Samad Cottage in North East Derbyshire

We ordered a takeaway as we were staying in Barlow. Fantastic service and great value.

Visiting Dronfield to see the iconic Sheffield FC 'Home of Football Stadium' and stopped here for a curry dinner. I have to say I was blown away by Samad Cottage. I was served breathtaking food that gets to the heart and soul of what curry means. While dining I was catching up on Sheffield FC news and it turns out the club have submitted plans for a new 5000 seater stadium. I believe Samad should follow in the footsteps of their fellow Dronfield institution and commit to massive expansion by 2025/26. This is the only sensible future for this restaurant. With curry this mouth watering they will have NO TROUBLE AT ALL filling a 5000+ capacity 'Home of Curry Cottage'. This will in turn generate MASSIVE profits, which they fully deserve. Truly one of the tastiest meals I've had in North Derbyshire. Amen x

Food and service were both good I will be coming back again.

Fantastic food and service as always.

I have been coming here for more years than I care to remember and it is always a lovely place with great food at the right price.

Really delicious takeaway food delivered on time and with politeness. The achari chicken was particularly good. Recommend

Third visit to Samad in the last 18 months. Great food, great service (Even on New Years Eve) friendly, attentive staff, lovely clientele (yobbo free) Quite an intimate dining experience compared to other Indian restaurants in the area. No niggles whatsoever.

Food was decent quality and good value for money. Service was excellent. Only thing that spoiled the atmosphere was a young lady at a table close by who had a very loud voice and treated us all to continued use of the eff word!

Nice place for decent Indian/Bangladesh food. Portion size is average, service is great. Too bad we were the only guests on a Monday.

The food was ok and eaten most of it. But we had the peppers and onions and they was off. We complained and the manager didn't believe us and bit rude. Also one of the cooks went to the loo and did a number 2 and didn't wash his hands. I knew this because I was waiting for the loo.

Update: Ordered take away for collection, they said collection in 45 minutes. Arrived 45 minutes later, they said one minute. Another 25 minutes later food still nowhere, had to ask what's going on. - one minute, then another 5 minutes. Also they were quite rude this time around, didn't like the attitude. I have ordered from here several times without issues, had dinner in the restaurant a few times and they were always nice but this time the experience put me off from ordering from them again. Shame. Original review: Great food, the best peshwari naan I ever head, also the best tarka Dahl. The take away was on time, reasonably priced and really friendly people.

We've had many deliveries from this restaurant and every time the food has been absolutely incredible, every single dish! Every dish tastes different and with intense flavour The delivery was fast and very friendly every time.

Overall poor. Main gripes: garnishes with poppadoms; 1 onions (ok), 2 watery yoghurt (can't be bothered or don't know how to make raihta or add any embellishment), 3 red sweet liquid (what is this sticky stuff? No-one knew.), 4 syrupy mango liquid (it's a guess, but we think it was a mango chutney impression...from a large, cheap catering jar backstage). Overall, yuck! Main dishes; generic sauce with ALL dishes, simply "tweaked" for each. A much repeated story, which gave....a dansak with no lentils, rogan josh no peppers, dopiaze no onions...chicken tikka not marinated no lemon, lamb tough. Wish I could find a good curry house. Don't give these people your custom.

Had a takeaway yesterday first class all items cooked well and very tasty

On the whole very good but beware if you are disabled there are steep stairs leading up to the dining area which is on the first floor.

Whilst the food was fine, not great but fine; the decor and staff attitude was awful with one issue. When we arrived it was obvious that a take away was being prepared so a male member of staff felt it ok and a good image to throw down the stairs a bag of salad that it supposed to be for a customer. Myself and my guests (possible delivery customers) saw this. In fact it was centimetre from us as we walked in. The carpets look dirty and need taking away to make it clean. The decor is too old looking for today’s customers who expect much higher standards. A place like yours in such a prime location would do very well with an update and fresh look. I will come back when you do and improve on your scores on the doors number. Thank you

Lovely food and venue, nice staff

The food was lovely, would definitely recommend.The chicken and lamb in both of the dishes we ordered was very tender. The starters and sides were also very nice. All in all very good value for money.

