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Helmand Dining Room - The Helmand Restaurant, Cambridge, MA

The Helmand Restaurant

4.7
4.7
769 Reviews
$31 to $50
Middle Eastern

Make a booking

2 people
23:00
Booked 21 times today
  • Vegetarian-friendly
  • Good for groups
  • Good for special occasions
Helmand Restaurant offers Afghani dishes with a wood-burning oven where the famous flatbread is cooked on one side of the room and an intimate fireplace is on the other side.

Helmand Restaurant entrées include tasty choices like qabelee, which is pallow rice baked with chunks of lamb tenderloin, raisins and glazed carrots or mantwo, a homemade pasta shell filled with beef and onions. If you like spicy dishes, try the koufta challow, consisting of beef meatballs with Afghan seasoning sautéed with sun-dried tomato, hot peppers and green peas in a fresh tomato sauce. Several vegetarian entrées are also available such as the kaddo and banjan challow, which is pan fried and baked pumpkin and eggplant served with challow rice and yogurt garlic sauce.

*Due to limited patio seating, we do not take reservations for our patio . Please note the patio or any other special requests in your reservation, or ask upon arrival, and we will do our best to accommodate.

Order delivery or takeout

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Fine Dining
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Middle Eastern, Afghan, Halal
  • Hours of Operation
    Dinner Mon–Thu, Sun 5:00 pm–10:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–11:00 pm
  • Phone number
    (617) 492-4646
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Business Casual
  • Area
    Cambridge
  • Cross Street
    Bent Street<br />Across from the CambridgeSide Galleria
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Public transit
    Close to the Lechmere Green line T stop & bus station
  • Additional
    Gluten-free Options, Indoor Fireplace, Patio/Outdoor Dining

What 769 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.7
4.7 based on recent ratings
  • 4.7Food
  • 4.5Service
  • 4.6Ambience
  • 4.5Value

NoiseModerate

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
The Helmand Restaurant delights with its "amazing food" and "attentive, friendly service." Notable for a "unique menu" and "intoxicating spices," it offers a "fantastic dining experience" with standout dishes like Kaddo. Despite occasional noise, guests rave about its "comfortable and casual atmosphere" and "reasonable pricing," making it "highly recommended."

769 Reviews
  1. OpenTable Diner

    Greater Boston

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined 1 day ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Amazing food! Wonderful staff! Gorgeous atmosphere

    Is this helpful?

  2. John

    VIP

    Seattle

    171 reviews

    5.0

    171 reviews

    Dined 3 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 5
    Another great meal at The Helmand, sharing our favorite appetizers and plates family style. My only complaint is that I ate too much!

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  3. Bill

    Greater Boston

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined 3 days ago

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 5
    Elegant atmosphere, a nice assortment of menu options and drink options. Various table sizes and kind staff.

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  4. Kirk

    Greater Boston

    5 reviews

    5.0

    5 reviews

    Dined on 15 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Amazing food, as always, and great service!

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  5. Sharmo

    Greater Boston

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on 15 February 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 3
    Great food but noisy and felt like the tables were too close to each other. Cramped up a bit. But otherwise good experience.

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  6. Rachel

    VIP

    Dallas

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on 14 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Our dinner here was outstanding. We went on Valentine’s Day, which is a crazy day for any restaurant, but they did a wonderful job. Our table was ready at the reservation time, service was prompt and friendly, and the food was delicious. We enjoyed every dish we had, from appetizer to dessert. And the fresh bread with dips…wow. I could eat that all day!

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  7. Joseph

    VIP

    Greater Boston

    97 reviews

    5.0

    97 reviews

    Dined on 14 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Kaddo, the pan-fried then baked baby pumpkin appetizer is a must have.

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  8. Merrick

    VIP

    Greater Boston

    20 reviews

    5.0

    20 reviews

    Dined on 14 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Wine and our meals were fantastic. Mouth watering appetizers and entre to knock over your taste buds. Compared to most restaurants, their pricing was raasonable. Portions were generous and the staff was super friendly. This is my place to come back soon.

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  9. Janeen

    Greater Boston

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on 12 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    My second time at the Helmand...it was great just like the first time!

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  10. Bunny

    Greater Boston

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on 11 February 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    I love The Helmand. The food never disappoints. The service is full of grace — attentive, thoughtful, friendly, kind, professional. And the smell of the spices is intoxicating and somehow comforting.

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FAQs

The Helmand Restaurant does offer delivery in partnership with Postmates and Uber Eats. The Helmand Restaurant also offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (617) 492-4646.

The Helmand Restaurant is rated 4.7 stars by 769 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a booking

2 people
23:00
Booked 21 times today

Order delivery or takeout

Google Map for The Helmand Restaurant

143 1St St, Cambridge, MA 02142

Additional information

  • Cross Street
    Bent Street<br />Across from the CambridgeSide Galleria
  • Area
    Cambridge
  • Hours of Operation
    Dinner Mon–Thu, Sun 5:00 pm–10:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–11:00 pm
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Middle Eastern, Afghan, Halal
  • Dining style
    Fine Dining
  • Dress code
    Business Casual
  • Parking details
    Street Parking
  • Public transit
    Close to the Lechmere Green line T stop & bus station
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Additional
    Gluten-free Options, Indoor Fireplace, Patio/Outdoor Dining
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Impressum
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
  • Cookie Preferences
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