Maharani Restaurant in Colchester

Booked a table for our daughters birthday, was slightly dismayed to receive a call 10 minutes before we were due to arrive (whilst parking the car) to say that our table may not be ready at our booked time. But we headed on up anyway to find our favourite waitress Olga ( from Our old Indian that's closed down ) waiting to welcome us with a an apology and told the last people had just taken a little longer than expected, ended up at the back of the restraunt chatting to the folk just leaving and them wishing our daughter a happy birthday too !!! A drink on the house whilst waiting as an apology for the 5 minute wait. Food was absolutely fantastic, service was impeccable and well priced for what we had. We will definetly be using this as our regular local Indian .Restraunt isn't very spacious so i would advise pre booking, and as a nice touch a box of chocolates and card for the birthday girl !

Just received our order from Maharani and I have to say how disappointed we are. Insipid at best. Best thing is the naan bread. Will be avoiding in future!

Outstanding when eating in, have eaten in a few times but tonight was the first time I’ve ordered a delivery and boy what a difference, no where near as nice, the lamb curry had no taste whatsoever, lesson learnt, only eat in house

Bonne nourriture indienne servi dans de très bonnes conditions. Dans de beaux couverts et assiettes. Avec des vrais serviettes en tissus. Les plats sont très bons. Et servis dans de jolies assiettes et casseroles. Le service est professionnel

Wonderful service and food. Very much recommended.

Food was amazing and staff very friendly

Best customer service. Friendly staff.

The food was good and adjusted to my palate

Nice little hidden place, I recommend making a reservation. Service was very warm friendly, asked us about food allergies as well! Food was incredibly good. I've got several stomach conditions, none of which had any issues with this food. Not greasy whatsoever. Fluffy rice, tasty naan bread plus a surprise at the end.

Food here was amazing, highly recommend!

Amazing service and very polite behaviour by the staff!

Honestly the best Indian meal we have ever had! We visited for the first time tonight after reading this restaurant's great reviews. They weren't wrong. Everything was cooked perfectly, the service was outstanding and we will definitely be back. 👍👍

The best Indian we've had in a long time! Delicious selection of food with fresh spices and authentic flavours. Great service and welcoming atmosphere for families. Definitely worth a visit.

Olga was such a wonderful touch to the most wonderful restaurant! Amazing food and service and so great with the children.. thank you !

Amazing place, great food & wonderful staff

Delicious food, lovely waitress, couldn’t recommend highly enough

I had the pathia, it blew my head off which was a pleasant surprise! Would absolutely recommend the staff, the food and the whole experience is 10/10.

Food is amazing, so full of flavour. The decor of the restaurant is classy and comfortable. The staff are all friendly, happy to talk through the menu and make recommendations when wanted. Olga is an amazing hostess. Definitely worth a visit

EDITED THE REVIEW AFTER SO PLEASE READ THE LAST PARAGRAPH **Disappointing Experience** I recently dined here, hoping for authentic food, but was left disappointed. The staff were loudly chit-chatting throughout my visit, and much of it included inappropriate language, which I found very unprofessional. As for the food, it was overly oily and seemed to have a lot of food coloring, which took away from the authenticity I was expecting. Unfortunately, this is not a place I would recommend for a true authentic and enjoyable dining experience. Zero for food, atmosphere and service. Sorry I didn’t clarify, i did try to book a table for 5 on 14th but because you were fully booked i came with my other 2 friends for lunch on the 15th of September. If you want to check your books - chilli chicken, karai paneer, dal tarka, garlic naan and kheema naan we ordered. Better ask your customer if they forgot to mention time instead of calling their genuine review fake. Thanks

This is a great restaurant, but it feels like they are permanently having to cope with being slightly too small. Great food (and good portions!) and excellent service. Definitely book ahead on the busier evenings.

Lovely dinner, great service. Looking forward to coming back soon

Taste was absolutely fantastic. Excellent service. Great value for money!

This was for our friends 30th and staff were very accommodating and amazing food. Service was great. Everyone enjoyed this and would return

Wonderful service and great atmosphere, Chicken Methi was delicious as was Sag Paneer.

Second time visiting and a wonderful dining experience again! Fantastic service from our waitress Olga and the food is just perfect :)

Excellent food and staff - would highly recommend.

I have been to many Indian restaurants in my life, but none of them can compare to the Maharani Indian restaurant in Colchester. The food is simply amazing, the service is friendly and attentive, and the atmosphere is cozy and inviting. I love their chicken tikka masala, which is rich and creamy, with just the right amount of spice. Their naan bread is soft and fluffy, perfect for dipping in their delicious sauces. Their vegetable samosas are crispy and flavorful, filled with potatoes, peas, and spices. And their mango lassi is the best I have ever tasted, smooth and refreshing. The portions are generous, the prices are reasonable, and the quality is consistent. I always leave feeling satisfied and happy. The Maharani Indian restaurant is the best Indian restaurant in Colchester, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves Indian cuisine.

