Signature Dishes at KHAKI: What to Order on Your First Visit

The KHAKI menu reaches across India in a way most American Indian restaurants don't even attempt, which is wonderful once you know it and slightly overwhelming on a first visit. This guide cuts through it. Here's what to order the first time you come, organized so you can build a meal that shows off what the kitchen does best: regional dishes you won't find elsewhere, the vegetarian plates worth ordering even if you eat meat, and the desserts that are worth saving room for. Every dish below is on the current menu.

Start Here: The Dish KHAKI Is Known For

If you order one thing, make it the Lamb Shank Purdah Biryani ($46, for two). A braised lamb shank sits over aged basmati, the whole pot sealed under a wheat-dough purdah, served with raita and a bone-broth salan. It's the dish reviewers mention most, and it's a genuine showpiece, the kind of thing that justifies the trip on its own. It's also labeled gluten-free optional, useful if someone at the table needs that.

It's built for sharing, so it works as the centerpiece of a two-person dinner or one of several dishes for a larger table.

Regional Dishes You Won't Find Elsewhere

This is where KHAKI separates itself from every other Indian restaurant in the area. A few to seek out:

• Champaran Handi Mutton ($34): bone-in kid goat slow-cooked in a sealed clay handi with mustard oil, a rustic Bihari one-pot dish tied to co-founder Akash Kapoor's childhood

• Mangalorean Beef Sukka ($28): dry-roasted beef with black pepper and curry leaves, from chef Pujan's travels through coastal Karnataka

• Meen Pollichathu ($40, for two): whole butterflied branzino in coconut-kokum-tomato masala, wrapped in banana leaf, Kerala coastal cooking served with coconut rice

• Chicken Chettinadu ($28): bone-in drumsticks with black pepper, fennel, and a roasted spice blend from Tamil Nadu

These are the dishes that make a first visit memorable, because most diners have simply never had them done this way.

The Starters Worth Ordering

Build the meal with a couple of starters that span the menu:

• Jackfruit Cutlet ($18): a Kolkata street-food classic, crumb-fried with pickled vegetables and mustard mayo, the brothers' childhood favorite

• Tandoori Malai Mushrooms ($22): mushrooms with chili and amul cheese fondue, spiced walnut and garlic crumble

• Passion Fruit Pani Puri ($14): wheat shells with avocado, young mango, jicama, and passion fruit water, a modern take on the street classic

• Tandoori Salmon Tikka ($24): Atlantic salmon in tandoori spices and mustard oil

The Vegetarian Dishes Worth Ordering Even If You Eat Meat

KHAKI's vegetarian section is treated as real cooking, not an afterthought, which makes it genuinely worth ordering from regardless of diet:

• Paneer Pinwheel ($28): thin ribbons of paneer layered with spiced dried fruits and nuts, rolled, roasted in the tandoor, on a creamy tomato sauce

• Zucchini-Ricotta Kofta ($26): zucchini and ricotta kofta in a dum-style gravy

• Bagara Baingan ($24): young eggplants in a sesame-peanut gravy with tamarind

• Donne Biryani ($30): the vegetarian biryani, Jeeraga Samba rice with seasonal vegetables and Bengaluru spices, served on banana leaf

The kitchen uses Halal meats throughout, and vegan and Jain preparations are available with notice, so mixed-diet tables are easy to handle.

Save Room for Dessert

The desserts are modern takes on Indian classics and worth the room:

• Canteen Pudding ($16): warm sticky toffee pudding with Old Monk rum caramel and a gajar halwa crumble

• Rasmalai Tres Leches ($15): saffron milk soak with cardamom, pistachio, and rose

• Gulab Jamun Crème Brûlée ($15): the gulab jamun and crème brûlée mash-up

• Kulfi Falooda Royale ($15): kulfi, falooda, rabdi, sabza seeds, and rose syrup

The Canteen Pudding is the one to get if you're choosing a single dessert; it's the dish that best captures the kitchen's habit of taking something familiar and rebuilding it.

Why Choose KHAKI for Your First Indian Fine Dining Experience

Plenty of restaurants serve butter chicken and naan. What's hard to find, and what makes a first visit to KHAKI worth planning around, is a menu that treats India as the dozens of distinct regional cuisines it actually is, executed by a kitchen with real Michelin pedigree.

On one table you can travel from a Kolkata street cutlet to a Bihari clay-pot mutton to a Kerala banana-leaf branzino, dishes most Bay Area restaurants don't attempt, prepared by a team led by a Michelin-starred chef. Add a deep vegetarian section that stands on its own, Halal meats, the only full Indian cocktail program in the Tri-Valley, and desserts that reinvent the classics, and a first visit becomes less a meal and more an introduction to what modern Indian cooking can be. That's the case for choosing KHAKI, and for ordering across regions when you do.

Common Questions About the KHAKI Menu

What first-time diners ask most about what to order.

What should I order at KHAKI on my first visit?

Start with the Lamb Shank Purdah Biryani, add a regional dish like Champaran Handi Mutton or Mangalorean Beef Sukka, a Jackfruit Cutlet starter, and the Canteen Pudding for dessert.

What is KHAKI known for?

Regional Indian dishes rarely seen in the Bay Area, like the Lamb Shank Purdah Biryani, Champaran Handi Mutton, and Meen Pollichathu, from a kitchen led by a Michelin-starred chef.

Is KHAKI good for vegetarians?

Yes. The vegetarian section is extensive and treated as real cooking, including the Paneer Pinwheel, Zucchini-Ricotta Kofta, Bagara Baingan, and the Donne Biryani. Vegan and Jain options are available with notice.

Does KHAKI serve Halal food?

Yes. KHAKI uses Halal meats across its menu.

What is the best biryani at KHAKI?

The Lamb Shank Purdah Biryani is the signature, served for two. The vegetarian Donne Biryani, with Jeeraga Samba rice and Bengaluru spices on banana leaf, is the standout meat-free option.