Coming from the team of ROOH, this new casual Indian spot is a nice addition to the neighborhood.

Located in Emeryville, Pippal is the newest addition to the outdoor shopping plaza focusing on regional Indian cuisine. The menu was certainly a challenge as a lot of the dishes were inspired by not so popular dishes that you wouldn’t typically find at an Indian restaurant here. I asked our server what she recommended and she helped narrow down the options.

Anjir and Green Banana Sheek Kebab (7.5-8/10).

This was actually a vegetarian kebab made with green banana and various spices served with roomali roti (Indian flatbread), pickled onions, and dried figs. It might sound like an odd dish but it was savory and surprisingly delicious.

Gongura Chicken (7.5-8/10)

Hard not to like fried chicken with coconut and masala chili. Definitely a crowd pleaser.

Dahi Vada (8/10).

This was a fun dish with lots of vibrant flavors and textures. The base of the dish is papdi chaat, a popular street food of fried crackers with chickpeas. The various sauces included a mint chutney and a yogurt based sauce with a sprinkling of anar dana, a spice made from dried pomegranates that has a fruity yet tangy flavor. The dish was topped with sali potato or fried potato strings. This was one of my favorites of the night.

Sarson Ka Saag (7.5/10).

Sarson ka saag is a stewed greens dish with lots of spices. This was served with missi roti, a nutty flatbread made with whole wheat flour. The accompanying condiments were makhan (a type of homemade butter) and gur (cane sugar). Both are meant to balance out the spiciness of the greens.

Butter Chicken (8/10).

Of course we had to get butter chicken and theirs didn’t disappoint with that rich and creamy sauce.

Baingan Bharta (7-7.5/10).

Lastly we got the stewed eggplant dish with onion and tomato masala. It was good but nothing memorable.

We decided to skip dessert which is basically unheard of because I like to finish off the meal with something sweet. Trying new dishes is always exciting especially when you have no expectations. I enjoyed the different flavor profiles that I don’t typically have so my rating is a 7.5/10.