Pippal brings regional Indian cuisine to its recently introduced location in Dublin.
Neetu Laddha
A cloud of steam billows from our plate as crumbles of snow-white, liquid nitrogen-frozen yogurt are spooned over an architecture of ingredients: ripped pieces of savory dhokla sponge cake, crispy leaves of tempura-fried spinach, bright pomegranate seeds, and artful dollops of mint and tamarind chutney, to name a few. Perched at the stylish bar (topped with natural quartzite sourced from Brazil), I lower my phone after snapping a pic and lift my drink: a spin on an old fashioned that mixes ghee butter and chocolate bitters with bourbon poured over an oversize ice cube and served with a paper cone of caramel popcorn affixed with a tiny paper clip to the rim of the glass.
And this is just the start of our meal at Pippal, which launched with a Bollywood-worthy flourish last year in Dublin’s Waterford Place shopping center. It’s also perhaps the highest-profile example of an ambitious new wave of unapologetically upscale, modern restaurants redefining Indian food in the East Bay.
“For us, this started as a passion project to change the perception of Indian cuisine,” says Anu Bhambri, who cofounded Rivaaz Hospitality Group with her husband, Vikram. The collective operates several elevated Indian concepts in the Bay Area, including Pippal in Emeryville and Dublin, with Bollywood actor and model Jatin Grewal and his wife, Carolina, taking a lead role in launching the latter location that opened last fall.
Tender eggplant is the star in the Yellow Chilli’s bagara baingan.
Courtesy of the Yellow Chilli
Reimagining Regional Fare
The Bhambris also illustrate a new generation of Indian restaurateurs bringing fresh takes to a dining scene previously dominated by smaller, budget-conscious eateries specializing predominantly in the heartier, curry-heavy dishes of northern India.
“There is now a larger, newer Indian population, and palates have evolved,” says Bhambri, who grew up in Delhi and came to the Bay Area to work in the tech industry. “Every cuisine has gone through changes in this country, where it starts off with mom-and-pop places and then becomes more upscale. Mexican food went through it. Chinese has gone through it. It’s about time that Indian cuisine went through it as well. It doesn’t have to all be cheap lunch buffets. There’s always a place for that, but there’s also a place for a more upscale dining experience.”
It’s a trend that has accelerated in the United States over the past 10 years, says Bhambri, particularly in San Francisco and the South Bay, where Rivaaz has opened locations of its original modern Indian concept, Rooh, and its spinoff cocktail lounge, Fitoor. Acclaimed chef Srijith Gopinathan’s trio of Eylan in Menlo Park, Copra in San Francisco, and Ettan in Palo Alto blends Indian flavors with seasonal California fine-dining sensibilities and premium ingredients such as caviar, truffle oil, and Wagyu rib eye. And Michelin-starred chef Sujan Sarkar and his brother Pujan (both of whom helped guide the kitchen at Rooh) opened Tiya in San Francisco, complete with multiple $100-plus tasting menus. By contrast, the East Bay has been slower to jump on the upscale Indian train. That has begun to change, most noticeably with the arrival of the Yellow Chilli.
The interior of Khaki Bar and Indian Canteen in San Ramon infuses modern California style with Indian textures.
Neetu Laddha
The first East Bay outpost of celebrity Indian chef Sanjeev Kapoor’s flagship franchise caused a stir when it debuted four years ago in the former Maria Maria space in Danville’s Rose Garden shopping center. Between the sweeping dining room, two outdoor patios, a large banquet space, elegantly plated dishes, and a full bar with an extensive wine list and craft cocktails, the Yellow Chilli offered a dining experience that local co-owner Shivraj Sidhu says “you don’t see [with] any other Indian restaurants around here.” It immediately drew curious suburban diners, and Sidhu quickly followed it with the Essence Redefining Indian Food, an expansive Indian concept in Livermore that’s lured similar crowds in the Tri-Valley and Central Valley.
Another unique aspect of the Yellow Chilli is its menu, which expands beyond chicken tikka masala, samosas, and garlic naan standards into lesser-known regional dishes. That is also the case at Khaki Bar and Indian Canteen, a new full-service restaurant that opened last year in San Ramon’s City Center Bishop Ranch. Akash Kapoor established the eatery in partnership with the Sarkar brothers. It’s a departure for Kapoor, who built up his popular fast-casual Curry Up Now restaurant chain by repurposing U.S. Indian staples—tikka masala, samosas, and naan among them—into a more modern package. But the same instinct that spurred him to put a fresh spin on familiar dishes inspired him to feature less traditional fare at Khaki.
Khaki’s lamb burrah kabab entrée features prime single-cut chops.
Jesse Cudworth
Yes, the stylish contemporary space with a full bar does serve butter chicken, because, as Kapoor acknowledges with a hint of resignation, “you have to put butter chicken on the menu.” But it also prepares Delhi street-style chicken kebabs, a version of the fried jackfruit and potato cutlets popular in Kolkata, and a whole butterflied branzino wrapped in banana leaf with a coconut–tomato masala common to the southern coastal state of Kerala.
“We didn’t want to only do what people know, but to challenge what they know, too,” says Kapoor. “If someone asks me what is Indian food, it’s so hard to describe. It’s not just chicken tikka masala, it’s not biryani, and it’s not samosa: It’s 10,000 other things and 50 other cuisines.”
