New Indian Restaurants in San Mateo (July 2026)
TL;DR
- 🍛 San Mateo's Indian dining scene carries genuine range in 2026 — fine dining, traditional staples, and daily North Indian fare
- All Spice at 1602 South El Camino Real is Chef Sachin Chopra's globally-influenced fine dining cottage, reservation-only evenings
- Tabla Indian Restaurant brings a multi-location traditional Indian format to 450 South Norfolk Street, open for lunch and dinner
- Curry & Kabab on South El Camino Real runs seven days a week, 10am to 10pm, with North Indian curries and tandoori
- Each restaurant serves a different purpose — the right one depends on what you are planning
San Mateo's Indian Restaurant Landscape in 2026
San Mateo has long carried a modest but steady Indian food presence, shaped by South Asian professionals who commute between San Francisco and Silicon Valley along the Peninsula. What has shifted more recently is the range. The city now has options that span fine dining, casual everyday Indian, and mid-range traditional fare — different occasions, different price expectations, and genuinely different culinary philosophies.
This guide covers three verified establishments drawn from current directory data. Each serves Indian food in its own way, and together they give San Mateo's Desi dining scene a useful spread for different days and different needs.
All Spice: Fine Dining Rooted in Indian Culinary Language
All Spice at 1602 South El Camino Real is the most formally structured restaurant on this list. Chef and owner Sachin Chopra has built All Spice around a 3-course dinner format, operating Tuesday through Friday from 5:30pm to 8pm, and Saturday from 5pm to 8pm, by reservation. The space itself is a 1906 cottage — a physical intimacy that most dining rooms do not have and cannot replicate through design alone.
The culinary approach is modern Californian with global influences: Indian, Asian, European, and contemporary American flavors are all part of the cooking vocabulary. This is not a curry-house format. The Indian reference points show up in spice language, technique, and flavor architecture rather than as individual dishes from a traditional menu. Think of it as a chef who trained in the Indian culinary tradition and applies that understanding to a broader Californian fine dining frame.
Private dining rooms at All Spice accommodate up to 18 guests. Full restaurant buyouts are available for groups up to 40, which makes it a viable choice for corporate dinners or family milestone events that warrant a more elevated setting than a banquet hall. Curbside pickup of the 3-course dinner is also available for those who prefer to eat at home.
Reservations are required for dine-in. The phone is (650) 627-4303.
Tabla Indian Restaurant: Traditional Indian, Multi-Meal Reliability
Tabla Indian Restaurant - San Mateo at 450 South Norfolk Street brings a familiar menu of Indian classics to the Peninsula. Hours run 11:30am to 9:30pm, covering both lunch and dinner without a midday break — useful for daytime drop-ins that All Spice cannot accommodate given its evenings-only schedule.
The menu leans traditional: Hyderabadi Biryani, Dosa, Paneer Butter Masala, and Gulab Jamoon are all present, prepared with locally-sourced ingredients. The approach is regional Indian cooking without dramatic fusion departures. For diners who want the comfort of familiar dishes rather than an experimental evening, Tabla fills that role cleanly.
The restaurant is part of a multi-location group operating across California, North Carolina, and Arizona. Catering is available for family gatherings and large-scale celebrations, with vegetarian and vegan options offered across the menu. This is a practical detail for the South Asian diaspora: events around weddings, religious occasions, or large family milestones often require catering that accommodates vegetarians without relegating them to a minimal afterthought menu.
Contact is available at info@tablacharlotte.com or +1 650-393-4338.
Curry & Kabab: Daily Indian, Wide Hours
Curry & Kabab at 1923 South El Camino Real operates seven days a week from 10am to 10pm — the widest operational window of the three restaurants listed here. This makes it the most practical choice for weekday lunches, spontaneous dinners, or late-evening meals when other options have already closed for the evening.
The menu covers North Indian curries, tandoori items, flavorful biryanis, and something less expected: Indian-style pizza. The food is described as prepared with fresh ingredients, and catering is available for both social and corporate events. The phone is +1-650-315-2136.
The 1923 South El Camino Real address places Curry & Kabab further south on the same road as All Spice, so a single pass down El Camino Real puts two distinct Indian dining propositions within reach of each other.
Choosing Between These Three
The three restaurants serve meaningfully different purposes, and the choice is mostly about what kind of meal you need:
All Spice is for planned evenings — a date, a celebration, a group buyout. Reservations required. Chef Sachin Chopra's vision here is specific and refined. This is not your default Tuesday lunch stop.
Tabla is for reliable traditional cooking at lunch or dinner without a reservation. A familiar Desi menu with regional Indian staples — biryani, dosa, paneer — that Indian families know well and order with confidence.
Curry & Kabab is for accessibility and daily range. Wide hours, a broad format that mixes North Indian curries with tandoori and biryanis, and catering options that work for community events.
Insider Tip: If you are planning a large Indian dinner — family celebration, office event, or community gathering — call the catering lines at both Tabla and Curry & Kabab before committing. Both explicitly offer catering, and comparing packages can surface meaningful differences in menu range, minimum headcount, and delivery logistics. Tabla's multi-location infrastructure may give it an edge on large-scale events.
FAQ
Q: Which of these restaurants works best for vegetarians? Tabla explicitly lists vegetarian and vegan options across its menu. All Spice's globally-influenced format likely includes vegetarian choices, but the menu shifts — call ahead to confirm. Curry & Kabab's North Indian menu traditionally carries strong vegetarian options.
Q: Does All Spice take walk-ins? All Spice operates by reservation for dine-in. Curbside pickup of the 3-course dinner is available without a reservation.
Q: Are these restaurants good for large group dining? All Spice accommodates up to 18 guests in private dining and up to 40 for full restaurant buyouts. Tabla and Curry & Kabab both offer catering for larger events.
Q: Are there lunch options at these restaurants? Tabla is open from 11:30am and explicitly covers lunch. Curry & Kabab opens at 10am daily. All Spice is evenings only, starting at 5pm or 5:30pm depending on the day.
Q: Are these restaurants suitable for non-Indian guests unfamiliar with Indian food? All three are accessible for guests new to Indian cuisine. All Spice's modern Californian format is the gentlest entry point; Tabla and Curry & Kabab offer traditional dishes that are widely familiar.
Bottom Line
San Mateo now carries a genuine spread of Indian dining options for the Desi community on the Peninsula. All Spice, driven by Chef Sachin Chopra's refined vision, stands apart as a fine dining experience with Indian culinary roots. Tabla Indian Restaurant - San Mateo brings traditional South Asian staples in a reliable, multi-meal format with strong vegetarian coverage. Curry & Kabab fills the daily-driver role with wide hours, a broad North Indian menu, and accessible catering. Three restaurants, three distinct approaches — the right choice depends entirely on what you are planning.