Samad Cottage has managed to stand the test of time. It opened in 1984. They have managed to maintain their high standards throughout the period. The restaurant is situated in the heart of Old Dronfield and has 3 fantastic pubs, all within walking distance to the restaurant. It's important to state that the restaurant is upstairs and may not be suitable for people who are disabled. Well done, Ali and your fantastic team.

Poor service, booked table online but no confirmation & popped in to check it was ok, which it was. Arrived on time & sat waiting downstairs for 20 minutes not taken to table & it was freezing- no heating on so walked out

We visited the Samad Cottage Sunday 5th February for a family meal. The food was amazing. I had the Fish Tikka which was delicious, other meals were ordered and every meal was 5 star. Fantastic service. Overall a great eating experience

We have eaten at this restaurant a few times - albeit a while ago - but we recently had a takeaway and I’m sorry to say we will not be ordering from there again. In particular the chicken pasanda was awful - very thin watery sauce and it all seemed tasteless. Such a disappointment.

We had takeaway last weekend and was the worst I've ever had, and I've had plenty. Lamb sagg was tasteless and my tap water was thicker than the Korma. Gave 1 star as the chips were ok. Never again!

Food is lovely but they can't wait to get rid of you.

First time visit. Food very bland not much tast,staff all friendly, unfortunately no atmosphere at all only 6 people in such a shame at Christmas time

Booked a table for 21 people . Staff very friendly Food was lovely 😍 Recommended Baz

Excellent food. This has been our favourite indian restaurant for years.

Not been for a couple of years as last time we visited it was freezing in there and the food had gone down hill. Have to say now though huge improvement, nice and warm and the food was excellent!

Great food as always, staff nice and friendly

Food excellent... Especially the Samad Special.. service is calm and considerately delivered.. nice people, lovely restaurant.

Really nice restaurant but not not been impressed with the food last couple of visits. Pickle tray was great but the main itself could've been better.

In the area on business and recommended Samad by the The Manor House opposite where I was staying (see separate review) Very good starter and Chicken Jalfrezi main excellent Great and pleasant service from Mr F and very good value

Best indian I've ever eaten. Very good value for the money. £30 for Lamb Chops started, Chicken Biryani, Half Tandoori Chicken, Lamb Vindaloo and Chapati plus big bottle of water

There isn’t many places with food as good as this. You will not be disappointed every dish is cooked to perfection and really is the best Indian around even though Dronfield has a few Indians none compare to Samad. The staff are incredibly friendly and there is never a long wait for food either it’s a lovely atmosphere and is always an enjoyable night when we go. Get yourself down!

Brilliant experience. Wonderful staff and amazing food ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Lovely meal, great friendly service, again.

Lovely food fantastic staff everything you could ask for 10 out off 10

Visited recently with friends, friendly service and lovely food.

Large family visit,very wellcoming on arrival.starters arrived promptly as did the mains.all the food served was enjoyed by all family no complaints.staff very good.

Visited tonight and there was a lovely atmosphere Great food great service and a reasonable price. Had a huge choice of food and drinks, would 10/10 recommend.

Absolutely fabulous curry loved it!!

Lamb bhuna, rice, bombay aloo, plain nans, poppadoms and pickles - all good quality, and a carefully packed and presented takeaway. Our granddaughters gave their chicken kormas the thumbs up as well.

Very friendly and attentive staff, excellent food which is reasonably priced. It is wonder that after 37 years they are still so popular.

Always top quality not been for a few years but the food hasn't changed , still as good as ever .....

Good service, good quality food, slightly over priced.

Picked a takeout , ordered Lamb passanda . Awful taste food tasted of bleach and the whole meal was cold . Must have new chefs as the food there used to be very nice . I'll never use them again!! .

A really pleasant meal out,cosy warm room,staff really smart no rush to take your order. The onion bhargi starter are the best I’ve ever had really crispy. Good value mains good portions ,and crispy kulcha naan thin just right. All in all 5STAR the perfect place for a really good indian.

