty.
For dessert we got some chai and orange kulfi. The chai was ok, not the best, but good. The kulfi was delicious! I’ve never had it before, but it was light and creamy and fresh; really a perfect dessert and palate cleanser.
Overall, we were really happy with Nirvana and will go back. There were a number of things on the menu I wanted to try, but two of us can only eat so much and it wasn’t the cheapest restaurant. It was good, but be prepared to spend a little more than some other places.

Ate here tonight with my 17 month old son. The place was quiet due to the snow so it wound up being the owner Anita who served us. She was very gracious and thoughtful. I thought the food was incredibly flavorful. Lamb Vindaloo happens to be my favorite Indian Dish. It wasn’t on the menu but she was willing to make it for me anyways. It was brilliantly spicy without making me sweat — thats not an easy balance. She even brought out a tiny sippy cup for my son so he could try mango lasee which was so thoughtful. I would highly recommend this to others.

I don’t usually write reviews, however, the awesome experience I had compelled me to write review.
This was only my 4^th Indian Cuisine Experience and by far my Best!
I ordered a salad as an appetizer and it was enough for a table of 4!
Excellent Food — I had the ??? Kabob, it was Well flavored, delicious and cooked to perfection, the accompany jasmine rice was delicious as well.
The Lamb Roganjosh was just as good.
Once again, portions were enough for Two!
I
Service was very good.
The Restaurant serves Indian Cuisine but they also have good American Breakfast and Lunch fare.
Oh, not to be forgotten. This is a BYOB! with no uncorking fee!

After reading the stellar reviews, a buddy of mine and I went here for lunch. As recommended, we got the Indian buffet for lunch and it was just ‘okay’.
If you’re seeking out great Indian food, this may not be the place to go out of your way to find.
Other than the food, the place was clean and the staff were friendly.

I’ve been dying to try Nirvana for a while and I’m so glad that I went last night with one of my coworkers. The service is great and the place is spotless. We arrived before the dinner rush, but there ended up being a decent amount of people when we finished up.
Anyway, the food is great– and the presentation is fantastic if you order one of the special platters (saw a ton of really nice-​looking food go by). I ordered chicken tikka masala (nothing like a go-​to dish) and my coworker ordered the chicken saag. We also grabbed an order of the aloo paratha naan, which was really tasty. Both were really good, but I would have like a few more chunks of chicken in my portion. I was incredibly hungry, so I finished my whole dinner, but if I had been less ravenous, there would have more than enough left over.
Excited to return for more food from 401 Nirvana! The only thing that might confuse new patrons is that one of the outdoor signs still says «401 Diner» and the other says «401 Nirvana.» And I do wish that the diner had a parking lot… but there’s really nothing anyone can do about that.

Don’t be fooled! Apparently a lot of people aren’t aware this isn’t a diner anymore. It’s an indian restaurant in disguise mwahahaha. Well anyways, I say this because during our dinner here there were 2 separate set of parties that came to visit the restaurant and turned right back around to the door because they found out it’s an indian restaurant rather than their typical late night diner.
We came on late on a Wednesday night and there was a few other people in the restaurant thankfully. Nothing like awkward dining. There was this one table behind us full out Byob-​ing so they were quite comfortable. We ordered a couple typical indian dishes. Channa masala for the vegan and another lamb dish for the bf. We both were pleased, they were brought out prompt with their jasmine rice. Service was good, she was nice. Typical indian food, nothing wowed me tho from other indian food I’ve had. I think this place will do fine, don’t know of any other indian in the area.

Best Indian option in the five counties. Clean and excellent lighting. Service is superb. BYOB.

They’ve done a nice job with the décor… transforming it from the old diner look to something more warm and inviting. The food was good– Kerala chicken, paneer tikka masala, naan and veggie pakora. The service was slow and long waits between courses. This, when there were only 4 groups of diners… kind of annoying. No drinks were refilled, and given the heat of Indian food, a steady source of beverages is key. At the end of the meal, we were offered dessert, but I passed and instead asked for a chai tea. 15 minutes later, still no tea until I inquired about it. Overall, the food was good, but I prefer service that is a bit more attentive.

Excellent food. The crispy eggplant and birds nest appetizers are amazing. The curry tilapia with coconut milk and peppers was amazing. Excellent service, great staff. The owner came over and visited our table and gave us free deserts. I will be back.