The staff were very kind and helpful. The food was absolutely divine I would 100% recommend coming here

First time here, fantastic food, friendly staff. Highly recommended!

Amazing service, great food. Thank you so much

Absolutely amazing service & food. Turned up for our table of 8 only to find that WE had booked the wrong night. No trouble at all & they swiftly managed to get a table for us. The food was delicious. Such amazing flavours. All of us really enjoyed our curry. Well done to you all.

This is our third visit. Really lovely atmosphere and food. Great service too. Would definitely recommend.

Great and authentic food. Friendly service. I would go again :-)

The food was not having enough salt, and Some of the cutlery have some food particles, stick on it.

Such great food and service. Atmosphere was brilliant. Approx £25 for a really nice meal.

Great food, fantastic service, a great evening

Great Food, even better service.

Really nice meal and free shots would recomment

The whole meal from start to finish was absolutely amazing! Olga was bloody beautiful in every way. Thank you so much. Made my birthday meal xxxxx

Cancelled booking 8 minutes before arrival time after making the journey - poor communication and service.

Amazing service, great quality food and just an amazing experience overall.

Amazing staff, amazing food, highly recommend 😋

Great team, great food, been going for 15 years!

From all the positive reviews, I was excited to place an order with Deliveroo. I could not have been more disappointed. We had two main dishes (kushbio chicken, Baltic lamb, roti, naan, the special rice, raita, poppadoms and chutneys, and a lassi). The food was so oily and pretty bland and tasteless. I love spice and flavour and this was all so generic and from previous trips to India, it certainly tasted nothing like Indian food I had had there travelling around. The oil was so grim, we had to drain it off the food. The mint sauce was luminous green that just felt so wrong and full of colouring. The raita was inedible cheap yoghurt that felt far from recently made. I gave up with it after my stomach started hurting and ended up in the bathroom. Perhaps it was the wrong dishes, I don't know, but I won't be eating the leftovers. Such a shame as I had hoped to find a decent proper Indian food locally and this is just not it.

Very good service, and extremely good food! Calm and nice atmosphere in the restaurant. Cannot praise them enough. Easy choice if you are looking for great food and service.

Having visited several times, I can confidently say the service here is exceptional. The staff are always warm and welcoming, creating a cozy and inviting atmosphere. The food is consistently delicious and definitely worth returning for. Such a lovely place—I highly recommend it!

Lovely restaurant, great food and the staff were absolutely lovely. We will definitely be going back. One of the best I’ve been to in Colchester for sure.

Sadly the food was not to my taste on this occasion, it was the first time trying this place too. The onion bahji were soggy and not crispy, the chicken tikka was very dry and the jalfrezi sauce was very oily. Maybe I just got unlucky this time. In a positive the bread was very nice and tasted fresh and the pilau rice was light and fluffy.

best food i’ve had in a long time

Lovely service, delicious food.

Our experience tonight was amazing! The food was amazing, service was incredible! Would absolutely highly recommend to anyone wanting traditional Indian, full of flavour with beautiful old fashioned service! Thank you!!

We had a work dinner here - very well looked after. I must specifically point out Muskaan who looked after our group very well. Very polite, attentive, knowledgable about the entire menu. There were a couple of dietary restrictions, she was on it & made sure everyone got what they liked. Overall, a very lovely experience enhanced by our lovely hostess. Thank you guys!

First time here and everything was really lovely. Will definitely be back

Delicious food, and nice atmosphere ❤️❤️😻

We walked into this restaurant as we were staying in Colchester. A very warm welcome, and it was great to see how good the team were with all the customers. We had momos, sea bass curry and lamb curry. Food was excellent.

Another fantastic family meal here , food is delicious , great value and staff and service amazing . Will definitely be returning again soon !

Amazing service and really tasty food! We would definitely come back and also recommend this as an option if you’re looking for an amazing Indian ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ordered through Just eat. As always great food and their Garlic Naans and Onion Bhajis are just awesome

Fantastic all round! And even give NHS discount

A really good meal at Maharani. Staff are very attentive. Good atmosphere. Good food. Reasonably priced. Will be back :)

amazing food and very good customer service, lovely staff :)

Excellent food, will definitely go again. We had the sagwala and mutton josh and both were excellent.

Lovely food, traditional and tasty. Staff had good knowledge of the food and nice little touches that makes you want to return!

I recently ordered the lamb biriyani from this restaurant, and it was an awful experience. The dish was loaded with way too much turmeric, completely overpowering any other flavour that should have been there. To make matters worse, the lamb was incredibly rubbery and tough, making it almost inedible. I was hoping for a well-spiced, tender meal, but instead got something that tasted bland and poorly prepared. I won’t be ordering from here again – definitely not worth it.

