Mehran

I usually ordered pick up for Chicken Tikka Masala, Naan, and Rice, there have been times where it was really good, but there were also times where the sauce for the tikka masala just tasted really bad, but they usually have a decent amount of spice which I do enjoy. But, i’ve had much better indian food in other places, that are much higher in quality.
The place was a bit hard to spot the first time I went since its located in the back, and typically I found it to be empty.

The quality has dropped. I’ve come here a few times now and always order the prawn masala, because usually it is delicious, but last night the prawns were hard as rocks. The biryani was DRY like it had been made that morning and just kept hot since then. Service was really hit or miss. This time we left room for dessert, and the kheel was really smooth and sweet.
Overall, I’m going to move on and find another Indian place for when the mood strikes me.

I have to admit, the appearance is a little odd. The old banner is a turn-​off, they should just take it down and they would probably get a lot more customers with that neon sign they have. It’s a little representative of the whole place, though.
There are quirky, odd things about the service and the appearance of the interior and exterior of the place, but at the end of the day their tikki masal will blow you away. I had some for takeout and my wife had some green stuff, and they were absolutely delicious.
Bottom line: Weird appearance, delicious food.

This is my favorite place in Sacramento for indian food. I think lunch buffet is only around 8.95/ person

Meh — ran. I ordered food for 10 people for my husband’s 40^th birthday party, and they all gave it an «average» for taste. Bland, even though I asked for the lamb curry to be extremely spicy for my husband. I just tried some of the leftovers myself, and the tikka masala tasted like marinara sauce. They forgot the sauces for the samosas, which MAKE the samosas, you feelin me? So I am more than disappointed.
The owner did let me use my $ 50
certificate even though it wasn’t a dine-​in, but charged me a $ 21 tip anyway (after tax). I had so much on my plate planning this party I really wasn’t going to complain, but when you forget the sauces on a takeout order that isn’t tip-​worthy. I really wish I’d just bit the bullet and gone with Shaz, the best Indian food in town. It wasn’t worth saving $ 50. Won’t be giving them a second try.

Came here for the lunch buffet and had my expectations BLOWN away.
I was a little skeptical when I finally spotted this place off the side of Fair Oaks, but as it turns out you really can’t judge a book by it’s cover. Despite the battered exterior, this is definitely one of Sacramento’s pearls.
Being the only customer at the restaurant was a bit unsettling for me, but as soon as I began to peruse the buffet selections and discovered the Biryani, Saag, Goat Curry, Masala’s galore I quickly forget the awkwardness and made myself comfortable.
My favorite by FAR was the goat curry. The way the meat fell off the bone with just the slightest pressure from my fork… it nearly brought a tear to my eye.
The waitress was wonderful and made sure to constantly walk over and clear off the remains from my table so that I would have room to create even more. Throughout the entire meal I don’t think I once had my basket of Naan go empty. That’s classy!
«Now Kevin, I’m on a budget and don’t think I could afford eating here» you say. Here’s the best part. The entire buffet w/​tax only came out to $ 11! Ladies and gentlemen, it just doesn’t get any better than that…

Just like the name Meh…
Food is so-​so, The Nan was cold and I didn’t like most of the dishes.

Love this place — they are the best Indian lunch buffet in our area in terms of price vs quality. There seems to be some people trolling in there reviews here, which I just isn’t deserved.

Halal meat is served here. Owners are well known Muslims. I Have had Mehran Sacramento food catered at several events I have attended. Pretty good desi food with friendly staff and service. Note: they share the name «Mehran Restaurant» with the Bay Area locations, but are independently owned and operated.

This review is based on my experience from two years ago:
Food is very ordinary, price was a little too high for the small portions. I remember the staff being unfriendly/​cold and saw no Pakestani influence in the menu. We ordered off the menu and although the food was not replusive, it certainly did not put this place on the map. I like to go to restaurants that I like/​for some reason I want to go back… I could easily pass this place up being that there was nothing special about this place compared to other Indian food choices in the area.

I have been to Mehran several times, and I am a fan. Fortunately I have not experienced any of the less favorable issues some of the previous Unilocalers have had. I am somewhat new to Indian food and have been to several Indian places around Sacramento, and for the most part they all seem pretty similar. What stands out at Mehran for me is their use of spice, and the flavor combinations.
Their Chicken Tika Masala is the best I have and actually has some kick. Most Indian places have two temperatures No Spice or Nuclear, Mehran uses the perfect amount of spice. Their Biryani has to be their signature dish for me and by the looks of most the reviews. I have had their saffron and shrimp Biryani and it is the best Indian dish I have ever had. The spices and flavors are so complex and complement each other so well you wont be able to stop eating it, and similar to the Tika Masala there is some kick. It is a must dish if you go.
As mentioned in a few of the other reviews the ambiance/​décor is not elegant, but by no means dirty. I have seen much worse and I promise the food makes up for the décor. It is definitely worth giving Mehran a chance.

