Worth the drive from LA literally just to eat here?
Yes.
My favorite things are the samosa chaat, the shai mattar paneer, and the mixed stuffed parathas but there isn’t any possible way to get anything less than a great meal here, whatever you order. Menu is limited, not everything available at any given time but trust me, it’s the best.
My former boss is Punjabi, I told her about this place. She was a little skeptical because I’m white she asked “do you really know Indian food?” I said well enough that you should trust me on this one. Took her a couple weeks to trust me but when she went, she said it was the best Indian food she’s had outside of India (and she actually lived in LA and commuted, so she’d eaten all over LA too.)
I lived in LA for a long time. I know truly great Indian food isn’t commonplace anywhere. I can safely recommend this place. If any of you ever find yourselves in Bakersfield, this is the must-go place. Like I said, it’s even worth going if you have the time and want to go on a food pilgrimage. I Felt the duty to put this on you Angelenos’ radar.
I wish I had known about this a few mos ago when partner and I were driving through the area on the way back from Fresno. We were looking at Basque places in Bakserfield, and they were all closed by that time of night (can’t remember the time). We drive through the area basically never, but always good to have a place just in case…
Look up what “dhaba” means in Punjabi (if you don’t already know) That is quite literally what this is; it’s located at a trucking yard.
While technically a food truck, it doesn’t (can’t?) move, so it’s a permanent fixture at its location.
The owner actually drives to LA to buy his meat (and I think other ingredients) because he says it’s better quality, and I’ve had a few times where he didn’t make something because he didn’t think some ingredient was good enough. He really cares about his food and it shows. I don’t take pictures but if you google “punjabi dhaba bakersfield” you can see several great photos that show what I’m talking about. I mean, look at this https://goo.gl/maps/qcYiCwswZTt
Because if my medical situation, restrooms are really important to me. I know what a Dhaba is and I’m eaten at many in Punjab and along the 99. I’ve also eaten at restaurants that just call themselves dhabas without really bearing any resemblance to one. It’s a long drive to Bakersfield from Northridge. So, if I’m going where restrooms are going to be an issue, I’d rather stop by on my way to Sacramento
Sparse menus are usually a good sign I’ve found, but take their menu as a suggestion, rather than a promise. They’ll usually have stuff not on there, and vice versa
Was driving back to LA from SF this weekend and saw the sign for Bakersfield off the 5…and remembered this post, decided to take a 20min detour to try it out.
This place was great, and I think I agree best Indian in socal (not in California though, that belongs to the god tier SHALIMAR in San Francisco). While not worth a drive from LA IMO, Punjabi Dhaba is 100% worth stopping by if you’re driving through Bakersfield.
Very clean and good quality ingredient. The owner mentioned to me they only use non GMO ingredients and prepare everything on a slow cook.
I oredered the Butter chicken and shai mattar paneers in medium spice (which the owner assured me were both the “top of the line” entrees). Wish I might have gone hot spice, but it still had a nice kick with very fragrant notes and texture.
Total price came to $27 including 5 pieces of bread…and I crushed it one sitting. Was definitely enough food for two people but i’m a beast.
she asked “do you really know Indian food?” I said well enough that you should trust me on this one. Took her a couple weeks to trust me but when she went, she said it was the best Indian food she’s had outside of India (and she actually lived in LA and commuted, so she’d eaten all over LA too.)
We drive through the area basically never, but always good to have a place just in case… 
