Palace at the Ben

Food was good. Too bad a rat Yes I said RAT ran across the restaurant floor ruining the great night our group was having. Don’t go there!

Downtown Philly, PA
I was looking to review this place forever. I go into any restaurant that happens to be around and then I try to figure what their name is and sometimes I forget to Unilocal them. Lol!
Décor is gorgeous here.
Oh…I finally remember where I ate at now and seeing my checkin list on Unilocal!LOL. Malai chicken here was awesome. I just found my chicken the waiter suggested us. Now I have to find a nother place that serves Malai Chicken. When I pick the restaurant is always better than when Mr. Banker use to pick the restaurant I noticed. By the way… I love this place. Why did it close???

I’ve been here a couple of times and it’s really been hit and miss for me. The décor of the place was really nice and was very welcoming. their food was average at best and the one main dish that I liked was the chicken makhani. I mainly liked this place because of its atmosphere but feel their are better indian restaurants to choose from.
I recently noticed that this place closed. So I’m guessing this place didn’t attract too many people in the last few months.

I have been here about 2 – 3 times and I don’t think I’ll be back. I guess I might if it’s only a la carte. The buffet displays zero effort in every facet. The wait staff is lazy and non-​attentive, the food looks like its been setting there for at least 2 hours and 23 minutes. For example the lamb dish wasn’t touched in so long the fat on the serving spoon started coagulating, im sorry but that’s gross.
Dinner is better but I don’t think I’ll be going for a very long time, maybe never.

There is a great buffet. It has options for vegan and vegetarians. It is under 12 bucks. The facility is gorgeous, and the wait staff is attentive. We had a large group there and we all had a nice time and enjoyed the food.

The food was fine, not stellar. My palak paneer was just alright, and the vegetable samosa was bland. The biryanis had hardly any gravy and were mostly plain rice. Food alone, it would be a serviceable but not very good or especially memorable restaurant.
The service, however, is severely lacking. When I arrived, the waitstaff were stand-​offish and unwelcoming. No one seemed to actually be hosting. As for the actual meal service, everything seemed to take forever, from wine glasses to the entrees themselves. The waiters threw plates down on the table, on top of menus, on top of forks and knives, on top of papers – just wherever! They brought the entrees and barked out «shrimp biryani» or what-​have-​you, and if it took more than a half second for someone to claim it, they just dropped it down on the table – wherever!
Worst of all, the prices here are skyrocketing off into the stratosphere. $ 24.95 for a simple fish curry? $ 16.95 for palak paneer? That is crazy.
So I’ll remember Palace at the Ben for its sloppy service and ludicrous prices.

Palace at the Ben 3 — Tyler 0. That is the score so far in my new rivalry with PatB. Really, the restaurant gods hate me when it comes to the Palace. The food is delicious. I am no Indian food connoisseur, but it ranks up there with my other favorite, Mint, up in NYC. Problem is of the three times I have been, twice my stomach was absolutely destroyed (no need to elaborate), and the other time the food I got (spicy chicken) literally made me look like I was going through cocaine withdrawel.
So yes I am a fan, and yes I will try to even the score at some point. I am still smarting from the meal last night, so it will be a while. Overall though, the food is buttertown. (Naan dipped into the chicken tikka masala sauce may be my new favorite dipping combo, replacing dunkaroos).
Also, I am starting my inaugral note self tip. This is a tip that everyone should follow or face dire consequences.
Note to self tip #1: Do not eat Palace at the Ben before flying.

It was my Indian friend’s turn to buy dinner. Where was the best Indian food around, I asked? His response was this place, the Ben. Everything is good on this menu, he assured me. Ya know he was right. The garlic naan was awesome. Tandorri chicken, Samosas, daal, alu goobi, all of it rocked. I thought the service was pretty darn good. The wait staff asked how spicy the meal should be and me being a gringo I said «regular» spicy. Thought that was nice to ask. Mango lassi and raita on the side to fight the spice. An enjoyable time was had by all.

