James Street Café & Grill

Great place to go when you have people who do not appreciate the good east Indian food, they can select from the many other dishes that they serve. So a great place for larger groups with varying tastes.

We were there last night for a large dinner party. The host was very nice and welcoming everyone as they entered.
The food tasted very good and there was quite a variety.
The service was excellent and the servers went beyond. Samosas and lapsi were excellent.
The restaurant looked clean and the lighting was good.
The washrooms very clean too.
They let us enjoy and we didn't feel pressured to leave.
I definitely recommend eating there or having a party

1st time Ben to this restaurant and the last time. The food was horrible. They called their buffet luxury buffet? I don’t see nothing Luxury about it. Too much colouring in the food. I do not recommend to go there.

An OK place to eat, but none if the dishes we had really stood out. Curry was OK but not the best I've had. Burgers were probably from pre made patties based on their shape, which tasted fine. Not somewhere I would go out of my way to get, but not the worst choice if you are in the area.

The place was good to hang out with friends. Butter chicken and tandoori chicken were so good at reasonable prices. Even milkshakes are good in the end. Pretty good place to hang and chill. It was a great experience.

Have been a regular customer of James since they have opened their doors. Great cafe, with good food and great and friendly staff always.

The chicken samosas are excellent. The chutneys are decent and there's plenty to try on the menu.

We have been regulars at James Street since they opened their doors. Their food is always so fresh and delicious. My particular favourites are the Nyama choma platter, butter chicken, black fried kebabs and samosas. The staff are always so welcoming and create a comfortable and pleasant environment each time. The restaurant is clean and spacious giving enough room to accommodate you, your guests as well as the elderly, disabled and young kids. They are a great spot to host parties and even host their own music parties from time to time. I highly recommend visiting this place if you are looking for a great spot for Indian-African fusion cuisine.

Was a great place to randomly stop in for lunch at.
I’d come back for sure.
Great service great food. Clean restaurant

This place was sooo good. My fave was the choma platter, bombay biryani and chicken samosas. Can wait to go back on my next trip to Van.

Sambosa was OK, they recommended the lamb which had gum texture and couldn't finish 2 bites. I told the manager and I still had to pay for the dish even though i left it behind nearly untouched. I wouldn't recommend to my worst enemy

Incredible food and service! The food was fireeeee! Highly encourage anyone who hasn’t tried this place to give it a try. You won’t regret it!

Food ordered was excellent quality and good prices. Family owned business excellent customer service.

EXCELLENT SERVICE! Delicious food!

We went on a weekend. Place was a bit busy.
Our server, (whose name is) TD, was very friendly, yet respectful. He made good suggestions and took the time to explain the food and taste. He made sure we were never lacking in anything, and anticipated our needs before we even asked! What a great guy!
We ordered the ground beef samosas (ground mild spicy beef in triangle pastries that are deep fried) and daal Wada (lentil fritters) for snacks. Quite filling!
For main, we had the Beef Akni, a blend of delicious Basmati rice, potatoes, and beef cooked in a very special way with special spices, garnished with caramelized onions and cilantro. It comes with pickles, and an Indian salad called “kachumbar” - cucumber, onions, tomatoes in vinegar. We ordered yoghurt with it.
A very generous portion! And delish!
For drinks, we ordered the masala chai (Indian spicy tea, made with ginger and spices) with our meal.
In all, a very pleasant and satisfying experience.
Makes all the difference when you have a great server!
Thank you, TD!
Going back next week!

Great food. I love coming here. The owner Anish always greets us warmly. The food is always delicious and fresh. Chering and Abhishek give awesome service.

Will not visit again. Long wait for food, dirty restaurant and lack of customer service. Owner was talking on the phone with speaker on in the restaurant. Like seriously? Couldn't wait to be done and leave. Food wasn't good either.

We were in the area and stopped by to have nyama choma. We ordered it with mogo & it was good! The meats were well marinated and tender; the mogo was crispy, not greasy. Only minor complaint is that there was no salad included in the price, but I suppose we could have paid extra to have salad separately.

Also had lassis and an ismaili style falooda for dessert - I had never tried this type of falooda before and it was not bad, with a strong saffron taste.

Restaurant looks dirty. Tables and even glasses look dirty too. The service is terrible. We should have read the reviews first. I don't know how some people can give them good reviews. Very bad experience.

Meals from different parts of the world made it a unique experience! Service, food, and price points.very good! We'll go back again!

Went in on a Monday during lunch time. Waited 55 minutes for my lunch to show up. Lady who came just before me ate and left before my food was even served. Asked for naрkin when I first sat down and never came. Not coming back. Better ways to spend my money and time elsewhere. Very bad place!