Just had a takeaway delivered from the best . Samad Cottage has the tastiest curry , I think in all Derbyshire Well done Samad Cottage, .

Had a takeaway tonight. It was truly awful!!! Onion Bhaji was dry and over fried! Seemed like it was from the night before. Tandoori king prawns were burnt and tasted gritty. Garlic Nan had no garlic in it. Chef special of Bombay masala was bland and had not taste to it. Will not be using this place again especially when we have so many other Indians to choose from.

Best garlic chicken I've ever had.

Beautiful food and fantastic service xxx

Food tasty and plentyful, good variety of choice. Not cheap Service prompt and good Restaurant just lacks a bit of atmosphere

Had not used Samad for 18 months or so due to Covid. Have now had about 6 takeaways and I can't fault it. Easy payment, lovely food and the delivery service is top class.

It is not the first time we have had food from Samad cottage, and never been disappointed…., it is so tasty and the meat and chicken are very fresh . I can go on and on how good this Indian cuisine is , but I leave it to you to try it ! Extremely recommended

Very nice restaurant with friendly staff and great food. We were staying in the hotel opposite so it was very handy. Would certainly use again.

The food is delicious and the staff are very friendly. It's a lovely quaint little place and very clean. Would highly recommend.

We ordered a takeaway to be delivered, time slot of 1 hour. Takeaway was delivered in 1 hour, food hot, very tasty. We ordered chicken tikka balti sag. Chicken excellent, tasty, sauce great, garlic and coriander nan perfect Can not fault Samad Cottage great food, on time and very tasty. Definitely recommend and will order again.

It’s not possible to give a 0 star rating, but if you could I would. The butter chicken had a split greasy sauce and the chicken can only be described as pre cooked process chicken from a supermarket. The rice was bland and naan tasteless. The other dishes ordered were of the same quality, awful. The biryani sauce was watery and the absence of chicken was staggering. The King prawn bhuna had 2 king prawns! We rang to express out disappointment with the food but the managements attitude was as bad as the food. Needless to say we will not be having food from here again, a shame given we had used them for over 30 years before they changed hands. Such a shame.

The last time we tried the Samad was just after it had changed hands and it wasn’t good. Today we thought we would try it again for a takeaway and if possible it was even worse. chicken biryani hardly any chicken and what there was looked like processed not freshly cooked, the sauce was watery without any vegetables. The butter chicken had a layer of grease on top and tasted strongly of coriander which I don’t mind but not that strong.The king prawn bhuna was also covered with a layer of grease and 2 king prawns! As for the rice it looked and tasted like the ones you cook in the microwave for 2 minutes. Not really wanting to write another bad review we rang the restaurant to give feed back and they couldn’t care less so try another take away this is awful.

Not usual fans of takeaway curry’s but this was amazing. Eaten many times at Samad and the takeaway was just as good Thank you - 5*

We are not takeaway fans but due to the lockdown could not go out for a meal in a restaurantOrdered 2 dishes and a Nan bread for collection the Samad Cottage is approx 3 minutes by car from where we live.One of the dishes was the Samad Special which we would have expected to be one of there best dishes but it was terrible - The other was a Shashlik which is my most regular choice and it was the worst I have had and the first one ever to be served without a vegetable curry sauce.Everything including the Nan bread was cold and had to be heated in the microwave to make it at all edibleWe will be sticking to the Sheffield Curry houses in futureThe only good thing about it was that the staff were very polite and friendly - what they need is a good Chef

Normally have a takeaway which is always delicious. Came for a meal tonight and the food was excellent. Popadoms and pickle tray was great. Currently have a special offer on which included a free bottle of wine for the table. We had 4 different mains mixed tandoori grill, which my friend said was beautiful. A portion of Bombay aloo and a vegetable korma which did just seem to be frozen veg but the sauce was very tasty, could maybe have had fresh veggies. A Bombay chicken masala mushroom rice and a plain rice a a garlic nan to die for. Apart from the frozen veg we could not fault it. WillDefo be back

Went for an Indian here on Sunday after staying locally in area. Lovely food. Lovely restaurant. Staff very polite.

