Cafe Raj

We like the Lamb Shai Korma, Prawn Zafrani, and Mango Lassi. Always friendly and careful to cook to taste, as we have been regulars here for many years. Not an ambience in the the visual aesthetics or comfort, but a good value for the quality.

We ordered the sahbsi masala, bangan bartan (vegan), and lamb vindaloo. The lamb was my favorite dish by far with the most flavor and right spice combo. Initially I was not crazy about the sahbsi masala — it just did not have any flavor or spices. However when we packed it up to go, we licked the spoon when we got to the boot and it was yummy. We stirred the sahbsi and it tasted so much better. The spices had may be collected at the bottom? My least favorite was the bangan barta (eggplant), perhaps because it was vegan and didn’t have the fat? I didn’t enjoy it vegan style and probably would order it again regular style.
They give rice with each dish that’s ordered and it’s a lot of rice. Quite frankly, I think they could serve less rice. I think this place would be great if they offered one gluten free bread option — we don’t eat wheat or gluten so rice is our only option.

This place is pretty darn good. I had the butter chicken with naan this afternoon for a quick stop. I received 4 huge cubes of chicken from the tandoori oven covered with a really good and spicy sauce. I could have used another naan to sop up all of the goodness. The prices are reasonable, and the place is clean. Plus, the food is cooked by an old Indian woman. It seems like a family run joint. Go Grandma!

Love Love Love this place!!! Always pleasant when I eat in or take out. Very good service. Food made to order, so nothing sitting around waiting for you to eat it. I always go here when not wanting to cook. Enjoy!!!

The tandoori chicken is so good including everything else on their menus! I love the people who own this restaurant because they are all so friendly and they really want their customers to leave their place happy.
I always get their cheese naan because they are delicious! I have never found a place that makes the cheese naan as good as theirs. Their cheese for some reason is just melted so well that you can barely see the cheese and it just seriously meeeelllltsss in your mouth. Every time I order a cheese naan from some other indian restaurant the cheese is either in blocks or just chunks. The cheese naan never melts in your mouth like Café Raj’s.

We had an early dinner at Café Raj. There was only one person eating inside, so they told us to sit wherever we wanted. We took a booth against the side wall.
I was trying to decide between the Muchli Tikka and the Muchli Shai Korma. I’ve had both of them before, they are excellent. I wanted the sauce to go with my naan so I opted for the Muchli Shai Korma with salmon. Entrees are served with your choice of (brown or white) rice or plain naan. I had the white rice, with a garlic naan on the side.
When the Muchli Shai Korma appeared at the table I was happy to see large chunks of fish and a good number of them. I always worry about a small portion of fish swimming in a vat of sauce.
My only disappointment was with the garlic naan. First of all, it was noticeably smaller than my friend’s plain naan. Second and more importantly, it was rather doughy. I prefer it to be a little crunchy on the outside. This wasn’t.

My friend Raji, who has a wonderful mother who cooks even more wonderful Indian cuisine, told me about Café Raj. I tried it once and now I eat there on a regular basis.

We love this place Curries are all wonderful and their Nan delicious. We’ve loved their food for years and will for as long as they want to stay in biz!

I had a craving for sag paneer, spinach cooked till it is creamy, with cubes of fried fresh cheese, particularly good eaten with naan and cilantro mint chutney. This craving was fulfilled last night, accompanied by my partner’s spicy goat stew – we shared the dishes. Cooled off with raita (delicious, with cucumber and bits of tomato and some unusual spices) and sweetened with mango chutney. Order all the accompaniments and get the garlic naan. I’m game to try anything here. Unpretentious and all about the food. The place is simple, but freshly painted, simple decorations, and wait staff are attentive.