I'd rather not put a star to this place.all the dishes were dirty, the stuff was rude and long to wait.and even I made a notice that my plate and glass were obviously unwashed the waiter did not bother to at least offer to change them.filthy wreck

Service is slow, and not attentive, but the food is decent. Food used to be better, not what it once was. They've also reduced the menu (I imagine this is a covid thing). Hopefully when things open back up these guys can pick up their quality again, it's definitely a staple of this part of town.

Restaurant looks dirty. Tables and even glasses look dirty too. The service is terrible. I don't know how some people can give them good reviews. Very bad experience!
I will never come again!

The food is good, but the service is really slow and bad, in my experience I would recommend the owner to get more waiters and to train them better

So this place turns out to be all about the barbecued meats and curries, and it's amazing. Prices are super reasonable and portions are great. The owner is friendly, wore his mask and made good suggestions. We sat on the patio and felt totally comfortable with things despite the COVID situation.

We will definitely be back to try other dishes.

I ordered food for TWO households of 6 people each (incl.mine) on May 11,2021. The food was ready on time. Nicely and appropriately packed (bhajias containers had holes poked so they would stay crispy, LOL). And as ALWAYS with James St, the food was very good and tasty, with very generous portions. Spice level was perfect so grandchildren enjoyed it too. Feedback from other family was excatly the same, they loved it and have enough left over for today, they said. Thank you JSC! From Al Suleman & Mohamed Abdulla, Burnaby.

Before the shut down again, I was there with my friends. The food was excellent and I do believe the owners/hosts Anish and Pari are fabulous people who know the food industry. I can also go on about the food with reviews to the moon however one must try the butter chic, the choma platter and veggie samosas. I have now been forced to get takeout and all I have to say is WOW! The takeout I had was Chic Mogo and they have these new grass fed 100% lean beef rolls in a wonderful pastry + the owner recommended this mini coconut cake? Called a Vithumba AMAZING!
I so recommend this place. Portions are huge, prices are very reasonable and takeout is fast and efficient.

Wait time till stuff came to our table and then till they brought us our meal was way too long, even though the restaurant didn’t have any other guests. Food was not great not terrible but it didn’t impressed us.

Miss hosting parties at James st with the best food and service. Try out their karai beef and butter chicken, two of my favs.looking for something light or to go? They have the best yama choma platters. Enjoy

Food quality and taste, ambience and service! Everything is great! And over get to meet TD, he is the best! Definitely will visit again.

I went to this James Street restaurant yesterday about 3: 00 p.m. In the afternoon. My scooter for the handicap was out of battery, and I asked them if I could plug my scooter in to charge. And the staff there was so nice and helped me with plugging it in, and was so nice to us while we were there. I would definitely recommend this restaurant because besides food they are very helpful.

Teddy, the host is wonderful, competent and friendly. But that’s where the experience ends. The food has gone downhill significantly over the past few years. I ordered a lamb biryani. The meat was tough, the dish bland and it was NOT biryani but a generic bland lamb curry on rice. Awful. Avoid this place at all costs! Overrated, overpriced and underwhelming.

Food is always on point. Great customer service. Never a disappointment. If you haven't been there I highly recommend to either go dine in or make and order to go you definitely won't regret it.

Delicious food and incredible service! Most of the 1-2 star ratings are from more than 2 and some are 5 years back so I am sure they had management ownership nor staff change. I haven't seen any 3 or less star ratings off late.

This place specializes in East African cuisine. If you've been to Jambo Grill or Kilimanjaro on Kingsway, Simba Grill nearby you'll recognize the food. Heavy on grilled meats and BBQ with sauces, this place is a meat lovers heaven. What's more they serve alcohol too. The community is Ismaili who trace their lineage to Aga Khan.

The manager TD was super friendly and shared a lot of warm conversation. Ordered the chilli garlic prawns. Was fresh and juicy, came with a sode of in house pilipili (peri peri) sauce. They also have other staple East African dishes like kukupaka, mandazi, choma etc. Also a small bakery section where you can take away breads and snacks.

Prices on the higher side but I definitely didn't feel it to be a waste or any regrets. Owner was also around and friendly. Washrooms are clean. Seating os distanced and place was quite empty although many takeaway orders from apps and regular clients.

Definitely prefer this ober Simbas Grill. Will repeat and recommend for the good food and warm service from TD!

It was good experience to eat African food. Especially the Nyama Choma was good. Server was friendly and nice. I will visit again to eat other foods

TD was our host and looked after us very well! Everything tasted amazing and was good value, will return very soon!