Indian food and Israeli culture make an instinctively good pair. The overlap between Indian vegetarian cooking and Israeli dietary habits — a country where roughly a third of the population avoids meat at least part of the time — means that dal makhani, paneer tikka, and aloo gobi land here without adjustment. Add a sizable Indian tech-worker community centred in Tel Aviv and Ra’anana, the ancient Bene Israel Jewish community whose families brought their own Konkan-influenced food traditions from Mumbai and Pune, and you have an unusually receptive audience.
The scene is smaller than Israel’s Japanese or Korean restaurant count, but it is real, and it spans the country more broadly than most people expect — from Florentin pop-ups to a thali spot in the Upper Galilee.
This guide covers the standout options by city and style. For the full searchable list, see our Asian businesses directory.
Tel Aviv#
Street Food & Casual#
Cafe Bollywood — Florentin, Tel Aviv
The most-followed Indian spot in Tel Aviv, and the one with the clearest identity: Mumbai street food, run by Pooja and Maskin Moses, olim from Mumbai. The menu runs pani puri, dosa, vada pav, and thalis in a compact Florentin space. The owners brought their recipes directly from home, and it shows — this is the kind of food you get at a Mumbai dhaba, not an approximation of it. Check their Instagram for current opening hours and seasonal specials.
📍 5a Maon Street, Tel Aviv | @cafebollywood.tlv | 054-514-1114
Kalu Baba Thali — Florentin, Tel Aviv
A Rajasthani vegetarian thali operation in Florentin, with over a thousand posts on Instagram and a loyal following among the Indian community. The thali format — multiple small portions covering a full meal — suits Israeli communal dining well. Pop-up scheduling: follow @kalubabathali for current dates and locations.
📍 Florentin, Tel Aviv | @kalubabathali
Gandhi Fast Indian Food — Tel Aviv
Fast-casual Indian in Tel Aviv. A no-frills counter with a rotating daily menu — curries, rice dishes, and wraps at accessible prices. Good option for a quick lunch.
Himalaya Kitchen — Tel Aviv
Himalayan-influenced Indian cooking in Tel Aviv, with a menu that skews North Indian: curries, tandoori dishes, and rice. A reliable neighbourhood option.
Masala — Tel Aviv
A sit-down Indian restaurant in Tel Aviv with a broad menu spanning tikka masalas, biryanis, and vegetarian specials. Popular with the Indian tech community for group lunches.
Indira — Tel Aviv
An Indian restaurant in Tel Aviv named after the former prime minister. Expect a full North Indian menu — butter chicken, palak paneer, naan — in a comfortable setting.
Tali Lama (TLV) — Tel Aviv
The Tel Aviv branch of the Tali Lama concept (also present in Pardes Hanna). Tibetan-Indian crossover menu with momos, thukpa, and Indian curries.
Tandoori Lands End — Tel Aviv
Tandoori-focused Indian at the edge of Tel Aviv. The name flags the cooking method: clay-oven breads, kebabs, and tikka dishes are the main draw.
Ma Pau Indian Food — Tel Aviv
A smaller Indian operation in Tel Aviv, oriented toward takeaway and delivery. Core Indian comfort food — dals, curries, and rice dishes.
Saone Rhone — Tel Aviv
A restaurant with an Indian food component alongside other cuisines. Worth checking for Indian specials.
Cafe Kaymak — Tel Aviv
Indian food among a broader Middle Eastern menu. Worth checking for Indian dishes.
Beyond Tel Aviv#
Herzliya & Sharon#
Tandoori Herzliya — Herzliya
An Indian restaurant on Maskit Street in Herzliya — conveniently placed for the tech park cluster along the coast. Tandoori dishes, curries, and rice. A solid option if you’re working or staying in the area.
📍 Maskit Street 32, Herzliya
HaHavaya HaHodit (The Indian Experience) — HaSharon
Bat-Chen Yakuti ran a cooking school in New Delhi for three years before returning to Israel. Her Indian cooking workshops and event catering cover a vegetarian and vegan menu rooted in that experience. Available for private events and group cooking classes across the Sharon region.
📍 HaSharon | @havaya_hodit | 050-719-0311
Rajnee’s Indian Vegetarian Food — Kfar Saba
Indian vegetarian catering in Kfar Saba, on Azar Street. A good option for the northern suburbs if you need Indian food for an office lunch or small gathering.
📍 Azar Street 53, Kfar Saba
Manali — HaSharon
An Indian restaurant in the Sharon area. Named after the mountain town in Himachal Pradesh — expect a Himalayan and North Indian menu.
Great India — Petah Tikva
Indian food in Petah Tikva. Part of the broader suburban Indian restaurant scene serving the large Indian tech community in the Petah Tikva–Ra’anana corridor.