I have avoided Indian practically all my life bc I had a bad experience at a friends house a while back. But i’m so glad a friend made me come here for the excellent lunch buffet. Everything was just wonderful and I got to really try out new things. Some of the stuff is a bit too creamy for my stomach to handle, but I just suck it up and eat it anyway and deal with the consequences later. LOL. I’ve been addicted ever since. Will be back for sure! :-)

For the most recent Center City Restaurant Week, I decided the wife and I needed to add another Indian restaurant to our list. So I made a surprise reservation for us. My wife never needs to be talked into going out for Indian, so she was on board from the get-​go.
So the $ 35 meal for us contained an appetizer sampler plate for each of us. I got the Cashmere Chicken, she ordered Navrattan Korma, and we shared both.
The appetizer plate had a good sampling. The chicken kabob was good and tasty. The shrimp kabob was a little different. It came out more like a shrimp cake. The wife liked it, it wasn’t my favorite.
But this is important. My wife is a samosa expert. it’s her favorite thing to eat. While she determined that the samosa flavor was fine, she deemed it a little tough to eat due to the casing being not so soft.
We got over it once the entrees showed up. Both the Cashmere Chicken and Navrattan Korma were creamy spicy goodness. But the memorable part was the bread basket. We got one order of naan and one order of parathas. The naan was as good as any I’ve ever had, hot, fresh, and buttered. That paratha though… that was like butter. It reached the «OMG NOM NOM» realm of good. Paratha like that with those creamy dishes made for the perfect combo.
For dessert, we love gulab jamun, so we both got our own. Now, gulab jamun is like pizza. Even when it’s not the best, it’s still pretty good. That’s how I’d classify this gulab jamun. It was good, not great. Far from the best I ever had.
Overall, we’ll give this place 4 stars based on the entrée quality. It receives my stamp of approval, and more importantly my wife’s approval. Not sure I’ll be a regular here since there’s plenty of Indian places I can go to where I don’t have to deal with Center City parking. But it’s worth an occasional special meal.

nIndian restaurant. I am becoming a real Indian food fan. The samosas here are wonderful, the curries are abundant and varied and all true to their flavors. At lunch this is a buffet for about $ 10 so you get to try different things which is great as I am still really learning. The paneer was awesome and the korma was creamy and tomatoey (fun to say!) with a good hint of spice. 2^nd time here and I will be back.

First of all, let me just say that as an Indian-​American, I am RIDICULOUSLY picky when it comes to Indian restaurants. I’ve also given five star ratings to only two other restaurants.
Palace at the Ben, is by far, one of (if not the) best Indian restaurants in the United States. I bring everyone I know here. I’ve tried just about every dish on the menu and every dish is nothing short of perfection.
At the same time, it’s pretty obvious that their «secret» is obscene amounts of butter, salt, and oil.
This place is relatively expensive for dinner, although the portion sizes are pretty generous. Their lunch buffet is, financially speaking, a much more reasonable option. Their options for their lunch buffet don’t vary much from day to day… but most normal people probably don’t come here as often as I do, so I suppose that’s all right.
There was a time when I felt that service at this restaurant was sub-​par. But it has definitely gotten much better, at least for my friends, my family and myself, since we’re are pretty well-​acquainted with the waitstaff at this point.

Huge huge fan of Indian food.
This buffet was impressive, mostly with it’s posh upscale curtains and napkins. We were the only people on a Saturday lunch buffet so that meant a bunch of waiters staring at us gorging our faces and ruining their perfect tablecloth.
The food was brilliant with a huge selection both for meat lovers and vegetarians, it was food for all! I tried everything and it was all good, the dessert selection was okay, I wish there was more!

