Manzil Fine Indian Dining — Restaurant in Gainesville

Absolutely phenomenal experience at Manzil Fine Indian Dining in Gainesville, Florida. This place deserves every bit of a five-star rating.

From the moment you walk in, the warm and inviting ambiance sets the tone for a memorable dining experience. The decor is tastefully done with elegant lighting, traditional Indian artwork, and a layout that strikes the perfect balance between upscale and comfortable. It’s clear that a lot of thought has gone into creating an authentic yet modern atmosphere.

Now, let’s talk about the food — the real star of the show. Every dish we ordered was bursting with flavor and expertly prepared. The chicken tikka masala was rich and creamy with just the right amount of spice, and the chicken was perfectly tender. The manchurian was another standout — deeply flavorful with layers of spices that linger on your palate in the best way possible. Their vegetable biryani was aromatic and cooked to perfection, with every grain of rice holding its own texture. And don’t even get me started on the garlic naan — soft, buttery, and fresh out of the tandoor.

Portion sizes were generous, and everything came out hot and beautifully plated. It’s evident that the kitchen staff takes pride in their craft.

The service was equally impressive. The staff was attentive, knowledgeable, and genuinely hospitable. Our server took the time to explain menu items and made thoughtful recommendations based on our preferences. The timing of each course was well-paced, and water glasses were never left empty — always a sign of a well-trained team.

We also appreciated that the restaurant was spotless, from the dining area to the restrooms. Cleanliness is clearly a top priority here, which only adds to the overall comfort and professionalism of the place.

To top it all off, the owner personally checked in on our table toward the end of our meal, which added a very nice personal touch. It’s rare these days to see that kind of dedication to customer satisfaction.

Manzil Fine Indian Dining is hands down one of the best Indian restaurants not just in Gainesville, but in all of North Florida. Whether you’re a longtime fan of Indian cuisine or trying it for the first time, this is the place to go. I’ll absolutely be back — next time to try their highly recommended lunch buffet.

Truly a five-star...

Well, as you can see from my ratings, the food was delicious. Everything that we were actually served was delicious. We never received our Naan that we ordered and our server seemed more interested in cleaning tables than waiting on us. My guess is that she was more interested in impressing the owner/MOD than actually doing her JOB. We were aware that last night was the opening act (no soft opening) and were relatively prepared for a slow go but I must admit that it was really, really slow. Slow as in almost 3 hours slow. It's a good thing that the EATS were mighty tasty. The most annoying aspect was the music that they were trying to play to the whole restaurant. When we arrived and maybe for the first hour or so the music that was playing was fine and fluid. Unfortunately, we were camped under a speaker and then the music started to break, squawk, play for 30 seconds and then repeat breaking, squawking, garbling and then playing for another 20 seconds. We repeatedly asked our person (Austin) if they could do something. We even asked if management would remedy the situation and she stated that they were content with how it was or wasn't playing. That actually ruined our evening because it's a really nice place inside. So for the next almost 2 hours we listened to broken music whatever while trying to allow for the slow, slow, slow, slow food to arrive. AND no naan to boot. When we were presented our bill, the naan wasn't on it but I'm thinking if that's my restaurant, I'm sending a free order home with these people and their leftovers. I'd want them back as customers after enduring this painfully slow service and kinda rude server and besides the intolerable music that they couldn't or wouldn't fix. Hopefully, they fix these flaws. Time will tell. It's really good food so take it out and leave the not so stellar service and breaking...

Our experience was a hot mess! It is in no way shape or form fine dining. Service: 1 Our waitress was clearly not experienced. She took out drink order, one arrived. After at least 10 minutes she walked by, I stopped her and asked where my wife’s drink was. she said I thought you wanted to know what type of wine we had, my wife clearly ordered a glass when I ordered my drink we ordered our entrees at this time as well. We ordered appetizers at the same time, 40 minutes later 1 finally arrives. And 10 minutes later the other dish arrives.50 minutes in , nothing from our waitress , never asked how our food was, sorry for the delay, nothing. Appetizers : 2 Chili paneer was clearly overcooked and was like chewing rubber bands. Samosa chaat was just ok, not anything to right home about. Entrees: barely a 3 Tandoor lamb chop was the highlight of the night. It came by itself, the over entree , korma (veg) clearly sat in the window as it appeared with a film over the top, it came with a small portion of rice that was not traditional basmati rice. The waitress forgot my salad I ordered and the entire meal came out spaced , the timing was horrible. All along the owner chatted with guests he knew and never touched any other tables to see if anyone else was happy.I must say the dining room was comfortable the one highlight of the night. Everything else was a complete disaster. Fine dining , definitely not! I would not recommend this establishment to anyone. Nor would I return. Not worth the price. I have had the pleasure of training with a world renowned Indian , this is not traditional authentic indian...