Pardes Hanna#
Tali Lama — Pardes Hanna
The original Tali Lama: a Tibetan-Indian crossover restaurant in Pardes Hanna. Momos, thukpa, curries, and chai in a laid-back setting. Worth the drive if you’re in the Sharon area.
Ananda Curry House — Pardes Hanna
A curry house in Pardes Hanna with a focus on South Asian flavours. A local favourite for the Indian community in the area.
Taj — Pardes Hanna
Indian restaurant in Pardes Hanna. Tandoori dishes and North Indian curries.
Jerusalem#
Ichikidana — Jerusalem
An Indian restaurant in Jerusalem. A standalone option for the capital — worth confirming current opening hours directly.
Jeera Indian Food — Jerusalem
Named after the cumin seed (jeera) that anchors Indian cooking, this Jerusalem restaurant focuses on home-style Indian food. A practical option for Shabbat visitors and tourists in the city.
Haifa & the North#
Kesar — Haifa
An Indian restaurant in Haifa. Kesar (saffron) in the name signals a menu built around North Indian flavours — expect biryanis and curries with the aromatic profile the name suggests.
Chapati — Tirat Carmel (Haifa area)
Indian home cooking and catering in Tirat Carmel, near Haifa. Chapati and daily dishes to order.
Moriah — Haifa
An Indian restaurant in Haifa.
Thali — Sde Nehemia, Upper Galilee
The most remote Indian food operation in Israel — a thali restaurant in kibbutz Sde Nehemia in the Upper Galilee, near the Lebanese border. Open Monday and Thursday 13:00–20:00; cooking classes on Tuesday. WhatsApp bookings only.
📍 Kibbutz Sde Nehemia, Upper Galilee | @kalubabathali | 058-787-9575 (WhatsApp)
Ganesh — Acre–Nahariya area
An Indian restaurant in the western Galilee. Named after the elephant-headed deity of new beginnings — a common name for Indian restaurants worldwide, but this one is genuinely in the north.
South#
Little India — Beer Sheva
The main Indian option in the Negev, on Ringelblum Street. A full Indian restaurant serving the Beer Sheva student population and Indian professionals.
📍 Ringelblum Street 15, Beer Sheva
Namaste — Ashdod
An Indian restaurant on the Ashdod promenade (Tayelet). A good option if you’re on the southern coast.
📍 Tayelet Ashdod
Maharaja — Ramla
Indian food in Ramla, on the main boulevard. One of the few Indian options between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
📍 Sderot Shlomo HaMelech 14, Ramla
The Indian — Afula
An Indian restaurant in the Afula market (HaShuk). A rare Indian option in the Jezreel Valley — practical for the large Indian agricultural worker community in the area.
📍 HaShuk, Afula
A. Taj — Yokneam
Indian restaurant in Yokneam, near the tech park. Convenient for the Indian-Israeli tech community in the Haifa Bay area.
Vegetarian & Vegan#
Indian food is structurally well-suited to Israeli vegetarian culture. Many of the restaurants above — particularly Cafe Bollywood, Kalu Baba Thali, Rajnee’s, and HaHavaya HaHodit — are either fully vegetarian or heavily oriented that way. Even in meat-serving Indian restaurants, the vegetarian section of the menu is typically the most developed.
Key vegetarian dishes to look for: dal makhani (black lentil curry), palak paneer (spinach and cottage cheese), chana masala (spiced chickpeas), aloo gobi (potato and cauliflower), and the full thali spread, which almost always has a vegetarian version.
For vegan diners: most Indian curries can be prepared without ghee or cream on request. Dosas, idlis, and the Mumbai street-food tradition (pani puri, bhel puri, vada pav) are naturally vegan.
Kosher Indian#
At time of writing, no Israeli Indian restaurant in our directory carries kosher certification. The structural challenge is familiar: Indian cooking relies on butter (ghee), cream, and the combination of meat and dairy — separations that require significant menu re-engineering for certification.
That said, many Indian restaurants in Israel naturally keep halal-friendly menus, and some avoid beef entirely out of cultural rather than religious custom. If kashrut matters for your group, call ahead — several operators are willing to discuss accommodation for events.
Ingredients & Spices#
Cooking Indian food at home, or looking for specific spice blends? Several of the Indian and South Asian grocery sections covered in our Asian grocery stores in Israel guide carry Indian staples: atta flour, basmati rice, lentil varieties, and spice blends including garam masala, chaat masala, and asafoetida (hing).
The Full Directory#
This guide covers known and recommended options. Our Asian businesses directory lists all Indian restaurants and food businesses in Israel, searchable by city.
Know a restaurant we’ve missed? Contact us or tag us on Instagram — we update the directory continuously.
