Taj Mahal Restaurant and Lounge — Restaurant in Prescott

My husband and I have been here a few times over about 5 years with mixed experiences. We went there for lunch yesterday and it was so bad I had to finally write a review. First of all, from reading the other reviews on Yelp, I think I can recommend - DO NOT GO FOR THE LUNCH BUFFET! I don't know what was going on, but it was the absolute worst food I've ever had. It looked like they weren't planning for very many customers and each tray had very little food in it. As a result, the food that was there was pretty dried out or had gone very oily from sitting too long. The rice was mostly hard, dried chunks - I dished some up and then saw the entrees. I asked my husband if we should just go and he said we were committed at that point...

I told the waitress that we're vegetarians and of the 4 options available to us (spinach with no paneer, lentils, vegetable korma, and VERY oily peas and potatoes), the korma had no more vegetables in it, it was mostly sauce. She came back out of the kitchen and said the sign was wrong and it was mushroom masala, but it did need more mushrooms. 20 minutes later, someone came out of the kitchen and dumped RAW sliced mushrooms into the heating tray. I tried some just to make sure, and it was horrible!!!!! The whole theme of the buffet was that there was NO flavor to anything (I didn't try the peas and potatoes though because it looked very oily and gross). For some reason, the spinach was really sweet, but otherwise it tasted like nothing had been made with any spices. The waitress came and asked how everything was tasting and I didn't want to say horrible, so I said "ok... we're going to try some chutneys." She was like "ok" and walked away. The tamarind chutney was a little spicy but otherwise no flavors.

One more complaint - when we walked in, the waitress told us that the sunday buffet comes with 2 glasses of champagne included. We didn't want champagne, so she said we could substitute any beverage. When we asked for lassis, she said those can't be substituted. The buffets ended up costing $17 EACH, and it was hands down the worst indian food we've ever had. My son who usually loves indian food tried a bite, said "that's icky" and wouldn't eat anything else until he finally had a bowl of the runny, flavorless rice pudding.

In summary, I have no idea what goes on here at lunch, maybe there's no manager or they use old leftover food? I have no idea. But DO NOT EAT LUNCH HERE. We've had ok dinners here if you're in Prescott and are desperate for...

A review for you!!! Ok Prescott folks here it is!!! I met up with some friends at Taj Mahal. 1st came to eat here in the early 2000s back when they were at the frontier village. Now they are in beautiful down town Prescott. These guys are some of the sweetest and nicest people at a restaurant that we have encountered in a long time. Hector and Waris are outstanding so polite, kind and professional and they always are a delight to have when we are there! The inside is spacious and beautiful. Outside seating is gorgeous too. All of their dishes and drinks are amazing! You need to also try their buffet which I believe is during lunch hours but you can call and ask it has many dishes plus desserts and unlimited naan bread your choice of the garlic or the original as well with unlimited food at the buffet! We also truly love their Indian iced tea as well as their chai iced tea both are fabulous! Their Sangria as you'll see in the picture is outstanding as well very tasty and not weak. Youll see in the pictures the amazing food the pictures are mixed from different visits. We been there for lunch and we have been there for dinner recommend both times! Their incredible Naan bread will melt your heart. ❤️ The flavor was great just the way it always is. We all thought the price was well deserved as well for the high quality and quantity. Indian food is wonderful anyways but enjoying it here is the bomb! You wont be disappointed. Its great for either a one person meal or a group of friends. They also have a cool bar there as well with many different options of drinks. Give them a try guys! And give them a review as well as spreading the word! Support local restraunts! They need it more than ever. We will continue to come here. See you...

I've had to revise my review since the last two visits. We have been going to Taj Mahal for 3 years, since moving to Prescott, and I have given it high marks because we enjoy the food and drinks. The entire family, out of town extended family as well, know of this place as one of our favorites. The last two times, we had a less than stellar experience however.

Our main servers are always great. Very nice and helpful. This last time, for Mother's day, was a disappointment unfortunately, in other areas of the experience.

First, our reservation was lost. If you aren't going to use an online reservation system, phone reservations had better be solid. Second, we were refused seating in the back room, which is preferred with our hearing impaired family members. Instead, another party of the same size got that back room seating. Third, it took at least 45 minutes for the food to arrive. Fourth, the obsession with servers throwing away non-empty rice bowls, when we request more rice, is wasteful and presumably, costing me money. And fifth, albeit a very minor observation, the licorice candy that is usually in the lobby for diners who are leaving, was gone by the time we left; about 20 of the little cups had been there upon arrival.

Some of this I can chalk up to lack of help at the establishment, which is common and understandable in Prescott. The after-dinner licorice isn't a big deal, but I thought I should mention it, since it is an indicator of some gaps in overall procedures, presumably. The rest, just needs to be looked into by the management or I likely won't feel the desire to return to what had been one of our favorite...