Bismillah Restaurant

First a disclaimer... this place does not serve White people food (no offense). It is spicy and oily and as close to authentic street food in Karachi as you can find in Southern California.\r\nI tried them for the first time a few days ago for breaking my fast.\r\nThe gave free milk drinks, pakoray and chaat for iftaar. Everything was really good and the portions were very generous. The chutney that came along was excellent as well.\r\nFor main course we ordered Nihari, Chicken Karahi and Chicken Biryani. Everything was 5-stars good, except for maybe the Biryani which was 4 stars.\r\nI was told that this restaurant is a hit or miss, but I found their food to be near perfect. \r\nWill gladly try them again... the only negative would be that service is not too good. It is not bad, but there\\\'s loads of room for improvement. I would however ignore poor service if they keep on providing authentic food to the desi people...Oh and I forgot to mention their Naans... the standard Naans were just amazing! Perfectly baked and brushed with a bit of oil. Haven\\\'t had better Naans in a long time.

Very bad service,awful taste,unpleasant food, dirty tables. Spoons,forks and knives were dirty like the glasses there we paid a lot for nothing,I don't advise any one to be there even for water drink

Buyer beware this restaurant cannot handle large amount of catering, we requested catering for 150 people and the restaurant delivered food for 90 people. We had arranged our catering for Ramadan the quantity was so less it was embarrassing that food ran out before all the people were able to eat. They missed completely one dish and did not deliver I texted the owner and no response. Next morning I reach out to the owner Tariq and he mentioned it was late for delivery and I told him when the dinner was being served I called you and he did not return my call. His excuse was that driver forgot to pick it up. I have never dealt with a restaurant owner who is so much incompetent. I asked he should refund me half the money and his response was he will give me 150 dollars back for catering for 90 people instead of 150 or give me credit for next catering service. Believe me, I will never use them again..

We tried their tandoori platter and nihari. Both were excellent. Staff is very polite and courteous. 15 minutes from disneyland but they close by 10pm.

there is a rumor going on that Bismillah does not serve halal meat? Any verification on that? Quite a few families have said they have heard/seen/talked to the owner and this was admitted?

I went there just recently. The food is not good and heavily over priced. (Tandoori Masala, Magaz, Jalferzi) The food had a funky smell as it was tasted stale. This restaurant was a huge disappointment. For four main items and some naan, the bill came out to be 73 dollars. Please save your money and eat somewhere else.

The food is decent, but a little too pricey given the portions. The customer service is horrible and really needs to improve. The setting is okay.

Since Mas Islamic Chinese in Fullerton was super duper duper PACKED the night of Mothers day, we made our way to Bismillah and so glad we did! It was our first visit and definitely not the last. I read the other reviews of someone saying this place has an awkward feel to it...I can see how it would be awkward since the place is quite big and has a large empty space where you walk in. We came on a Sunday night and every single table was filled but we were grateful to have been seated right away with no wait. It was a pretty busy night so it took about 30 mins for our food to come out. We ordered the garlic naan bread as an appetizer but it didnt come out until the rest of the food did. I was super hungry & unhappy but when all the food came out, it was definitely worth the wait! Everything was bursting with flavor! We ordered the Mixed Tandoori which came out on a sizzling iron plate smothered in grilled onions, also the fish fry and a plate of fried basmati rice. Mixed Tandoori plate came with chicken, beef, & lamb. It was all good except the chicken was the best out of all 3. Next time I would just order the Chicken tandoori. It was sooo soft & flavor ful! Pair that up along with the rice...I couldn't ask for me. The fish fry however.....not exactly my kind of thing. Its basically patties of fish covered in chilli and spices...like a satay. Very spicy. I'm confident that this restaurant has much more to offer and I can't wait to go back to try other dishes. Price reference: About $10 a dish

We visited this restaurant during our trip to Disney. We were already having a bad day visiting the worst theme park on a rainy day.....the food at this restaurant didn't help either, Very average food. We tried chicken Karahi, seekh kababs/mix grill. Nothing special to recommend. Food is halal though and owner was nice.

Pros: Nice decor, some items are tasty at times. Cons: Small, nay, tiny portions. The only time you want to go there is for buffet, but usually thats devoid of the expensive meat items. Service is not good, and the standard of food varies, depending on which day of the week you go. Conclusion: Go there if your company is paying for your meals.

The food was very good - be sure to let them know your preference on how "hot" you want your food.

Food is great, very good kabobs.....

Yummy kababs and biryani, always tastes good!

Salam, We ate here this sunday and for about 9.99 the lunch bufet was excellent! food was great, nice decor, great service. Although I loved the food, my husband couldn't handle the spiciness. We got 3 buffet plates, Me, my husband, and our 4 yr old, who barley ate. On our way out my husband noticed the the cashier didn't even charge us for our son, he went back in to tell them about the mistake, and he told us that he didn't want to charge us for him, that was very nice of them (Needless to say we insisted on paying). My only complaint would be that I wish there was labels on the diferent dishes on the buffet line (I like knowing what i'm eating). All in all this place gets 5 STARS in my book.

