Indian food in Palo Alto

Palo Alto has a small but varied group of Indian restaurants. It runs from a Cal-Indian dining room listed in the MICHELIN Guide to a halal counter that stays open until nearly midnight. Many engineers, researchers and Stanford students come from South Asia, so the restaurants cook for diners who know the food well. Prices run high by national standards, as they do across the city, but there are casual options at every end of town.

Every restaurant below has a page in our business directory, verified in October 2026 against each restaurant's own website. Hours change often, so check the restaurant's site before you go. For the wider picture of Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Southeast Asian food, see our Asian food guide.

What to know about Indian food here

"Indian food" covers the cooking of a subcontinent with more than a billion people and dozens of regional traditions. Restaurants in the United States long leaned on North Indian and Punjabi dishes: tandoor-cooked meats, creamy curries and naan. Palo Alto's newer restaurants go wider. Some cook regional dishes with California produce. Others serve street food in fast-casual formats. Pakistani and Nepalese kitchens share many ingredients and techniques with Indian ones but have their own identity.

A few terms help when you read a menu:

• Kabab. Grilled or skewered meat. Pakistani menus give kababs a central role.
• Biryani. Rice layered and cooked with spiced meat or vegetables.
• Chaat. A family of tangy, crunchy street snacks with chutneys and yogurt.
• Kathi roll. A Kolkata street food wrap of fillings rolled in flatbread.
• Momo. Nepalese dumplings, steamed or fried and served with a dipping sauce.
• Dal bhat. The everyday Nepalese meal of lentils and rice with sides.

Spice levels vary by restaurant and dish. Most kitchens will adjust heat if you ask when you order.

Where the restaurants are

Indian restaurants in Palo Alto sit in two clusters. Downtown has four within a short walk of the Caltrain station: Ettan on Bryant Street, Rooh and Curry Pizza House on University Avenue and Curry Up Now on Hamilton Avenue. California Avenue has the other two: Zareen's in the car-free stretch and Rara at the low-numbered end of the street, closer to the Caltrain station. Both clusters are a short walk from a Caltrain station. Our downtown guide and California Avenue guide cover parking and nearby streets.

Places to try

Ettan, 518 Bryant Street

Ettan is an upscale Cal-Indian restaurant that opened in February 2020. The executive chef is Srijith Gopinathan. It is one of the Palo Alto restaurants listed in the MICHELIN Guide without a star. The space includes a courtyard patio and a mezzanine used for private dining. The restaurant lists its dress code as smart casual. It suits a birthday, an anniversary or a business dinner. Our fine dining guide places it alongside the city's other special-occasion rooms.

Rooh, 473 University Avenue

Rooh is a progressive Indian restaurant and cocktail bar. It opened in Palo Alto on January 10, 2020, in the space that once housed Arte Ristorante. In the restaurant's words, it pairs regional Indian flavors with California produce. Its website describes the room as designed to feel like a heritage family home with a large front courtyard. Sister restaurants operate in San Francisco, New Delhi and Columbus. Diners used to a traditional curry house menu may find the plating and seasonal dishes less familiar.

Zareen's, 365 South California Avenue

Zareen's is chef and owner Zareen Khan's halal Pakistani and Indian restaurant. Her family comes from Karachi, Bombay and Punjab. The first Zareen's opened in Mountain View in March 2014 and the Palo Alto restaurant, open since October 2016, is now the flagship. The menu mixes street food, grilled kababs, biryani, paratha rolls and home-style dishes. It lists hours of 11 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. every day, with takeout only after 11 p.m. City Lot 7 sits behind the restaurant.

Curry Up Now, 321 Hamilton Avenue

Curry Up Now began in 2009 as a single food truck in Burlingame, started by Akash and Rana Kapoor. It serves Indian street food in formats Americans know: burritos, bowls and naan pizzas, plus kathi rolls and vada pav. All of its meat is halal. The company caters office lunches, birthdays and weddings. For parking, the restaurant points to metered spaces on Hamilton Avenue and the city garages about two blocks away.

Curry Pizza House, University Avenue

Curry Pizza House is a branch of a California chain founded in 2012 that tops pizza with Indian flavors and serves wings, chaat and sides. Its hours set it apart: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. That makes it one of the few hot meals downtown after 11 p.m. Ordering runs online for pickup or delivery.

Rara, 201 California Avenue

Rara is a Nepalese restaurant named for Rara Lake in Nepal. It opened in fall 2023 and describes its food as Nepalese cuisine with a modern touch. The menu covers momo, chhoila, soups, curries and dal bhat sets with paneer, goat, chicken or fish. It serves wine and draft beer, has a kids menu and offers a private room for up to 20 guests.

Indian flavors in dessert

Rick's Ice Cream at 3946 Middlefield Road in Midtown traces its start to 1956. It is now run by Ketki Dandekar and Arshiya Shaikh, the founders of Pints of Joy, a Sunnyvale company that makes eggless ice cream. The shop pairs Rick's classic flavors with flavors drawn from Indian desserts. It is a short drive from either dining cluster and works well after dinner. Our bakeries and desserts guide covers other sweet stops.

Dietary notes

Indian food is one of the easier cuisines for vegetarians, but labels and policies differ by restaurant.

• Halal. Zareen's is a halal restaurant. Curry Up Now says all of its meat is halal. Other restaurants do not make that claim on their sites, so ask.
• Vegetarian and vegan. Curry Up Now lists vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, keto-friendly and nut-free options and posts an allergen chart. Rara marks vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free dishes. Ettan is included in our vegetarian and vegan guide.
• Gluten-free. Naan and other breads contain wheat. Rice dishes and many curries do not, but ask about thickeners and cross contact.
• Labels you will not find. Zareen's website does not list vegan or gluten-free labels. Ask staff about ingredients if you have dietary limits.
• Nuts and dairy. Cashews, almonds, cream, ghee and paneer appear in many dishes. Tell staff about allergies before you order.

Reservations and ordering

The two downtown sit-down restaurants take bookings online. Ettan books through OpenTable for parties of 1 to 12. Rooh takes online reservations for up to 8 guests and has separate pages for private events and corporate dinners. Rara takes reservations by phone and through OpenTable. For Friday and Saturday dinner at Ettan or Rooh, book early rather than counting on a walk-in table, especially on Stanford weekends such as commencement in June.

Zareen's and Curry Up Now are casual and quick, which suits a short lunch. Curry Pizza House is built around pickup and delivery. When you order for a group, a common approach is a mix of curries, one lentil dish, rice and plenty of bread for the table.

1. Decide on sit-down or casual. Ettan and Rooh suit a long dinner. Zareen's, Curry Up Now and Curry Pizza House suit a fast meal.
2. Check the day. Hours differ. Some kitchens close between lunch and dinner.
3. Tell the restaurant about allergies when you book or order.
4. Read the bottom of the menu. California requires restaurants to disclose any mandatory surcharge.

Nearby in Menlo Park and Mountain View

Eylan in Menlo Park opened in January 2025 from the team behind Ettan, with live-fire Cal-Indian cooking. It takes bookings through OpenTable. In Mountain View, Zareen's runs a restaurant on Plymouth Street, the brand's original city. Mountain View's Castro Street is known for its range of Asian restaurants, including Indian ones. See our Menlo Park and Mountain View guides for getting there.

Frequently asked questions