I have never eaten inside, I have only ordered takeout. And I have ordered takeout a lot. Why only 3 stars then? Well because I guess I have differentrestaurantphobia.
I always order the bhindi masala. It is great. The saag is excellent. I’ve had both lamb curries. Excellent flavor. I don’t remember which chicken dishes I have had because I usually order lamb. The roti is good too but it is not on the menu.
3 stars because I know I can rely on the food not to suck. 3 stars because the roti is good. Not more than 3 stars because they don’t have a very big menu option. Not more than 3 stars because the staff isn’t very friendly.

3.5 stars.
I have only been here twice for lunch buffet, once on a weekday and once on a weekend. I was more impressed on the weekend. Maybe it is because the buffet costs more and is better quality.
The food here is spicier than other Indian buffets I have been to, and I like it. I also like the desserts here and the chai they serve.
There was a «pubic hair» on the table, but after examining it and looking at the workers’ hair, my friends and I concluded that is either a piece of regular hair or from a beard and really did not think much of it. Perhaps people should take a closer look before jumping to conclusions.
I would enjoy my meal more if they opened the door and let the place air out every once in a while. The place gets stuffy and it just completely kills my appetite when they spray cleaning solution on the table. Blech.

This place is disgusting. Went ther on rec from a friend for an early dinner on a Saturday.
Warning Signs:
We were the only ones there.
All kinds of crap and boxes piled into the room that once was a bar.
Totally trashed out interior. Remember this used to be a nice Italian restaurant. It looked like they did it on purpose.
No beer.
No ice in water. Scared to drink it.
Food was OK. Can’t remember what I got but it was a miserable experience. Won’t be back.

Please also see Klaus’s review on HEALTH CODE VIOLATIONS.
I went there last night for dinner with a good friend. I have been here before and thought the food was OK, the service slow and inattentive before.
I will never return to this establishment. While eating last night, I found a PUBIC HAIR in my Chicken Tika Masala entrée.
I told the server very quietly what I found. She didn’t charge me for the entrée, but at the same time asked me if I wanted it boxed to go home… um no.
Sorry, but I can’t get over that. The service was much better, the Naan was awesome, but I don’t want to eat pubes… thanks.
The end.

They are good. Their goat curry is great, their saag is as well.
I have only tried the buffet.
The service is okay. Drink refills take longer than I like. The layout of the dining area is weird, and accessing the parking lot is confusing the first time you go.
I’ve been here four or five times in the past couple years. I’ll end up going again. It’s not mind blowing, but it is good Indian food.
Oh, and the health inspections for the past two years hasn’t been a problem:
Oh, and did I mention their goat is really good?

My friend, who is Indian, said that this place had a great buffet lunch, so I met her and some other girls there one day for lunch. It was a little tricky to find, tucked away next to Borders, but I got there eventually.
I’ll start with the bad first. Despite the fact that we were the only customers in the restaurant, our server was taciturn and slow. She was reluctant to bring us anything we asked for. One girl wanted to order chicken tikka masala a la carte, but was told that they only did it that way if it was «to go». So she settled for the buffet, which, by the way, was decent. It had your typical Indian food. Actually, I am still not clear on which dishes were Pakistani versus Indian. I would probably go back, if only to try to make this differentiation and to see if the service has improved.

Mehran is in a Very Unfortunate Location, tucked into the side of a laundromat besides a very big Borders emporium. Once you managed to find the entrance, though, the dining room is rather large and open, decked out in warm red tones with lots and lots of mirrors. (Too bad it’s cold in there.)
We stood around for a bit but were seated after someone noticed us. The menu is a bit short — I’m used to Indian restaurants that serve about a zillion dishes with change — but the basics are there, along with some interesting halal and tandoori dishes and plenty of biryanis. Feeling exotic, we ordered the goat curry with green chilis, the bhindi masala (okra) and the tandoori prawns, with a side of plain ol’ naan. Our confused young server managed to figure this out.
The food arrived fairly quickly, although we had to ask our server for things like plates and silverware, which he did bring out eventually (though the rice never managed to show up.) The plates were incredibly huge and barely fit on the table, which was kind of amusing since we didn’t order all that much food.
Serving sizes are small, although I don’t think that’s such a bad thing in the current era of MegaSize Everything. The goat curry was delicious, oily, and everything that American food isn’t — I loved it. The spice level was just right, and I enjoyed the juxtaposition of the fatty and rich meat with the kick of the chilis.
The okra was also delicious, prepared as a dry curry with a bit of onion and chili. It was quite spicy (though I could have gone spicier) and rather addictive, with the kind of flavor that could be marketed as a yummy packaged snack. I’ll come back for this dish alone. I love okra, and I love cuisines that can do it justice without falling prey to the slimies.
The tandoori prawns were only okay — of an average size and a bit overcooked, though the actual blackened-​lemony flavor was pretty good. They came on a platter with raw onions and curiously inexplicable mushy french fries (huh?). I would like to see how they do tandoori mutton chops, which they were unfortunately out of on our visit.
Mehran seems to specialize in doing large catered banquets for lots of people, and I think that comes through — the dining room seems to be a bit of an afterthought. Service was slow and deeply confused, although the food itself was pretty tasty (but nothing blew me away.) Still, I’d like to return for one of their lunch buffets, which should eliminate the service issues.

