This fast-casual spot in East Nashville offers a build-your-own-bowl experience with your choice of masala rice, turmeric rice, naan, or mixed greens as the base; lamb, chicken, paneer, and chickpeas for proteins; and a variety of curries, sauces, and vegetables as toppings. You can also opt for one of Gully Boyz’s customizable kathi rolls — just make sure to follow it up with some gulab jamun (honeyed milk-dough balls) for dessert.

Head to Nashville’s Farmers’ Market and seek out Swagruha for some of the city’s best eat-on-the-go Indian fare. Owned by South Indian natives Vijay and Siva Pavuluri, count on this small, cafeteria-style stall for a quick and satisfying mix of aromatic and subtly complex dishes like spicy goat curry, chili chicken, vegetable korma, dosa, and mango lassi.

Tucked into Assembly Food Hall, Saffron gives traditional Indian dishes an on-the-go twist befitting of its hectic, try-it-all-at-once location. Exhibit A: biriyani bowls loaded with your choice of chicken, paneer, vegetables, shrimp, and egg. Exhibit B: street snacks like pani puri and a variety of samosas. Wash it all down with a guava or sapota shake before setting off to brave the Broadway crowds.

Sindoore serves North Indian cuisine in an elegant space tucked into a strip mall off Donelson Pike. To start, try the chicken kati roll — an Indian street food staple resembling a burrito. Then, round out the meal with the Amritsari lamb shank and butter naan. But save room for dessert — the homemade paan ice cream is flavored with betel leaves and rose petals.

Sitar Indian Restaurant is located within walking distance of Vanderbilt University in the heart of Midtown, serving Indian and Pakistani cuisine for lunch and dinner in a warm, relaxing space. Don’t miss the scallop patia or chili pakora.

Another West End favorite, Bombay Palace draws crowds during its lunch buffet, which features traditional Indian favorites like vegetable korma, chicken curry, and tandoori chicken. While there’s no shortage of solid Indian restaurants on the west side of town, this strip mall gem keeps diners coming back with its consistent quality and accommodating staff.

The West End’s Woodlands Indian Vegetarian Restaurant is hugely popular among vegetarians (and quite a few non-vegetarians, too). Long-time fans rave about the masala dosa, gobi manchurian dry, and the pillowy poori, but you can sample all the restaurant’s biggest hits during its daily lunch buffet.

Curry and Tikka doles out a mean dahi puri, a scorching lamb vindaloo, and buttery naan from its sleek new digs on Thompson Lane. Locals have been flocking in and raving about its dishes, including some inventive twists on the standards like the naanza (a naan pizza) and tikka mac and cheese. The restaurant features live music on the weekends and has recently launched a lunch buffet. Curry and Tikka is open six days a week — it’s closed on Tuesdays — for lunch and dinner service.

Ask a local where to find the best Indian food in Nashville and Taj will likely be near the top of the list. This south Nashville restaurant recently moved from its Nolensville Pike location to newer, fancier digs nearby, but it’s still one of Nashville’s most popular places to dive into some chicken makhani, goat vindaloo, and lamb rogan josh. There’s a bit of a wait during peak dinner times, but the lunch buffet keeps things moving.

Bellevue’s 615 Chutney has something to feed all of your senses: there’s live music, a gallery with local art, and plenty of South Indian dishes. Forget a traditional menu here: order your dosa, parotta, and curries from the app, and wait for your robot server to deliver your dishes. Don’t miss the lunch buffet from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Friday through Sunday.

When in Franklin, Bawarchi Biryani is the place to score your samosas, curries, and, yes, biryanis. This no-frills spot lends itself more to pick-up than dine-in, but locals have been relying on its perfectly spiced meat and vegetarian-friendly curries for flavor-packed meals on the run or at home. Its robust offering of different biryanis beats out any other restaurant in town.