Vegetable Samosas (HOLY WOW).
Stuffed Naan/​Chappati (stuffed naan!?)
Vegetable Shai Korma (Let this be my final meal before death).
Muchli Shai Korma — salmon (anything with Almond milk and saffron is welcome!).
Café Raj is a delicious and affordable Indian/​Pakistan restaurant with personable owners and waitresses. The first time I met Café Raj was several years ago prior to becoming a pesceterian vegan and I remember ordering Gulab Jamen for dessert. It’s essentially two milk pastry balls served with a honey-​rose water-​coconut topping. It reminded me of an odd body part. Nonetheless, it was pretty delish, but haven’t tried it since.
Being back in the east bay, I attempted to reestablish my care into their hands in terms of Indian food, and was extremely satisfied with the vegan and pesceterian options. The portions are just right and the service is welcoming. It’s great for groups as well as intimate one=

First, I had the pleasure of meeting Chef Raj late Friday (8÷28÷15) night after getting finished with a long day of work. It was close to 10:30 PM, and they were still open and happy to take a late customer. That is a bonus in my book. I know how the dishwashers and other restaurant staff dislike people coming in right before close and ordering food. The staff here did not take offense to my late night arrival.
Secondly, the price of the food is incredible considering the deliciousness, quality, and quantity you receive. Combined with excellent table service, and a generous amount of vegetarian and vegan items to chose from this is the best Indian cuisine I have had in a very long time.
Chef Raj was very polite, and gracious with awarding me with a free rice pudding treat! I usually dislike rice pudding, but I couldn’t deny the offer of hospitality. I actually enjoyed it so much I couldn’t believe that I practically ate it all within seconds!
Some tips for what to order :
*The pakora are out of this world delicious and affordable!
*the Shai Korma is off the hook!
*how could forget the pudding :)
I appreciate your table service, your dedication to serving affordable and delicious vegan/​vegetarian food, and your generosity Chef Raj!

Absolutely the best northern Indian food in the Bay Area. Generous portions, amazing flavors and the nicest wait staff around. Every time I eat here, I’m reminded of just how satisfying the food is because I’m completely sated for hours afterward without feeling too full.
I often get chicken Tikka masaala or veggie shai korma because their gravies are out of this world. I also love appetizers like veggie pakora or onion bajia (gluten free onion rings, essentially), served with their fabulous dipping sauces.
Yum Yum Yum! So happy Café Raj is close to home.

I love Café Raj! The paneer tikka masala (my favorite dish) is delightfully done here. The sauce is smooth and always has the right amount of heat. The paneer itself is never skimped on, and is yummy. Plus even the to-​go orders have the toppings of slivered almonds and golden raisins! It is so good and quite flavorful. The pakoras have always been fried hard and were accompanied by yummy sauces. The chutneys are smooth versus chunky, the mint sauce is quite good but could be a bit brighter, and the raita is always fresh. I love the naans, especially the garlic naan which is SUPER soft. They are worth the value, you get quite a big piece for a great price! The rice is never over/​under cooked, and you get a fair amount for your meal.
I have not personally tried the meat dishes but my babe says they are delicious! The usually gets chicken tikka but occasionally orders lamb dishes and I have never heard anything other than good reviews. He raves about the keema naan which has ground meat inside! Mango lassi’s are refreshingly good and they are always fresh and never too sweet, perfect! The owner is so nice and has even offered/​given me kheer to take home, Let me tell you, the kheer is so good! The pops of green cardamom seeds are just so bright and bring a great element. Plus they are open on the later end (closes at 11:00pm) which works well for me.
After learning how to make some of my favorite Indian dishes, I truly do respect how much work and effort go into making them. The use of spices and labor of making your own paneer and layering flavors. Café Raj hits the note for me every-​time. Definitely utilizing each flavor! If you are in the area stop by and order anything, they will take care of you. They always take care of me.
Side Notes:
— Parking has never been an issue, plenty of open spaces along Solano.
— Ordering has always been easy and they are on time with wait times.
— The staff are always warm and welcoming, I never leave without a warm to go chai