Trying to find the front door to this restaurant is somewhat difficult if you’re arriving after sunset. It’s somewhat close to Borders, if you park on the east side of Borders, you’ll be able to see the «Mehran’» sign on the building.
The entryway looks more like a sevice driveway than anything else. They would be well-​advised to do ~something~ to increase the visibility of their entrance (eg. more signage, flags, ribbons, balloons…)
Once inside, the place is rather large. Going there on a Tuesday night, it was mostly empty. Besides ourselves, there were 3 other tables of diners.
Other than having interesting overhead globe-​type lamps attached to the ceiling, the décor could be improved on to warm-​up the place’s atmosphere. It’s not dismal, but definitely more utiliarian than I prefer for having an intimate dining experience. My rating is based on the taste of the food, oly, and not on the ambience.
The food that we ordered: the mutton biryani, the goat curry, and a couple of orders of plain naan.
The biryani was very flavordul and spicy-​hot. This was a plus for me and somewhat uncomfortable for the bf, whose mouth was burning. It tasted good, though, so he struggled to finish his portion despite the heat. The goat curry was very tender and practically needed no chewing. I think it was tenderer and more succulent than the mutton pieces in the biryanit dish. Maybe they use younger goats. I’d always thought of «mutton» as older sheep. Growing up in California, I’m used to lamb.
The plain naan was very good! They seem to make it to order. It was oven-​hot when they brought each order out in the course of the meal. Ever have really freshly-​baked naan before? It’s wonderful!
Here’s a warning for those who don’t really like meat with bones: the curry dish seemed to be made from neck bones, and so you had to be comfortable with gnawing the meat away from the bones. I’m pretty used to Chinese home-​style cooking that requires this as a basic skill. Not a problem for me, but some people might not be used to that.
When we left to go dancing, the bf had to order a kahlua and cream drink to help quench the fire in his mouth from the spiciness of the food. I liked the spiciness, but thought that «temperatures’ or «heat» of the dishes should’ve been marked on the menu.
I’d suggest that they ask people whether they prefer mild, medium, or hot when ordering.
The server was friendly. However, I think she was handling the front all by herself. she seemed to manage okay, for the most part. I do wish that she did not wear shoes that click so loudly against the tile flooring. It was somewhat distracting to table conversation to hear her clicking by every time. A minor annoyance,
When leaving, we tried some of the anise seed mixture in the bowl near the register. There was a spoon for scooping some out onto your hand. It was different than i’ve had at other restaurants… more cunchy, sweet bits mixed in with the anise flavors. it did wonders to freshen our breath after having the spicy food.

Make sure you are comfortable with this establishment’s storied past with the Sacramento County Department of Health!!! Learn more at:
Being fans of Indian food – and having little choice in Sac-​town – a small group of us decided to meet here last Saturday night. We had seen a recent decent review in one of the «Inside Sacramento» publications, and thought it sounded like a good risk.
When we arrived, we were the only car in the lot; lights out, etc. There was a sandwich board sign blocking the entry «tunnel”/hallway to the restaurant saying «Closed for renovations». Since the rest of our party had yet to arrive, we thought we’d check out the menu and see what we were missing. Lo and behold, the placement of the sandwich board in the entryway was strategic; once in the hallway, we immediately spotted the unfamiliar red placard from the county department of health: «Closed due to insect/​vermin infestation»
Later that night, we went online and it appears that the restaurant has been closed 3 times in the 18 months it has been open; each time for the same reason: roaches.
Now, just for the record, I get it. Kitchens have food; rodents and roaches like food, etc. But, if you keep getting shut down for it, I think maybe it’s time to call some professionals. Also, they got a yellow card two days earlier so they KNEW that the county would come back for a reinspect. It’s not that hard.
So, if you like Vindaloo Vermin and Roach Tikka Masala, you found your place. Just be aware.