Taj Palace Columbus: North Side Indian Dining With a Lunch Buffet Worth Planning Around
A sit-down Indian restaurant on Columbus's north side, Taj Palace has operated for years as a reliable option for Northern Indian cooking, with a lunch buffet format that draws regulars from the surrounding Worthington and Polaris area.
What It Is and Where It Fits
The restaurant sits on Morse Road, a corridor that has quietly become one of Columbus's more practical stretches for South Asian and Middle Eastern food. Taj Palace focuses on the North Indian canon: tandoor-cooked proteins, slow-simmered curries, and bread baked in a clay oven. It is not a fast-casual counter or a modern small-plates concept. This is a full-service, tablecloth-adjacent restaurant that functions well for groups, family dinners, and business lunches.
The Lunch Buffet
The buffet is the main reason most Columbus diners know the name. Lunch service runs through the early afternoon on weekdays and through a longer window on weekends. Pricing runs in the $13 to $15 range per person for the buffet (confirm current pricing when you go, as it adjusts periodically). The spread typically includes chicken tikka masala, dal makhani, palak paneer, rice, and rotating vegetable dishes, alongside naan or puri. The tandoor items on the buffet are what separate a good Indian buffet from a forgettable one, and Taj Palace generally keeps at least one tandoor protein on the line.
For Columbus diners comparing Indian buffets, the most direct alternative is Aab India Restaurant on Sawmill Road, which runs a similar buffet format at a comparable price point and draws from the same north Columbus customer base. Taj Palace tends to be the slightly quieter option on weekday afternoons, which makes it preferable if you are eating with someone you actually want to hear. Aab gets louder on weekends and has a larger dining room. Both are legitimate choices; the difference is mostly atmosphere and which dishes happen to be strong on a given day.
Dinner and À La Carte
Dinner moves away from the buffet and into full à la carte ordering. Entrée prices in the $14 to $20 range cover most of the menu. The lamb rogan josh and the chicken karahi are the dishes that come up most often in repeat-visitor conversation. Vegetarian options are not an afterthought here: paneer dishes, chana masala, and dal preparations are made with the same kitchen attention as the meat dishes, which matters if you are eating with a mixed group.
Naan varieties (garlic, plain, stuffed) are priced separately and worth ordering. The mango lassi is standard and reliable.
Who This Suits
Taj Palace works well for anyone who wants table service, a full menu, and a setting appropriate for a dinner out rather than a quick meal. The lunch buffet is a good fit for first-time visitors to Indian food because the format lets you try several dishes without committing to a single entrée. If you are already familiar with Indian food and want something more regional or adventurous (Hyderabadi biryani, South Indian dosas, Kerala fish curry), this is not the right restaurant. The menu is solidly Northern Indian and does not stray far from that.
It is also not the choice if you want takeout-first convenience. While Taj Palace does take carryout orders, the restaurant is built around the dine-in experience, and the buffet obviously does not travel.
First Visit Logistics
Walk-ins are generally fine for lunch. Weekend dinner can get busier, particularly on Friday and Saturday evenings, so a reservation or a call ahead is worth the two minutes. The dining room is comfortable without being oversized. Parking is a surface lot, standard for the Morse Road strip-center format, and not an issue.
Service is attentive without being intrusive. Staff are generally willing to explain dishes or adjust spice levels on request, which matters if you are bringing someone unfamiliar with Indian food.
Hours and Practical Notes
Lunch buffet hours run roughly 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, with dinner beginning around 5:00 p.m. Hours on major holidays vary. The restaurant does not require reservations for most weeknight dinners, but calling ahead for parties of six or more is reasonable.
Among the Indian restaurants in the immediate north Columbus area, Taj Palace occupies a consistent middle ground: more formal than a buffet-only lunch spot, less expensive than a special-occasion destination, and dependable enough that regulars return on a monthly rotation. That consistency is what has kept it on the Morse Road corridor while other concepts have turned over around it.