Dana Bazar

Hands down, the best chaat in the area. And the best I have tasted outside India. I love the authentic taste (nothing is watered down) and the friendly service and prices are very reasonable.
The pani puri is the best — they will do it anyway you want, spicy/​mild, no sweet chutney, extra pani and what not. The tikki chole is super too and transports me back to great chaat places in Delhi and Bangalore. There is nothing that I have had this in dinky little corner of an Indian grocery store that I have not liked.
If you are looking for authentic North Indian snack food, this place is it!

The best pani-​puri you can find outside of the motherland is at this janky little grocery store. As Fremont reps Hindhustan like no other it makes sense to have bomb ass Indian food. I really like how you eat the panipuri in a line with the other customers and the nice Auntie-​ji serves you with her own hands dolling out ample spiced pani adding a comforting «Yehlo Beta» to the youngins. That type of down home service is unforgettable and you walk away having your sinuses cleared and with the firm conviction that all brown people truly are related. Other than that you can get great hand-​made parathas here in addition to your other Indian grocery needs. They changed the name which is wack but at least the same Auntie-​ji stands there waiting to assert a blood relation with the next customer.

The spiciest pani puri in aby area, I would drive 20 min to just eat it!
It was a must during my preggie months, my mouth still waters with the just the thought of the place.

order: pani puri
chaat is good, but very spicy. pani puri and shev puri are severe wins. we drive from palo alto /​santa clara just to settle the cravings.
mebs bring a water bottle if you plan on asking for it ‘spicy’. or i guess you can order 3 or 4 lassis and call it a day.

Had the famous pani-​puri made by the 2 aunties. Nothing outstanding to be honest. I think the cost is quite a bit — 6 puris for ~5 bucks.

DANA Bazaaaaar! I miss you! The hubby and I went every 4 to 6 weeks to get our fix. First a papdi chaat, then a sev puri, followed by a fire-​out-​of our-​ears paani puri, eaten as fast as the lovely ladies could fill the puris with their magic paani. OMG.
We have taken people from the world over for the chaat here — including from Mumbai — and the verdict is the same — there is no better, there is no other than Dana Bazaar.
I am counting the months until I can return… hopelessly addicted to DB.

The Pani Puri was pretty fantastic, but if this place had been busier, it would’ve made for a pretty awkward eating experience. You’re basically standing around in the back of a grocery store. I know it’s part of the experience, but a couple of chairs would be nice.

The chaat here is outstanding. Like everybody else has mentioned, the pani puri is delicious and so is everything else. What I like about the pani puri the most is that the puris all have a wonderful uniform consistency. They are crispy and hold the filling well but not hard which would make it tough to crunch. And of course, nothing beats eating pani puri India-​style — stand next to the maker! This is the best pani puri I’ve ever eaten — that includes India as well.
We’ve tried a bunch of other dishes and they’re all great. The thing that I like most about this place is that everything tastes fresh. None of the chutneys or the garnishes are refrigerated — meaning they are cut and made fresh possibly daily.

The Pani Puri is Amazing!
All the ingredients used to make the sauces/​chutney are made perfectly. Every time I have eaten food from here the food always consistenly tastes the same, which is hard to find in many indian restaurants.
One thing that I can guarantee is that if you eat from Dana Bazar you will be left craving more and will not find anything that even compares to this place. Enjoy!

Food: Yummy
Service: Friendly
Price: Awesome!
My boss took me here on a Friday afternoon, we were luckily the first in line at about noon.
We got:
1. Pani Puri ($ 4.50 for six). These were chickpea/​chutney/​spicy soup filled wheat shells of deliciousness. Watch out for the kick on the spicy! (I will ask for medium in the future)
2. Combo ($ 5.50?). They give you a paper tray filled with crunchy shell/​potato/​yogurt/​chickpea assortment that is delicious. Again, very spicy but addicting at the same time. I called this a «Indian chimichanga»
Total hole in the wall at the back of this grocery store, and you have to stand around to eat, but everything is very clean and the woman serving you is ever so gracious and kind!
Will definitely head back sometime, but note that you will keep that burning/​full sensation ALL DAY LONG.