I’d just about given up on finding a decent curry in the US, then I came to Café Raj. Britain is the home of Western curry and US stuff seems insipid and formulaic in comparison, but not here.
The first time we went to Café Raj was on the recommendation of our next-​door neighbour, who knows the owner because she teaches his kids. I’m very glad she took us, because the food is largely superb. I had the goat, well cooked so that it fell off the bone. My wife went for butter chicken, which was a little sweet for my tastes but she gobbled the lot with great pleasure.
Excellent naan, although I was less impressed with the stuffed version. Stick with plain naan, it’s delightfully chewy with a clean taste that adds to, but doesn’t mask, the flavours of the food.
We’ve since been back and even without an insider the food and service were spot on. The lamb masala is a joy to the taste buds, a subtle range of spices in a wonderful sauce, and the chicken korma combined traditional curry with nuttiness in a delightful way.
For starters we had veg pakora, which was maybe a little too deep fried but still delicious and crispy. The beef samosas, however, were utterly superb; no scrimping on the meat here, just large spicy balls of the stuff in a casing so good that it made me want to lick the plate.
Service was prompt and polite, with frequent refills of water and enough checks to see that everything is OK without being annoying. Huge kudos to the young lady who ran after us down the street because I’d left my credit card on the table — can’t help feeling I should have given her an extra tip but I had no cash on me.
To sum up, Café Raj is now our go-​to place for Indian/​Pakistani food. It’s less expensive than other places up Solano and, in my opinion, much better quality.

Loved the Chana Masala, Lamb Tandoori, Lamb Curry, fried cheese (forgot it’s name), and the service.
My only wish is that you could order meat dishes al a carte. Otherwise, you get a crazy amount of rice with every small meat dish. Even with several people, 2 rice plates are more than enough… Especially compared with how small the meat dishes are.

I love café raj. The staff is so friendly. My daughter is a big fan of the butter chicken she likes dipping her naan in the sauce. There are open until 11pm. I stopped bye when they just closed after a late night dancing and the owner opened the doors and turned the stove back on. Please don’t miss out and stop bye café Raj :)

My kids, my sister, and I have gone here a few times and we really enjoy it. So far, everything but one item we ordered has been delicious. Our favorite item is the cheese naan. So delicious!
The staff is friendly and there is usually no wait and the food comes quickly.

Great Indian restaurant find on Solano! I came here with some coworkers for lunch at around 11:15, so right as they were opening.
FOOD: I got the chicken saag with naan at medium spice. My only regret was not getting it spicy. I found the spinach to be cooked to perfection, and the chicken to be tender! I haven’t had that good of Indian food in a long time. It was very satisfying and hit the spot just right. The other options on the menu looked delicious and wish I could have eaten more!
SERVICE: Not fast, nor slow. Just about right, and our dining service was good.
I know I’ll be back here to try more food, it’s just a matter of time. What a great find on Solano, so keep it up Café Raj!

So disappointed. Was taking a walk down Solano to get home, decided to pop in to the ‘Raj’ and ordered ‘Tandori Chicken’, mixed veggies in Curry, and saag paneer.
The chicken was so old the meat close to the bone was literally brown. Not fresh in any way. The other two dishes were dismal as well. I have usually always had good food here, but they dropped the ball tonight.
I won’t be going back.
$ 30.00 plus tip to cashier — threw the food away. Sad.

Great little Indian restaurant they have here. The lamb vindaloo curry was tasty with just the perfect level of spice– a real nice, subtle kick that kept drawing me in for more. The brown basmati was interesting with shorter, rounder grains as opposed to long grain; had a more of a barley feel to it. The garlic naan was a bit on the dryer, tougher side, and it was a struggle to tear it apart, but it didn’t stop me from devouring it all. Thought it could use a little more garlic.
They also have great vegetarian/​vegan options here. Went here with a bunch of vegetarians and their food looked very appetizing.
The service here was very good as well. The ladies who attended our table were kind, attentive and patient. Will be making this place a go-​to for Indian food.