Saffron Indian Cuisine, Chester VA — Restaurant in Virginia

I'll give them three stars, because I think with a few tweaks they could make it five. It's really more of a two-and-a-half star than three, so I'm being generous. I'm an Indian food lover, and I had high hopes for this place based on other's reviews. I don't like giving a poor review, but if I owned a place like this I'd want to know, so here we are.

Atmosphere: The place is clean and nicely appointed, so that was nice.

Service: Not horrible, but not professional. Everybody is very friendly and they clearly are trying, but beyond taking and bringing orders to the table, it was apparent that they are not trained or experienced in this profession. I had to flag them down to ask to order a drink in advance of ordering food (usually a server will start you with a drink, and then return for food order, and ask if you have any questions, right?). The server appeared confused by this at first. No biggie, but strike one. We had questions about some menu items, and all they could do was just read what was printed on the menu back to me. I can do that myself. I think partially it may be a language issue. I don't think they really understood my question. Strike two. They never checked on us once after we got the food, except to ask if I wanted another beer (I didn't). No "how is everything" or "can I get you anything else" or "would you like dessert or coffee"? No proactive engagement except for the beer question at all. Strike three.

Food: My chicken saag was very good! Fragrant and flavorful. The garlic naan and pappadum were great. But my wife ordered Tandoori shrimp and it was not good. The dish looked great but unfortunately, the shrimp was so overcooked that the texture was like a well done steak (dry and tough) instead of a thoughtfully prepared shrimp (just done, plump, and juicy) and it had an odd aftertaste. I'm certain this was not freshly cooked. My suspicion is that this might have been old, cooked shrimp from the refrigerator that was added and reheated for this order, rendering it pretty much inedible. After trying to eat a couple of them, my wife picked out the rest of the shrimp and set it aside. Very disappointing. The amount of spice was inconsistent as well. They will make any dish mild, medium, hot, or extra hot for you. I'm a spicy food guy, so I can stand quite a bit of heat, but was not in the mood for big spice so ordered medium, as did my wife. So in theory, the heat level in both our dishes should have been roughly the same, but it wasn't. Mine was more like what I'd call hot (which is fine for me, but not what I ordered or expected), but my wife's was mild--almost no spice at all. They repeated our orders back to us when taken, so wasn't an ordering mistake.

Overall not a great experience. I'm not likely to return for dine-in, but I might consider take-out, and I'd be careful what I ordered and stay away from...

No sooner than you open the door you are hit with the intoxicating aromas of Indian spices and you just know that you're in for some delicious food. The menu is rather extensive and full of options. They offer dishes that I've not seen before at other Indian restaurants and they are rather proud of the fact that they are Punjabi. (However I was mildly disappointed that no one was wearing the traditional Sikh. 😔)The mango Lassi is so tasty, fresh, and smooth. The butter chicken has a rich depthness to it that just screams feed me Seymour. Both the goat and lamb are cooked to a tender consistency and have a marvelous flavor. But the coup de grace was the salmon; tender, flaky, and full of flavor. I'm rather picky about salmon but this was in a league of its own. It was cooked over the grill shish kabob style then added to the medley of onions, peppers, and a savory sauce. All of the appetizers were truly amazing but the samosas were on a whole other level than any that I've tried before. Their chutneys and sauces were delicious as well. They were perfectly balanced between adding extra flavor to your dish but without overpowering it and taking over your tastebuds. The Naan bread basket is totally worth it! Do not miss out on this treat of flavorful breads. Our wait staff was very attentive and made sure that we did not want for anything. The atmosphere was nice and modern. They had cloth napkins and tablecloths that they changed with each new place setting. The lighting provided plenty of light while lending to the aesthetics of the atmosphere. In just one visit this restaurant quickly became my favorite...

I have ordered from this location several times. Recently went in for my birthday and Saffron Indian Cuisine exceeded my expectations. I thought I knew their food, but going in and trying it fresh was worth every moment and bite.

Their food is indescribably delicious. The symphonies of flavours really honour the generations of love for food done right. Every ingredient, every spice is all balanced perfectly, their service is above & beyond in all aspects of a restaurant.

The mango shrimp is dairy-free and mind blowing delicious. The lamb chops have honestly ruined all other proteins for a while, going to be difficult to try and settle for something less complex after that dish, but I can’t wait to eat more. I am a bit of a naan connoisseur & this naan fresh is easily top 3 I’ve ever had.

They’re so respectful of dietary requests, allergies & spicy spice - offering mild all the way up to the real deal flaming hot. For allergens they’re not annoyed at all, Saffron fully understands allergens and takes care to make their food for anyone who wants to have a meal. Having a dairy allergy myself, their food is such a wonderful, decadent experience every time not having to worry.

Highly recommend for birthdays, special occasions, cozy dinner dates, afternoon cravings and everything in between. One of the absolute best restaurants in Virginia, and easily best Indian cuisine ever.

Do yourself a favour and pop in or order online. 10/10 cannot wait to go...