I waited for 10 minutes to get the samosas 45 minutes to get the main course (the roti actually came AFTER the lamb chops were served!). The lamb was a bit tough and the portions were quite small. I wish the portions could've been a LITTLE better! Also, they accidently gave us their mango lassi (which was for another table!)... the guy cracked a joke with my dad, but after the joke he just kept standing there so my dad had to pay $10 for it! Never going there again!

The food they gave us was still frozen. When I asked the server if he could at least microwave it for us, he told us that he would bring us "fresh" food, however the samosas he brought back were still half-biten off.

Service was horrible - waiter ignored us and gave us an attitude. Almost all of the food was old, barely warm, and tasted bad. Only the paratha was ok...

I've been eating Bismillah for years. It does take some time, but because I believe they make many items fresh. I can understand about the service, but if you know these people they are just more aloof, not so much rude. But food is some of the best I've eaten around here at least.

the service is awful.. the food is average.. and the wait is just way to long.. the decor is nice.. but when you are hungry and waiting for food nothing seems nice

The service was slow but the staff is very curteous. I was very impressed and resturant is relatively clean too. I have eathen much more taste ful food in nothern california so i wont say its the best. It might be slight pricey which ca nbe understood as the area is little expensive as well. Food is good. I heard a lot good about them so i visited them.

On the plus side this place has above average food quality; on the negative, the service is slow but courteous and the menu is a little expensive given the state of the restaurant - looks more like a cafe than a restaurant. All-in-all a recommended venue.

The food was ok, nothing that i would recommend though, but the service was one of the worst I have seen in a long time. The owner is a very rude and obnoxious man. I would question the hygene of the food.

i have tried about every place in Southern California. this place rocks. the service is ok . no complaints but the food is excellent. this is the only place i know around here who can really cook paki/indian food. excellent . i go their very frequently and i would not eat at any other palce

The food was great! The service was good. I do not know what everyone keeps saying service is bad. They were all very professional and I look like a typical Pakistani.

Biriyani was not as good as expected . Shan or Shahnawaz is better. Service is poor .

finally a place where i get to see my favorite " keema kareelay " on the menu. i just go there to eat that. but every thing else is good too.

I got my food to go and it was excellent! the palik chicken was amazing. i would recommend this place and cant wait to go again.

I love indopak food. I hate indopak service! The owners of these restaurants need to learn something from american establishments. Though the food may not be "halal" at least they usually provide great customer service. Half of the dining experience IS the service. Even if the food is amazingly delicious but the service is horrible, I am not eating there again. Some guy in jeans and a t-shirt greeted us (my friend and I) when we came in. Very unprofessional. It took about 15 minutes for someone to come take our order. We waited a little too long for our appetizers to show up. Then something very strange happened, the guy in the jeans and t-shirt started to bring us the main courses also, which left us no chance to enjoy the pakoras and the delicious samosas. One thing I noticed was the way they treated two Caucasian people that sat down near our table. Their order was promptly taken. While a dirty looking jug of water was placed on our table, someone filled their cups. Excuse my language, but wth is going on here? Even though I liked the food, I will not be returning till the service gets better.

I have eaten at Bismillah many times. I am amazed that people are complaining about their service. I have found them to be very courteous. They went to great lengths to pack my food securely and even offered to carry it to my car! I love the quality of their food, the karahi, the kebabs, paya, nehari, haleem, everything is really good. Please give this restaurant another chance, you probably went on a bad day.

Well I dont know about any Other Restaurant on this website and Their Authencity that if they are serving Local Zabihah Halal food, but this one is and i have tried several restaurants in L.A for desi food amongst which this one is the best. If any body really has actually been to Pakistan or India and tried out Authentic food they would know the difference. Most of the people here hadly have any good taste for actual Pak/Indo food.

I went there last Sunday for Lunch Buffet. Its an average restaurant with very average quality of food. I wish they make an effort to atleast keep the food warm.

Decent place...always good to have Halal restaurants in the area...could do with some better service though!

My family always gets our food catered from Bismillah..prices are reasonable...the restaurant is not a five star establishment, but the food is excellent! Don't listen to these other people - the food is yummy! 10/8/03

We had an excellent lunch there on Friday July 18, 2003. Liked it so much that also asked them to pack two additional dishes "Paya" and "Brain masala". I'll visit them again if I'm in LA or better still....maybe ask them to send the food via courier srevice :)

This place is one of the worst ever desi resturant i ever been. Place is big and well decor. Food is average but the service is very very bad. In fact I was told that this place is good but unfortunately whenever i go there I have very bad experiences.

Weekday lunch, place was empty. Dirty water had to be replaced, charged dollar a naan, $3 lassi was diluted strawberry yoghurt, tiny portions that were salty and oily, biryani was greasy chinese fried rice.

"Very nice interior and the food is great! You may need to wait for a while but it's definitely worth the wait. Prata, chicken tandoori and shrimp masala are my favourites here."

Excellent kebabs and bread. Very clean and airy place.

Shahed Amanullah

Sep 5, 1999•210 reviews

3

A good restaurant that serves spicy Pakistani and Indian cuisine. A favorite spot for those attending Indo-Pak weddings at the Buena Park Hotel nearby, especially when the hotel dinner is that awful rubbery chicken.

Excellent Indo-Pak cuisine at fairly reasonable prices; the Tandoori here is absolutely fantastic!