Bakersfield’s Hidden Gem Indian Roadside Stand Just Opened a Permanent Restaurant

There’s a new chapter for Bakersfield’s acclaimed Indian eatery Punjabi Dhaba, which opened a new brick-and-mortar restaurant in late January 2025. The former food truck/roadside stand serves northern Indian food, such as vegetable curries, stuffed flatbreads, and street food snack items intended as quick comfort for truck drivers, road trippers, and Bakersfield locals.

Originally founded in 2016 as a converted taco truck parked on Union Avenue, once Bakersfield’s main drag and highway, word-of-mouth spread about Balvinder Singh Saini and his wife Mansi Tiwari’s cooking. In 2019, the New York Times critic Tejal Rao wrote a glowing review of Punjabi Dhaba, and other media coverage followed.

In India, dhabas are simple roadside restaurants placed alongside major highways, primarily catering to Indian truckers. They’re known for their homestyle comfort food, such as butter chicken and dal makhani. They’re also known for their flexibility, making changes to suit the customer’s tastes upon request. Saini himself was a trucker for many years, but health problems — not uncommon for long-haul truckers — led him to start Punjabi Dhaba. With a background in mechanical engineering, he had to figure out how to run a restaurant. “My food is not like a Subway or a Quiznos,” he says. “It took us a lot of time to learn all this.”

Six-and-a-half years later, Saini and Tiwari found themselves at a crossroads. Rather than move the truck, they decided to retire, but Saini soon found himself bored. A friend found them a space behind a closed steakhouse at the State Route 223 junction, several miles south of town. Despite the desolate surroundings, customers found their way to the new stand, attracting more media attention, this time, chef Lidia Bastianich visited for a segment of PBS’ Lidia Celebrates America. Punjabi Dhaba operated there for a few years, but uncertainty over this parking spot and the stress that accompanied it led Saini to seek out a permanent space.

Their new restaurant is located in a large, newish medical complex on the west side of Bakersfield; enter through either a side door or a dentist’s lobby. Signage will easily direct diners to a comfortable, homey space with string lights and tables bordered by small American and Indian flags. A whiteboard behind the counter reveals the menu with snacks, entrees like malai kofta and chicken tikka masala, and sides. A daily lunch combo costs as little as $13 and comes with rice, two entrees, and two roti. The parking lot tends to fill up on weekdays with those visiting the medical offices, but after 5 p.m. and on weekends, they have the whole plaza to themselves. “That’s when my friends come,” says Saini.

Jim Thurman

Among the menu holdovers are samosa chaat, a popular street snack, and parathas, stuffed flatbreads. New dishes for the brick-and-mortar include pav bhaji, a spicy mashed vegetable mix that is spooned out onto buttered burger buns; vada pav, a fried potato dumpling also served on a bun; and rajma, a spicy kidney bean curry. Saini tells us he plans on adding more items every week, such as more street food dishes, an Indian veggie burger, sambar, and possibly even things from South India. While a vegetarian himself, Saini and Tiwari serve meat dishes, including chicken tikka masala, butter chicken, Indo-Chinese Szechuan chicken, and a fantastic goat curry that would stand up to some of the best in Los Angeles.

As far as the roadside truck, Saini says it will eventually reopen, but he doesn’t know when due to limited staffing: “Me and my wife are the only cooks. I don’t know how we’ll run two spaces.”

The downside of having a full-time brick-and-mortar restaurant is the higher rent. Saini voiced concerns about higher overhead, going so far as to tell the person who helped find him the space: “I don’t want to deal with it.” But the scout told him he’d back them up. “So, we’ll see where we are in six months,” Saini says. “I don’t think too much. If I think, then I have tension, so I go with the flow. Whatever happens, we have to live with it.”

Punjabi Dhaba is open daily from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and is located at 9450 Stockdale Highway, Bakersfield, CA. Call (661) 578-9303 to order ahead.