Tucked into a Tarzana strip mall, Apey Kade’s husband and wife owners Lalith Rodrigo and Niza Hashim prepare Sri Lankan dishes, including a specialty dish called chicken lamprais made with chicken or beef curry in coconut milk and wrapped in banana leaf.

Part grocery store and part sit-down restaurant, Bhanu’s Indian Grocery & Cuisine has been winning the hearts and stomachs of San Gabriel residents since 2011. Crowd-pleasing favorites include the chicken tikka masala, coconut fish curry, samosas, and butter chicken.

Cinnamon replaced the former Indian restaurant Cardamom in September, and it’s a welcome addition to its predecessor with combination platters, mulligatawny soup, curries, and masalas.

Santa Monica is filled with casual Indian concepts, but Tumbi takes a modern approach with farmers market ingredients and fanciful presentations. Add in craft beer and wine for a night out on the town with flavors that might feel familiar, but could only happen in Los Angeles.

The self-designated “home of the Indian burrito” moved from the Chevron gas station into a charming outdoor section of Westfield Culver City. They also have a small outpost in Koreatown, with another headed to Woodland Hills this spring. Order the vegan masala egg scramble, or chana masala bowl served over jeera rice that includes a side of raita.

This humble market and takeout restaurant has a smaller but excellent array of mostly Pakistani dishes, starting with flavor-packed biryani. Chicken tikka, beef kabob, and plush naan are also on the small menu, along with chicken karahi. Weekends bring some specials like lamb pulao. Call in to order ahead, and pick up a dried lentils to take home from Zam Zam’s small market.

Al-Noor is a convenient 10-minute drive from LAX, making it quite the spot to refuel after a day of traveling. This Lawndale gem offers great takes on all the favorites, as well as rarer dishes like the Pakistani nehrani, a braised beef shank topped with fresh ginger and jalapeno and served with a wheat flour paratha.  

Khan Saab Desi Craft Kitchen opened one month before the pandemic began. There, chef Imran Ali Mookhi combines dishes from Pakistan, India, and Afghanistan that is completely halal, including a wood-fired bone-in tomahawk steak, kabobs, and a breakfast curry.

While there are many great Indian restaurants in Artesia, Rajdhani might just be the best. This western Indian specialist shines with its vegetarian thalis — big metal platters filled with various vegetarian curries and eaten with freshly made bread.

Open since 1988, Jay Bharat’s Artesia location is incredibly busy. Order ahead from this seasoned restaurant to pick-up Punjabi-style samosas, cheese dosas, or a very filling thali platter with rice, gujarati dal, vegetable curries.

This hidden gem in Lomita serves a solid mix of Pakistani and Indian classics. The malai kofta is the menu highlight — vegetarian potato-and-paneer balls swimming in a creamy gravy — along with fluffy and flavorful biryani.

This best way to experience this West Hills Pakistani specialist is to arrive with one or more dining partners, ask the staff for recommendations like the biryani or seekh kebab, some naan, and enjoy.

Relative newcomer Roots is welcoming in fresh faces and regulars every day, working a menu that moves beyond the classics into only-in-LA territory. Stop by for a variety of fun offerings like paneer masala fries and chicken wings glazed in butter chicken sauce.