Best spicy chaat in the south bay. Love their pani puri and aloo tikki.
Its so spicy that I have to get mild.
I love it and definately reminds me of India chaat.

So this review is so overdue, but late rather than never!
This place has the best Papri Chaat in town!

If you are looking for Chaat, Pani Puri or other types of Indian street food then plan to visit this place. The actual stand is located inside of the grocery store and most people come just for that. You just stand there and the lady gives you the food, nothing fancy about this. Just street food.
The pani puri is really good, the water is spicy, one of my favorites.

Great place for chaat! The aunties just keep making and
feeding you pani puri’s until you say «STOP!»!! :) The other
dishes are very yum and the only downside is that there’s
no place to sit… unless you want to try copping a squat
on the huge rice bags! LOL!
Go — I promise you won’t be disappointed! Oh and as Maneesh S.
wrote — spicy *IS* spicy — they will make it as HOT as you like and
baby, I like it HOT HOT HOT!

Dana Bazar does OK for an Indian grocery store… but what gets all the people lining up in this store are for their excellent CHAAT especially their Panipuri (
). I once waited for 40 minutes in a line that snaked through the backroom for the serving… there is no seating… simply holding the plate and eating. I have tried the Kachori, Samosa and Paapris… they are about as good as it gets!
A note about the spice levels… spicy is really spicy!

Dana Bazar isn’t the largest Indian grocery store in the Bay Area but it has a little bit of everything and it’s been around for years and years. It’s more like a department store than a grocery store. I’ve purchased some lovely sparkly Indian necklaces, earrings, and bracelets here and gazed at the various Indian pots and pans. I have a tava which is a griddle with a handle that you use for chapati and other Indian breads. They have those and idli makers too.
Too tired to cook? Pick up some street food inspired snacks (chaat) inside (I’ve had a couple and they’re scrumptious, bursting with flavor, and inexpensive. I like the thick potato patties topped with spicy garbanzo beans and mint chutney a.k.a. aloo tikki chole), some fresh chapati, and Indian sweets.
Want entertainment? Pick up some Indian CDs and movies. If you are in the mood for cooking, you’ll find produce, huge bags of spices and imported Indian groceries. I like to pick up some frozen parathas.

The place feels like it needs a little tidying up, but then again, so does every other ethnic market in the Bay Area, so I can’t rag on them for that.
They have AWESOME CHAAT… great cheap afternoon snack (or lunch) if you ask me. A previous Unilocaler was right when commenting on how the flavors just linger. They really do, it’s that good. They also have a good selection of kulfis here, the other reason I come.
This place is so good, I bring out of town visitors here, well my pops does anyway, but I would if I could.

the chaat is awesome, yummy, drool worthy and all those words…
I have had chaat in chaat kingdoms — Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta (even) and this rivals them in taste and slurp factor…
the pari chaat and pani puri are hands down winners though the other stuff is pretty darn good… the tingly feeling that lingers in your tongue is the hallmark of grrreat chaat

Don’t let the total lack of décor scare you away. When my husband and I first walked in, I considered asking him to go somewhere else. The grocery itself is pretty mediocre, but we were there for the chaat so we pressed on.
We ordered papri chaat, which was fantastic (though my husband complained about the portion size for the price. I thought it was fine). We also ordered the mix chaat which was ok. There’s a fine balance between flavorful spicy and «oops, I knocked over the whole jar of chili powder and it fell into the sauce» spicy. This was definitely the latter.
I will probably come back another time to try something else.

I just tried the Papri Chaat today and my mouth is still singing from the happy flavors and textures. Great recommendation! I had no idea this was here, and I pass by this shopping center every day. Right next to H&R Block and Hoot Judkins. You can have Chaat while waiting for your taxes, and go home with some an unfinished end-​table.
2^nd visit: I had the Papri Chaat again and this time it seemed to have a different mixture, but still the same sweet/​crunchy/​tart/​spicy/​creamy, refreshing sensation as the first time. My bowl was swimming with the cold «soup» at the end, and I learned from watching my fellow aisle-​diners today that you slurp it all down!
Update:The food counter is only open Thursday-​Sunday. Didn’t know this and wasted many trips to see an empty counter.