Idly Express - Mountain View

We dined in on valentine's day and the food was very good! I've never been to any of this chains locations but the ambiance/inside was very nice - I was expecting more of a fast food style place bc it's called idly express but it was more of a nice sit down place. You order at the front and they give you a number and bring the food to you. The seating area was nice - Note that it was all booths so this would be bad for a big group since you would not be able to sit in the same table or move tables/chairs around.We got the benne dosa($13). Very good classic benne dosa, coconut chutney was very good, sambar was hot and spicy. My only qualm is that it's a bit on the smaller side and is probably not big enough for the whole meal if you came in very hungry.Also got valentine's day thali ($17), great thali!! In order of favorite to least favorite they had paneer tikka, dal makhani, punjabi khadi curry, aloo gobi, raita and a small salad. Also came with 2 pooris, papad, pulao and gulab jamun. Everything in this was good and great value would recommend this thali if they bring it back on the menu. I also got chai, they only had vegan chai with oatmilk left (ran out of reg chai and ran out of hot badam milk) it was really good! I would get it again , better than most chais I've had not sure if it's bc of the oatmilk or in general. Also tried the mango lassi.. a bit too thick for my taste but it was good if you like a very yogurt heavy lassi.We were able to get a table immediately on a friday night, I think not too many ppl know about this place yet so I would def recommend it before it starts getting crowded!

I don't think I have had better Idly anywhere else in the US! Each time I visit the Bay Area, I try to stop by at one for their locations. This location is the best if you want to dine in. I usually get thatte idli vada combo and filter coffee. Service is fast and friendly and very clean restrooms

Quick dine in for the samosa and chai on a rainy evening. I give this a 2/5.Portions:3 samosas is a LOT for a plate. I was gestured tiny samosas at the time of placing the order, but these samosas are the average size. Taste:The stuffing is decent. But the samosas are overfried or likely reheated. The red chutney was seriously too sour and I couldn't stomach it. Team, please improve your chutneys. Vegan chai was good. I learned that they use oat milk. Great flavor, moderately strong. Safe for people sensitive about late hour caffeine intake.

Jay and his group deliver the best Indian food I have ever had. They do an occasional banana leaf all you can eat event every once in a while. Can't find that anywhere else in any Indian restaurant. Ever. Very labor intensive. They don't make money on it because of how few sittings they can do because it takes time for people to cycle through all you can eat. Filter Coffee: they have a half sized version. The full fat milk stays hotter than the coffee because of the fat. There is a warming sensation as it makes its way down. This is unique. The coffee isn't a burnt heavy coffee bean roasted flavor like starbucks. There is a blend with chicory leaving a delicate terroir sensation. Idly: The best idly experience I have ever had. Steamed fresh and hot, can taste the slight sour fermented flavor with a melt in mouth pillow texture. Mini idly different texture than the bigger ones.Daily specials: changing menu, 5$. Every day different. If carbs didn't cause so much weight gain for sedentary office workers I would eat here every day. Sambar: the highest quality sambar outside of someone's home I have ever had. Coconut Chutney: They used to sell a coconut chutney kit which was pieces of coconut with a set of spices which you would fry in oil to bring out the aroma then blend. A good coconut chutney is thick but most places offer a thinned out version with barely any coconut flavor for profit. TO GO items: they have a constant rotating selection of rotating curries for less than 10$. No other restaurant or market has this range of selection, quality and price. First time I ever had a curry made from green bananas. Delicious. Almost ate the whole container in one sitting. completely different than anything in a restaurant or buffet. More like home cooking

Cold windy day yesterday, and after watching an Indian play we were hungry and hunkering for South Indian food. A quick search on maps showed me that this place was super close to where we were and also had 4 starts on Google. We ordered the Thatte idli, onion utthappam, the day's special Rava idli, and coffee. The litmus test of a South Indian place is their coconut chutney and sambar, and Idly express scores high on this. All accompaniments, the coconut chutney, the tomato chutney, the podi and the sambar were fresh and delicious. The Rava idly came with a stew of some sort and that was delicious too! The coffee was strong without being bitter and did not give me heartburn after. They served small but adequate portions of free dessert to all patrons sitting in the restaurant which I thought was a very sweet and smart move. Service was efficient, and all the workers there were friendly and great to talk to. Reminded me of South Indian restaurants in my hometown of Mumbai.

A++ - I love this place. It's a fast sit down restaurant. I get the Dosa style with masala potato filling that comes with sanbar. I wish they could make it vegan though (just skip the butter) but they don't have that ability to I have to accept some butter in the excellent dosa. Staff is always friendly too.

Its located right behind the trader joes and next to starbucks so you could definitely combine your visit if u like, like we did on a sunday.You gotta place your order as soon as you enter, pay for it, pick up your drinks yourself and table number plaque and proceed towards a table of your preference. The premises is clean, including clean restrooms.The order comes relatively quickly and they bring it to your table. Everything is served in disposable cutlery, plates, cups. You are advised to clean up after yourself. The quality of disposables was good so it didnt bother me too much.In $50, we got:- idly vada combo - 3.5/5 - 1 idli and 1 vada with sambhar and green/ red chutney- idly plate (2 pcs) 4/5 - 2 idlis with podi chutney, sambhar, green+red chutney- benne masala dosa 5/5 - must try this one. It was something special. Loved the fluffy dosa base and lots of potato masala in it. I wish they served a larger portion of sambhar given their prices- masala chai (2 glasses) 5/5 - fresh and yummy. Served without sugar. U can add sugar, jaggery powder, splenda per your choice- filter coffee - 3/5 - skip it- spiced buttermilk - 4/5 good portion size and refreshing tasteWhen i compare it to idly express in milpitas (ranch dr) the portion size here is much lesser for idly vada combo/ idly plate. The size/ thickness of the idly is also lesser than milpitas (ranch dr) branch. If i come back, it will be for benne dosa and masala chai :) and make sure u order extra sambhar.I did feel it was a little pricey for the portion size and being "self-service" with disposable cutlery.

Food was great, love the dose and mini podi idly. Mendu vada and regular idly were also very good

Food: superb, service: superb, ambience: superb. A+ the green party is the third way. It's the year of the snake. We're going to Nguyen. We're going to over

one of the best best food we can have. the staff are so nice.their payasam is to die for!I swear by their coffee as a South Indian.