One of the somewhat passable Indian eateries in the city, Palace at the Ben has established a decent reputation for its inexpensive lunch buffet price and traditional fare.
I have been here 3 times since 2009, and unfortunately, it just isn’t getting any better. You would think that service (which is one of the biggest drawbacks of this place) would get better with more time on the job and more experience, but these folks just seem to be apathetic (and it’s the same guys, too).
The food is the one redeeming factor. It isn’t mind-​blowingly awesome (for that, go to NYC and check out Junoon or Vatan, or else take the next non-​stop Newark to Bombay/​Delhi), but it certainly is good. The biggest upside to the food here is that it does not suffer from the terrible ‘same-​base-​sauce-​for-​each-​and-​every-​dish’ syndrome that other restaurants up in UC (New Delhi/​Sitar/​Tandoor) have. You can actually taste the individual flavor profiles of each creation, and the chefs do it well. The naan is also quite good for a Philadelphia joint, beating out my old preferred naan-​stop, Sitar.
As aforementioned, though, service is the big issue. Long wait times for seating (in a usually less-​than-​half-​filled place), slow ordering, slow food, slow water re-​filling (or none), and glaring-​from-​above while you fill out the credit card slip are all signs of missing that element of class. They certainly have a nice looking location, but if they can get their act on the service side, I would be more than willing to make this a 4 star place.

On a birthday celebration, my fiancé and I went to Palace at the Ben and loved the food! We had a great pair of window seats, a funny waiter and a perfect meal.
My meal was the Cashmere Chicken with chunks of chicken cooked in a mild cream sauce with cashew nuts and golden raisins. Yum, yum and more yum. We will certainly be back again.

Love their lunch buffet! it’s so cheap and delicious.
I sometimes wonder why it’s always so empty at this time though? People need to get over there and take advantage of the cheap lunch deal.

Palace at the Ben is an adventure to an Indian Palace. Everything from the dimly lit atmosphere, to the table cloths, to the round tables caddied away, hidden by gossamer curtains makes Palace at the Ben the quintessential romantic Indian restaurant.
Though a smidgen more expensive than your traditional Indian fare, the environment more than compensates for the cost. The food portions are generous, and the flavor robust. The Bindi Masla is served with chunks of fresh okra simmered in spicy sauces. The tandoori chicken is served on a sizzling iron skillet, which allows the onions and peppers to caramelize beautifully.
Come here to impress your midwestern pastey white family, and make them realize that «ethnic» food can really be scrumptious.

The lunch buffet is a good deal at 10 bucks a person. The food is good, solid indian food. Their buffet lacks a few of my favorites, but since its across the street from my work, its an easy choice. The food could be spicier, and I have a medium-​low tolerance for spicy.
I’ve never had a full meal here off the menu — but i hear it is overpriced for the quality.

This beautiful restaurant averages over four (4) stars and in a foodie town like Philly that’s saying something. You will be hard pressed to find an Indian restaurant with a more beautiful atmosphere. These folks offer a week day lunch buffet, weekend buffet, and of course dinner service. The week day buffet is a great deal. For ten bucks or so you can quickly have a delicious Indian meal.
If you go for dinner park in the convenient lot right across the street. Enjoy the beautiful décor. Expect better than average service. You will find all the expected Indian delights on the menu. Ask and the waitstaff will happily adjust the spice level. Speaking of the waitstaff, I have always found them to be friendly and competent.
Some folks think of these folks as a special occasion place especially for dinner. You’ll pay a few dollars more but it’s worth it.

I have always enjoyed eating at Palace at the Ben. Before their buffet, they had a delicious lunch menu that always included panir masala. Now that they have instituted the $ 9.95 lunch buffet (even on the weekends– for $ 11.95), it is rarely on there, but the owner says if you call in early, she will put it on there– now that is good service!
There are usually about 10 choices on the buffet and it’s always clean and well-​stocked. The food (while I’m not the best at the names of what I’m eating) is impeccable and there is always one dessert at the end of the line. For the amount of deliciousness offered, it’s a great comfort-​food fix at lunch time and it’s great for a gaggle of friends to join you!
The service is attentive, at least in the beginning. The naan is usually waiting for you when you get back from the buffet line. If you’re in a hurry, don’t wait till the end of your meal to ask for the check.
Note: They have a full bar but the drink prices are atrocious!