Namaste India Cuisine

Name: Namaste India Cuisine
Address: 1501 Mission St, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, US
Telephone: 831-316-7032

North Indian

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Daily 11:30am-2:30pm, 5pm-9pm

1501 Mission St, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
831-316-7032
Last verified: August 2026
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Aloo, gobi, bhindi, baingan, matar: The vegetable vocabulary of a North Indian menu: aloo is potato, gobi cauliflower, bhindi okra, baingan eggplant (bharta is roasted and mashed), matar peas, jeera cumin. Malai kofta are dumplings of paneer and potato in a creamy gravy. "Aloo gobi" is potato and cauliflower; "matar paneer" peas and paneer, and so on. The name is the recipe. On this menu as: Gobi Manchurian · Aloo Gobi · Baigan Ka Salan.
Tandoori: Cooked in a tandoor, a deep, charcoal- or gas-fired clay oven that reaches very high heat. Tandoori chicken is bone-in pieces marinated in yogurt, lemon, ginger-garlic and spices (the red color is mostly Kashmiri chili or food coloring), skewered and roasted until charred. Naan is slapped onto the same oven's walls. On this menu as: Tandoori Paneer Tikka · Tandoori Chicken · Tandoori Salmon.
Paneer: Fresh, unaged cheese made by curdling hot milk with lemon or vinegar and pressing the curds into a firm block. It does not melt, so it can be grilled (tikka), fried, or simmered in gravies, and it is the standard vegetarian protein on North Indian menus. On this menu as: Thali Saag Paneer · Tandoori Paneer Tikka · Matar Paneer.
Garam masala: "Masala" simply means a spice blend, or the sauce built on one. Garam masala ("warm blend") is the finishing mix of cardamom, cinnamon, clove, cumin, black pepper and other whole spices toasted and ground, added at the end of cooking for aroma rather than heat. Every region and household has its own proportions. On this menu as: Chana Masala · Okra Masala · Chicken Tikka Masala.
Dal: Lentils, and the soupy stew made from them. Dal tadka is yellow lentils finished with a tempering (tadka) of spices sizzled in ghee; dal makhani is black lentils and kidney beans simmered overnight with butter and cream; sambar is the sour, tamarind-and-vegetable lentil stew of the south, served with dosa and idli. On this menu as: Spinach Tadka Daal · Daal Makhani.
Tikka: Boneless cubes marinated and grilled on skewers in the tandoor. Chicken tikka is the yogurt-and-spice version; malai tikka is marinated in cream and cheese for a mild, silky result; hariyali is a green marinade of mint, cilantro and spinach; paneer tikka is the vegetarian standard, often with peppers and onion on the skewer. On this menu as: Tandoori Paneer Tikka · Chicken Tikka Masala.

How these dishes compare

Tikkatypically $15 across 366 menus
Daltypically $11.99 across 344 menus
Butter chicken (murgh makhani)typically $16 across 318 menus
Tandooritypically $11.97 across 316 menus
Roti, chapati & parathatypically $4 across 313 menus
Saag & palaktypically $15.95 across 309 menus
Tikka masalatypically $16.99 across 303 menus
Chana masala & choletypically $14.99 across 292 menus

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Namaste India Cuisine

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How these dishes compare

Namaste India Cuisine on our other sites

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