My go to Indian restaurant in colchester! The food is so so fresh and has never disappointed me. The toilets are lovely too! 6 of us came to £23 each which is so good!!!

Great food, Great service. Clean and friendly. We normally get a takeaway, but this time we decided to go to the restaurant which was a lovely experience. Would highly recommend!!!!!!

Amazing food-so fresh, the best Indian restaurant in Colchester.

14 of us visited the Maharani for a Football night out and we had the most amazing meal. Staff were on hand whenever we needed them. Service was fast, considering how many there were of us and the food was amazing. I would definitely recommend the Maharani for any occasion. Thank you. WW Club Owner 06/09/24

Superb meal. Excellent service, nothing too much trouble. I love a clean toilet too!

After being recommended the restaurant for my son’s birthday we were warmly greeted, received great recommendations for food choices and had excellent service from all. Highly recommend this super restaurant!! We’ll be back!

Food was some of the best I have ever had, nothing spectacularly different than other Indians but everything done right. Service was top notch, highlight of the meal. Our waitress and the manager were so kind and welcoming they made our night that extra bit special. Would strongly recommend.

Amazing food , amazing service , so attentive yet respectful of your space to eat ! Gorgeous decor , Highly recommend

We always have take away from here, today we ate in house. Maharani is the best! Definitely the best.

Great servers, quick food arrival and perfect atmosphere for a birthday gathering!

Lovely leaving meal thank you so much.... food was delicious and ambience and staff werw superb.

Beautiful food amazing service from we arrived until we left.Our waitress always making sure we were happy with our food.We will definitely be back.Would recommends this restaurant to friends.

ordered a few times from Maharani best Indian in Colchester! Fast delivery as always and always delivered hot still! Korma is nice and thick as most places do runny korma- their pilau rice and korma is amazing - onion Bajjis too- Won’t go anywhere else now :)

Lovely food and great service thank you x

The best Indian food we’ve had. The butter chicken and Bombay Aloo were amazing.

Lovely service and fantastic food.

Food is amazing and staff very friendly and helpful. I will definitely come back!

First time coming here. The food was great. Ordered a bunch of stuff to try but the bill came down to only 13.62 pp. Service was also splendid. Highly recommended. Will visit again for sure.

We are regulars here and wouldn’t go anywhere else. The food is excellent, the staff are welcoming and friendly and we always have a quality meal and nice experience

I ordered online with deliveroo and the food came quick and was well packaged. The food portions were big and the food very nice. Would definitely order agajn.

Great food and very friendly, attentive staff, we will definitely be coming back again. Quite a small space/table for two but that can't be helped. Nice place overall

it was cold not warm but cold and the Kentucky is just down the road.??????

We had a great meal here midweek on a mini break in Colchester. It was lovely sitting by the open bifold windows on a warm evening. The food was excellent and very well presented. In my husband's top five (he's had quite a few Indian meals across the country over the years!)

Not from round ere but probly the best Indian I've had

Very very Delicious Murder in London restaurant also nice food and very nice service i like it 🙏🏼🙏🏼

Can not fault service, food, ambience. All perfect. Recommend booking though as reviews are correct and therefore can be difficult to get a table. This is a small restaurant, hence the ambience. Can seat 10 at a push but that takes up a third of capacity. Enjoy.

wonderful food and wonderful service. definitely will be back

Was a very Lovley and polite service and food was amazing, would highly recommend anybody to come here who is looking for a good night with some good food

Good portion sizes, friendly staff, great food!

Had a such an amazing meal tonight-lovely relaxed atmosphere surrounded by beautiful decor and the service was amazing-literally nowhere else in Colchester gives as good service! Food could have been a bit hotter and more flavour/spice but still by far the best Indian in Colchester. My first experience of this restaurant and I will definitely be back again with my friends!

Amazing good, great service and lovely atmosphere!

lovely and friendly service, great food

Amazing food, service was great. Highly recommend

I picked this restaurant for my grandads 91st birthday because it has really great reviews. As a family we have tried most Indians in Colchester and I have to say this one was the best! Staff were super nice, food was unreal and they even made a special effort with a cake and candles for my grandad (for free) I would say I spent £20 per person but we were all very very full! I think the food was very good value for money. We will definitely return! Thank you so much to all the staff for making my grandad feel special

Myself and my family went to the Maharani on Sunday afternoon and it was superb ! We have been many times over the years and sometimes it was a bit stayed in time and hadn’t moved on , but over the last year or so it has really moved on and upwards ! It is now by far the best Indian in Colchester . Even on a Sunday afternoon the food was freshly cooked , really temperature hot and delicious so many flavours , it doesn’t taste like they use a generic gravy base sauce each dish tasted different. Superb and well worth a visit you won’t be disappointed. Keep up the good work and I love the opening front street window . See you soon 🍽️

The food itself is very tasty such a shame my chicken balti had barely any chicken in it. Would’ve been 5 stars had the chicken ratio not been so poor