Two words: lamb biryani. By far the BEST I’ve ever had, and I am still surprised that I’d found it inside this little Conshohocken gem.
The food deserves five stars, but overall I give this place a four as the diner-​like feel of this place is off-​putting (for me, anyway). But I’ll definitely be back if I am ever to find myself in the Conshohocken area again. :)

Will definitely go back
Ordered for a lunch pick up,
Found parking right on the side street– check
The food was ready– check
Portions were huge!!- make sure you don’t order too much.
It was amazing!!!- check
Looks like a diner inside which I guess it used to be one– they also have breakfast on their menu! Have to try it next time :-)
We ordered:
Chicken tandoori– great
Saag Paneer– delightful
Eggplant appetizer– crispy and yum
Chilli paneer– exquisite
cauliflower and chilli– glazy and an I retesting fusion!
So much rice!!!
Oh the mango chutney is great
And the Raita was great too if u like loose yogurt
Will definitely go back there

I was in the area with the wife visiting friends, and I decided to make the wife happy by finding an Indian restaurant nearby to try afterward. The Unilocal app brought me here.
I’m glad it did.
We were able to take advantage of the lunch specials. It allowed us to try a number of items.
So I will start by saying this. I’ve learned to trust my wife’s opinions far more than my own on Indian food by now. If you’ve read any of my previous reviews you will know my wife was born and raised in Mumbai. So when she says that the samosas here are just like her mother used to make, I know there’s something really good going on. They’re well made, well seasoned, and not greasy at all. Perfection!
I sampled Gobi Manchurian which is a favorite dish of mine to begin with. I enjoyed the tangy flavor of the sauce on this. Score!
She got the Paneer Tikka Masala for her main course, and I got the Chicken Korma. This was definitely excellent Korma that had both my wife and I dipping our bread in the sauce. She loved her PTM as well.
She just also had to try the Kashmiri Tikka as well. That’s a unique dish. I highly recommend it, and so does she. It’s so unique that the manager couldn’t even tell me what was in it. Only the chef seemed to know. I like the fact that the chef is trying to be creative.
Dessert was part of the deal. It was gulab jamun. That hit the spot as we both love that dish.
Only one thing… I know this is a combo diner and Indian place. I know they have American style food here too. It is a bit odd that they serve the American style soup with the Indian lunch special. I would have expected a nice Mulligatawny, but instead got a choice of veggie chili, chicken noodle, or French Onion. It didn’t fit the meal. It wasn’t bad, but it just didn’t fit.
But the rest of the meal was wonderful. No complaints!

The best Indian food I ever had and you are hearing this from an Indian. I demand a lot from a restaurant and especially an Indian one. It was my second visit and tried the chicken blast. It was fried batter with chicken stuffed in it and I really do not know how in the world the chef made it so soft and when you chew it and go beyond the batter, there is a blat of flavor! The «Bird Nest Chat» was the highlight of the evening. It is an authentic streetfood and it was out of the world. It was crispy as it was freshly made. it had yogurt and fresh pepper in it which gave ssome spice and cooling effect. Everyone should try this stuff. Moreover, the «bird nest chat» was served in a cup made out of fried potatoes.
I loved the Kerala Chicken. Its a South Indian dish and was awesome. I heard that the Chef makes his own icecream. Its called Kulfi. Its worth a try. Gulab jamun was also an awesome addition to the desert. Me and my wife did not leave a single piece on the plate as each piece had a burst of flavor!!!

Stopped here with my fiancé and another couple for dinner a couple weeks ago. By evening the reincarnated 401 is now an Indian restaraunt. We had a few of appetizers (somosas and garlic naan), including one offered to us on the house (vegetable pakora, a fried veggie fritter) by the staff. Appetizers were great, samosas were spicy, and the vegetable fritters were very tasty and fried well. Crisp but not greasy.
The main courses were all great as well. I had the Kerala Pepper Chicken, which was very flavorful. They asked me how spicy I would like it, and the waitress told me that it woud be spicy enough at the «medium» level. I was expecting a hotter dish, so if you indeed to like spicy stuff, ask for it, as it’s probably adjusted for mild palates. My friend got the Lamb Biryani and insisted that he get it spicy, and his dish certainly got your tear ducts flowing, which is what I was looking for.
For dessert we tried the gulab jamun (fried dry milk balls in syrup and spices) and the rasmali, made from an Indian cottage cheese. Both were interesting. The gulab jamun was the table favorite. Creamy and sweet with some delicate flavors to it. The rasmali didn’t go over so well, but probably because it was unfamilar to our party’s palate. It had an odd texture for cottage cheese and a very sublte flavor. 401 Nirvana also offered a few varieties of ice cream dishes, so if you’re not feeling adventurous for dessert, there is always that.
Overall, we really enjoyed this new version of the 401. The food was great, and the portions are ample without going over the top. I think the entrees are priced just a little the high side (by like a buck or two) for what you get, but it’s not obscenely overpriced and in line with other establishments in town. Unfortunately I have not been back for the daytime menu, which is supposedly normal American brunch fare.