Dublin has become one of the Bay Area's strongest places to eat Indian food. The Tri-Valley's South Asian community has grown quickly over the past fifteen years, and the restaurants have followed. This list covers ten of the best-rated places in Dublin and its immediate neighbours, San Ramon and Pleasanton, with a note on what each does best.
How we chose: We started with every South Asian restaurant in our Dublin listings and ranked them by public rating. From there we kept dine-in restaurants with a clear speciality, and we included a range of styles so the list isn't ten versions of butter chicken. Ratings change over time, so check the listing before you go.
1. The Clove Indian Cuisine (San Ramon)
200 Market Place, San Ramon · Rated 4.8
The best-rated sit-down restaurant in our Tri-Valley listings. It's just over the San Ramon line from Dublin, and its listed hours run straight through from lunch to 10 pm, which makes it an easy choice when you don't want to plan around a lunch break. Go with a group and order across the menu.
2. Raya
7150 Village Parkway · Rated 4.6
A counter-service South Indian restaurant for biryani, dosa and parotta. Parotta is a flaky, layered flatbread from Tamil Nadu and Kerala, usually torn up and eaten with a spicy salna or kurma. It's hard to find done well in the US, and it's the thing to order here. Raya is also open all afternoon, from 11:30 am to 10 pm.
3. Rasraaj Indian Cafe
7375 Amador Valley Boulevard · Rated 4.6
A women-owned North Indian cafe with a small, focused menu. It closes between lunch and dinner, so plan around the afternoon break. It's a good choice for weekday lunch if you work nearby.
4. Star Chaat Cuisine
4930 Dublin Boulevard · Rated 4.5
The place for chaat, the tangy, crunchy, sweet-and-spicy street snacks of North India. Order a spread to share: pani puri (hollow puris you fill with spiced water), bhel puri, samosa chaat and dahi puri. The dining room is bright and colourful, and there's outdoor seating.
5. Pippal
4500 Tassajara Road · Rated 4.4
Dublin's more polished option, with a cocktail list and desserts that get mentioned as often as the mains. It's a good pick for a date night or a birthday dinner, and it has outdoor seating on the east side of town.
6. Baithak
4590 Dublin Boulevard · Rated 4.4
A dependable North Indian restaurant for the classics: tandoori, kebabs, biryani, and naan from the tandoor. It's open all day from 11 am to 10 pm, has outdoor seating, and is quick if you're in a hurry.
7. Khyber Pass Kabob
7467 Village Parkway · Rated 4.4
Technically Afghan rather than Indian, but it belongs on any South Asian food list for the area. The dining room has low tables and floor cushions, and the menu centres on grilled kabobs and Afghan rice dishes. It's a very different experience from the rest of this list, and well worth it.
8. Anjappar Chettinad Cuisine
3996 Summit Road · Rated 4.3
Part of an international chain from Chennai, Anjappar specialises in the cooking of Chettinad, a region of Tamil Nadu known for bold, black-pepper-heavy, fiery food. Try the Chettinad chicken or the kizhi parotta: parotta and curry wrapped in a banana leaf and steamed together. Anjappar also opens for breakfast.
9. Kailash Parbat
3982 Summit Road · Rated 4.3
A vegetarian North Indian restaurant from a well-known Mumbai name. The famous item is vada pav, Mumbai's street-food sandwich of a spiced potato fritter in a soft bun with chutneys. The chaat and sweets are good too. There's also a drive-through, which is rare for Indian food.
10. Biryani Spot & Dosa Grill
4288 Dublin Boulevard, #111 · Rated 4.3
A specialist for biryani, chicken 65 and thalis. Chicken 65 is a spicy, deep-fried chicken snack from Chennai. A thali is a full meal on one plate: rice, bread, several curries, dal, yoghurt and a sweet. It's the best way to try several dishes at once.
Also worth knowing
- Curry pizza. This Bay Area invention puts Indian curries on pizza, and Dublin has several good versions. Curry Pizza House (6599 Dublin Blvd) and Tandoori Pizza (4060 Grafton St) are the best rated. Tandoori Pizza's listed hours run until 4 am, which makes it one of the only late-night options in town.
- Home-style kitchens. Chic N Chop and Yogita's Kitchen are small, highly rated kitchens set up for pickup and delivery rather than dining in. They're worth trying if you want food closer to home cooking.
- More biryani. Biryani Bistro on San Ramon Road also serves Indo-Chinese dishes, and Paradise Biryani Pointe is a counter-service biryani chain with plenty of vegetarian options.
- Pleasanton. Sithara Indian Cuisine (Rosewood Drive) and Tabla (Santa Rita Road) are the best-rated options across the city line.
Tips for eating Indian food in Dublin
- Many restaurants close between lunch and dinner, usually from 2:30 to 5 pm, and several close on Mondays. Check a restaurant's hours in our listings before you go.
- Weekend lunch is busy, especially at South Indian places, where families go for late breakfast and lunch. Arrive before noon or order ahead.
- Ask about spice. Most kitchens will cook mild, medium or "Indian hot" on request.
- Vegetarians are well served. Kailash Parbat and Star Chaat are good places to start, and nearly every restaurant here has a long vegetarian section.
For the full list of South Asian restaurants in the area, with hours and phone numbers, see our Dublin, CA directory.