Ma'am Saab - Pakistani Restaurant 251 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29401

"Took a chance on Parkistani restaurant in Charleston - who knew? It was great! Service was outstanding! Food was terrific - spicy but not overwhelming (but they had their own hotter sauce to add if desired - lots of flavor & HOT). We had the pizza - really interesting on naan but really good. We highly recommend MaamSaab's - take the chance. They did have alcohol (we had a local craft brew)"

"Cozy atmosphere and great ambiance. Food was delicious if you like spices. It was full of flavor. Definitely recommend this restaurant. Our waitress Jacqueline is a gem."

"How do you describe a restaurant that deals in only one commodity, spice. Well, it was certainly spicy. Spicy but good. There’s a lot of meat on the menu and, did I mention, a lot of spice. We were a party of four, two of whom were vegetarians. For them, “pickins” were scarce, particularly if you were not a fan of hot and spicy. For meat eaters, you were in carnivore heaven. Everything from goat, to lamb, pork and beef and all hot and spicy. We shared the eggplant fritters and they were only mildly hot so everyone had a taste. They were excellent. The vegetarians were limited to a couple of rice dishes and naan. There were seasonal vegetables but we warned that they were hot, even when ordered with less spice. The Butter Chicken was excellent, tandoori chicken in a thick butter golden curry. The Bihari kebab was very good as well, tender ribeye marinated in yogurt with ginger garlic. Both dishes were a an 8 on a hot spicy scale of 1 to 10. The naan and paratha were perfect. This is a very specialized restaurant and if you are not into Packistan/Indian cuisine you are going to be disappointed. But if authentic subcontinent food is your thing, you have found the right place. Decor is subdued and very pleasant and, wonder of wonders, noise level was relatively low and you could actually converse at normal levels. Service was efficient and not, in your face, overly friendly. There is a parking garage close by and the restaurant is easy walking distance from the market and downtown hotels. It has a full bar and a decent selection of wine and beer. Overall, this was a good meal in pleasant surroundings with good service. Did I mention that the food was spicy? The restaurant gets 3.5 clams (4 stars equivalent ) on the coveted Five Quahog Rating Scale."

"We did the preset kitchen menu and it was fantastic. For $65 per person you get more food than you can possibly eat with 3 courses, not including dessert. The preset menu is required if you have 7 or more guests, however if you're a large group or not, I highly recommend just doing the preset. Let them cook and I promise you won't regret it. We were there to celebrate a birthday and it was incredible evening. The service was also fantastic, staying on top of our needs and even asking us if we were ready in between courses as to not rush us. This was a place I’ve been wanting to try for a while and it absolutely loved up. And again, get the preset menu!! It’s how they want to serve you, and you will not regret it."

"Really good!! The food was awesome, especially the Biryani - we got the lamb and chickpea and both were excellent. They come out looking like little pies! So cute!! Be warned that the lamb one was too spicy for some at our table, they do not ask your preferred spice level so just beware! We also had the veggie samosas which were dank and the puffed rice was funky but good! The staff was friendly and service was prompt, we will definitely be back!"