Excellent meal , nice staff and a well presented place.

First time out for a meal after the lockdown.. only good thing was the Governments discount. Food was very poor hardly any potatoes in the Saag Aloo which surprised me as they were the cheapest ingredient . Chicken madras was not a Madras it was chicken a red sauce.. all in all disappointed and wont be going back.

Excellent curry house, especially love the deshi, harilari and mekani curries. Fantastic staff who are passionate about their food, thank you team Samad! Love that they now deliver and great central location in old part of Dronfield.

Under New Ownership and the polar opposite of the previous establishment which was excellent for over 20 years. The food was almost inedible and we were very close to asking for a refund. Hopefully we won't be ill tomorrow!

When the Samad reopened after the Corona virus we were expecting the usual high standard of takeaway, even though we knew it was under new ownership. What a let down all the meals were terrible bland and tasteless. It was also very expensive.

Best curry in the area by miles. You can order to take away and the food is up to the same standard as in the restaurant.

We have been going to Samad cottage for over 30 years now. The food is always good and we have always enjoyed our meals.Last night was Valentines night so i took my wife out for a meal. The restaraunt was very cold, in fact the lady behind my wife sat in her coat and scarf eating her meal, her husband kept his coat on too! We ordered a bottle of red wine and when it came it was freezing, i had to put it on top of the candle to warm it up, surely by now they should know red wine needs to be served at room temperature, well they got that right!!! There was a small heater which i turned on to warm us up but shortly after the owner came over and turned it off in a very unfriendly manner, no "would you like me to leave the heater on sir as its a little cold in here"This place has been in Dronfield for over 35 years now, i cant imagine it hasnt taken enough money to heat the place properly!Stop being tight and either put the heating on or if its broke get it sorted!We will return as the food is good but we may wait until the weather gets better as sitting in a cold restaraunt is not nice!!

Been here on many times, never had a bad meal whilst in the restaurant. Always been welcoming and service is normally good. We also have our takeaways from Samads. Sometimes the quality seems to drop every now and then, but i always tell them and they sort any problems very efficiently. Overall as smashing Local Indian restaurant.

We've been to Samad on quite a few occasions, but this time was very disappointing. The popodoms arrived in a timely manor to surpasss our appetite, so nothing to complain about. The main meal was served an unexceptable 1hour and 10 minutes later. Thank god the meal was delicious otherwise we would have walked out. Staff need to be more attentive as we kept asking for more drinks but then they never arrived. Sorry won't be going back

Arrived for a meal shortly after the published opening time and it was closed. Lights off, no sign on door (other than ironically one with opening hours on showing it should have been open!). No explanation as to closure. Obviously don’t want business.

Being local to the area we have been here many times before and enjoyed excellent meals and service.However last night was sadly a different story.The food was as usual an excellent standard,although certain things on the menu were not available.The staff however were not very friendly to the point of making us feel uncomfortable and almost as if we were being a nuisance by being there.A bottle of red wine was selected by a member of our group,on its arrival another person enquired if it was a good choice only to be told by the waiter "well you friend chose it so you better ask him".Overall a good night out spoiled by the staff who sadly who were far below the standard we have previously experienced and come to expect.

We did turn up to Kashmiri aroma in Sheffield to find it burnt out so the wife said let’s try Samad to used to be really good some years back. Well that was then and this is now. It was terrible, I’ve had a better curry in hospital which was bad.I see there are mixed reviews on here so perhaps the top chef was out but if you like a decent curry this isn’t the place to go. I do hope the management recognise this as constructive criticism to improve the flavour and appearance of their curry.

We went on the off chance early on a saturday and got a table fairly easily which was lucky as the place soon filled up. We had a range of starters, mains and sides and everything was great. Chicken tikka was just right for a fussy 12 year old and the other hotter curries were great with good heat. Service was good and polite.

