Saffron - София България

Great Indian restaurant for all those who haven't tried it yet. Fast delivery upon order, delicious and very very close to authentic. I say very very close because some dishes were just a combo of prep food, a matter of combination. For example, Butter Chicken had not been cooked in it's sauce, just Tandoori Chicken served with sauce, cooked separately. I understand this saves time and offers quick delivery, however this restaurant method of cooking can't be rated Authentic. Great atmosphere, very pleasant and willing staff. All in all I'd like to rate it a 10/10 but 9/10 would be fair. Tips: order a few of each, and share. Recommendation to cooks: don't overfry the veggies in the Biryani rice. And lower the sugar in the Butter Chicken. Owner recommendation: offer more photos in the menu for each dish. Not everyone knows what is what (I just happen to love Indian food and was acting as consierge at the table) For those visiting for a fist time: try it and savor it. Of the many Indian food offering restaurants in Sofia I'd rate this as Second Best.. follow me on who tops the list.

I have given the place several extra chances, but disappointed each time after 1st visit 1 year ago. Now, the portions are a lot smaller but super expensive and the last times totally overcooked, I had complained about that friendly in person before. I got watery boiled mushy potatoes vegetable, instead of how they should be properly prepared for Indian dish, so they also lacked taste aside from being bathed in sauce. Not properly prepared from scratch, more like pressure cooker meal. Sauce/spice mix not bad, a lot better than other places but lacks taste of real Indian freshly cooked spices as base and fresh herbs or ginger completely. Naan(?? terrible and mini portion, too. But as said above, shocking was the price for suddenly much smaller portions. 1 year ago I could eat for 3 days from one order which made up for the price, but now not even enough for 1 meal. Pakoras more based on Bulgarian than typical Indian vegetables, don't like. Was my last try, was very inconsistent over the past year, and didn't get better, way too expensive for this.

The best place to get desi experience in Sofia- in my opinion. Slightly farther from the city centre, but there’s a direct bus which drops you about 5-6 minutes away from the restaurant. The chef is superb as has always been. The food is rich, delicious and never misses! The area is serene and you’ll fall in love with the atmosphere and soft music before your food arrives. Always my first recommendation for authentic Indian cuisine in Sofia!

New review: Not sure what has changed since last time I visited. I ordered online to give another try and food tasted significantly good, not sure what happened on that day, so updating my review. Old review: I'm revising my review for this place from last time I visited. Starting on positive note place looks renovated which is nice but it's not like I disliked old setup but new one definitely is good. Coming to elephant in room, food seems to have changed? I don't know if it was change in chef or ownership food didn't taste anything like before, I ordered chicken 65 which was quite good in past (maybe not like actually one but still good) but now i didn't feel any flavours, it was quite bland, similar experience with other dishes as well. Staff on other hand were friendly and good service.

Apparently every meal is precooked and heated because everything is with coriander and there is no option to get a meal without it. We ordered and they explained that everything is precooked, I prefer to have a freshly cooked meal when visiting a restaurant. Not very friendly for the people allergic to fresh coriander. All in all, there are much much better Indian restaurants in Sofia.