Pippal has a similar regional focus. In addition to the restaurant’s à la carte offerings, every month executive chef Munish Rana creates a new tasting menu inspired by a different geographical part of India.
Pippal’s momo dumplings are stuffed with chicken or mushroom and come with spicy chutney.
Neetu Laddha
In May, for example, Rana highlighted dishes from the western coastal states of Goa and Maharashtra, while in June he honed in on tribal flavors from the forested regions of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. In July, the menu spotlighted the country’s mountainous northeast with dishes such as chaat flavored with a dressing made from dalle chilies from the state of Sikkim; handmade momo dumplings in a roasted tomato jhol; and a Himalayan-style ghathuk noodle soup with chicken, egg, and seasonal vegetables.
Each menu requires extensive research and recipe testing—Bhambri says they often feature items that she herself has never tried or even heard of—but is part of the restaurant team’s vision of showcasing and celebrating cuisine rarely seen this side of South Asia.
“In India, if you travel 10 or 20 miles, the cuisine changes; even the language changes,” she says. “There are so many curries, so many flavors; it’s a complex food with so many spices and so much to showcase.”
The fare at Bangalore Blues in Berkeley is inspired by the flavors of South India.
Courtesy of Bangalore Blues
A Taste of Home
For Aravind Pochiraju, it’s become something of a personal mission to highlight the authentic flavors of the southern Indian state of Karnataka. The tech entrepreneur grew up there, where his family was poor in money but rich in food. By necessity, the local population, including his mother and grandmother, made everything by hand, with no canned food shortcuts. That’s something he’s attempting to replicate at his new Berkeley restaurant, Bangalore Blues, where he insists every dish is prepared using the same scratch-made, farm-to-fork methods from his childhood, including grinding and mixing imported whole spices that form the backbone of the cuisine. Standouts on the menu include dosas roasted golden brown in house-made ghee and methodically prepared, layered South Indian–style curries that can take upward of seven hours to prepare.
“All our sauces are completely made from scratch,” he says. “That way you know that you’re getting food that tastes home-cooked. The best Indian food is cooked at home, and that’s what my goal is to serve here.”
The restaurant, however, looks far from homespun. Bathed in moody blue tones, Bangalore Blues could pass for a jazz club at first glance were it not for the tantalizing, spice-tinged smells wafting from the kitchen. A striking central bar serves craft beer, organic wine, and house cocktails to match a special multicourse tasting menu highlighting Karnataka specialties such as bonda fried potato fritters and chicken Manchurian.
Pochiraju, who started his culinary journey with a fast-casual concept, says he realized that to charge as much as he needs to for his labor-intensive food, diners expect an atmosphere to match. Fortunately, that seems to be an easier sell these days in a rapidly evolving Indian restaurant scene that’s more accepting of change.
In the end, according to Kapoor, the bottom line remains the same as at any other upscale destination, be it Italian, Japanese, regional Indian, or otherwise.
“It doesn’t matter what it is. [With] a chicken dish, whether it’s prepared in a North Indian versus South Indian way, the goal is flavor,” says Kapoor. “I think if the food is good, people will come and want it again and again.”
The AK Old Fashioned at Khaki Bar and Indian Canteen.
Jesse Cudworth
Shaken, Stirred, and Spiced
More restaurants are adopting signature bar programs that put an Indian spin on classic cocktails.
AK Old Fashioned, Khaki Bar and Indian Canteen: Cardamom bitters and jaggery—an unrefined sweetener made from concentrated sugarcane or palm juice—join bourbon, rye, and orange oil in this old fashioned.
Jaljeera Vodkatini, the Yellow Chilli: Jaljeera, a popular North Indian beverage made with cumin, tamarind, water, and fresh herbs, is spiked with vodka and served martini-style with an olive garnish.
Kerala Backwaters, Pippal: Rasam, a South Indian broth made from tamarind, tomatoes, and spices, lends a savory punch to this Bloody Mary–esque vodka drink.
Mahal Mule, Taj Mahal Flavors of India: Mango chutney puts a twist on the classic Moscow Mule, served in a copper mug.
Royal Charter, East Bay Spice Company: Chai syrup anchors this bourbon cocktail, served up with lemon, orange bitters, Czech liqueur, and an Italian aperitif.
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Beyond Butter Chicken
Check out these less common dishes from across the Indian subcontinent.
Chaat: Vik’s Chaat in Berkeley was ahead of the curve in showcasing the delicious diaspora of Indian street snacks, including Mumbai-inspired vada pav, Delhi-style dahi papdi chaat, and the now seemingly ubiquitous pani puri: fried wheat spheres filled with spiced potatoes and chickpea and served with flavored water.
Dosas, Uttapams, and Idlies: San Francisco’s now-shuttered Dosa helped pave the way for restaurants such as Amrutha Vilas, Udupi Palace, and ID Café, which feature these increasingly popular South Indian specialties, typically served with sambar and chutney.
Hyderabad Biryani: The Hyderabad version of this basmati rice dish (pictured above), often prepared with yogurt-marinated halal meat such as goat, is receiving star treatment at restaurants including Paradise Biryani Pointe, Biryaniz, and Biryani Junction.
Indo-Chinese: Kolkata-style stir-fried Hakka noodles (Chandni Chowk), gobi Manchurian (Bangalore Blues), chili paneer (Gurkha Kitchen), and even momos in tikka masala (Urban Momo) are among the Chinese-influenced dishes popping up at various East Bay Indian restaurants.
Dining and Cooking