This is possibly the worst indian restaurant i have EVER visited!!!The service is appallingThe attitude of the staff is appallingThe food is......you guessed it appalling Please if you are visiting this area of sheffield do not use this place there are far better indian restaurants in the area.

This is the first negative review I have ever written. Visiting with friends we were shown to the table and then had the worst service I have ever had in a restaurant. The waiter was surly and downright rude. When asking for a coffee. He advised. We don’t do coffee? When asked why he was being rude he said he didn’t have to answer???? On leaving we asked again he said shooed is away with his had and again said it was up to him how he served people. The food was way below average. Every dish looked the same with a sauce being a kind of thick mush. Please avoid at all costs and go elsewhere!

Taken out by my son for mother’s day, retuarant is lovely, food and service was great an will be returning...

Top restaurant and takeaway in DRONFIELD 👍 Must add I tried phoning to order food but they don't answer the landline🤔I had to drive to the cottage and place our order. There's a seating area to wait. You can pay cash or card. Definitely well worth waiting for. Awesome 🌟🌟🌟

We visited The Samad Cottage on the 26th January. 11 of us had an evening out. Food was amazing, cooked well and great service. We have never been disappointed when visiting here on a night out. Thank you once again . 5 star

Visited the Samad on Saturday evening with some out of town friends. After some lovely drinks in the Blue Stoops (wish we’d have stayed in there) we went over to the restaurant. To put it short and sweet the place is tired and the interior is very unattractive, cold and dirty. The food was at best awful and the staff were quite rude and un happy and made us feel we were intruding in their telephone conversation and texting. We will not be returning and would not recommend this restaurant at all.

Very tasty food. I tried to call in my order 5 times and they didn't puck up. So i had to drive down and wait 20 minutes. But it was worth it for the delicious food

Great little Indian restaurant and takeaway. Good atmosphere with a really good choice of authentic dishes. Never been disappointed.

Food was great, good value and tasty.

I visited in the early evening, so not many people or atmosphere, the surroundings were good and the staff attentive, the food was the older style of Indian, the pashwari nan was exceptional. Only down side was the price of beer it was very expensive.

We visited for a curry 25th Saturday August. Service was good, food as always 5 ⭐️. See you again soon .

Lovely food didn't have to wait long only trouble is don't deliver so had to go pick up. Good value for money.

Have been using the samad indian for many occasions over the years and have never been Disappointed. Lovely food good selection of beers wines and spirits and lovely staff. Would highly recommend

Over the years, we have been frequent customers of Samad; sometimes to eat in, but more often than not, a takeaway.

Have visited many times and although the food is mostly great the service is consistently lacking. We have regularly felt that it’s an inconvenience to them having customers. No sooner have they cleared your starter plates do they immediately bring your main even if you ask not to be rushed. Recently though they brought the main before clearing the starters which we were still eating! No apology and they still took our starter plates even though one of us was still eating. They really don’t deserve customers.

VERY nice place to go for a meal the staff are very welcoming and present food is very excellent excellent and very tasty and I would go there again as the staff are very pleasant

The Samad Cottage proudly proclaims it has been “the foremost Indian catering establishment in Dronfield since 1984 Dronfield since 1984”, and indeed there was a time when this was a highlight of Asian cuisine in the area.

Visited Samad Cottage on my way to Glasgow for work. The meal was of a good standard and came out quickly piping hot. I really enjoyed the onion Bhajis, I will certainly use the place again when I’m on my travels.

been here 3 times always a lovely meal and very good service ..will be back ..

We were unsure weather to go after reading all the bad reviews ( including the one mentioning " weird Bhajis)

Bit disappointed, £40 takeaway, service felt like it was hard work for them to serve, had to find someone to place the order, random buttons on a calculator and a very round number on the bill.

Always had a lovely experience when eating in and taking out one happy customer. happy to recommend.

As said in previous reviews, a smile can go a long way, (well it helps even when curries are rubbish too )

Great Indian takeaway and restaurant, definitely would recommend to anyone in the area.