Bombay B’s Indian Bistro

The best indian cuisine that will surely bring a smile to your face as it did with mine. Inside is small yet very warm and clean surroundings It’s staff is friendly and ready to assist you.

So, I went back again with Sam’s invitation, and I’m glad I did. I tried the lamb vindaloo and the mushroom mattar. Both were full of flavor and delicious. In my initial review, I was so focused on the food that I didn’t appreciate the great atmosphere and very nice servers. It’s great to have an Indian restaurant in the area, and I’m excited that the owner and staff are tuned into feedback from its customers. I’ll be back!

New eatery in Uptown Oakland, decided to try it wandering the area during lunch. I like their combo lunch idea where you pick 2 types of meat dishes plus rice or salad. Meat portions were kinda small for the price, but good. Had the chicken tikka masala and chicken saag over basmati rice. Friend had the chicken tikka masala and chicken curry which he enjoyed. Overall, good and fast customer service.

I can’t believe Ikes, next door, gets a better review than Bs. I’ve been a few times for take-​out and everything has been very good. Better than your average Indian dive. I really liked the veg biryani, and one of the curries, I forget which, but it was good. Service has always been prompt and friendly and I usually wait at the bar watching the over-​the-​top Bollywood films projected on to the wall. Someone always offers me water. Very attentive for some dude waiting for take-​out.
The kitchen looks clean and well-​organized, which gives me more confidence in their food handling.
Again, it would be nice to know a bit more about the ingredients, but despite that, everything has tasted very good.

So I’ve been here 3 times. ²⁄₃ times they got my order incorrect. When you order a curry bowl, expect a rice bowl –_​_​_​_​_​– The chicken tikka masala curry bowl I paid $ 10 for had 3 pieces of chicken… They also changed their naan. The naan used to be real naan (3 pieces) now it’s wheat pita bread cut in half, what the hell happened?!? I don’t think I wanna come here to waste my money again … It hasn’t even been around for a full month either smh.

This place is a gem! I always judge an Indian restaurant by its Tikka Masala sauce, and this place passes the test with flying and flavorful colors, it’s delectable!
Service is great, very sweet people running this joint and I hope this place does great business for them, it would be well-​deserved.
I also had the lamb vindaloo and it rocked.
We are fans!

Great food! We got a veggie combo and a meat combo and both were fabulous. Also, the service was excellent as is the price. An excellent addition to my Oakland neighborhood. We’re looking forward to coming again!

Went there once before and the service was bad and the food mediocre. Decided to try again on a Friday night at 8:30, and when we arrived, it was closed! No explanation, just closed. My guess this place won’t be open very long…

Delicious food & great service. Portion size was worth the price, also the wine menu is affordable and $ 6. I would recommend to please refill the Chai tea at the table and bring the curbside condiments when the meal arrives. We will be back.

Was looking for a place at 9PM on a Friday. Not a lot of reasonably priced places in the area at that time. Had never seen the place so I just walked in. Turned out to be pretty good!!! Ordered Lamb Vindaloo rice bowl. It was simple but very tasty! Priced reasonably. Great addition to the neighborhood. I will go back!

In my reviews I like to give stars based on food and atmosphere/​staff. In regards to food, I give this place zero stars. The other two come from the atmosphere being really nice and the staff being attentive as well.
Considering I work close by, I really wanted this place to be good — I should have listened to my coworker who said it wasn’t to save me the $ 10 I spent.
I had gotten the chicken tikka masala rice bowl and it was gross. The sauce tastes like tomato paste (which is what another Unilocaler reported). The chicken was dry and lacked flavor. The rice was also bland. I ordered naan on the side, and though greasy, still managed to taste like a day old crêpe.
Definitely will be sticking to Marhaba on Franklin for my Indian fix.

Great service. The best priced meal I have had in a while, a whole bottle of wine $ 10! The kale fritter appetizer was a new eat, I usually stick to samosas, and I really liked if. Great chutneys and lots of veggie options.
It is a great location and stylish but lowkey interior. Even if the entrees weren’t stellar that I chose, I plan to try more.

Eaten here twice now and was surprised to see 3-​star rating. I thought the two curries I had were better than anything else I’ve tried in Oakland besides Raj (Kerry House on Piedmont).
I had the chicken chatinaad (coconut milk curry) and it was flavorful and succulent. The palak paneer was also on point. For apps I tried the kale pakoras and they were nice and crispy, not overly oily like pakoras can often be.
No room for dessert but my daughter had a mango lassi and was GOOD. I’ll be back for my monthly Indian fix next month.

I was excited to check this place out because my neighbor said he’s been there 4 times since it’s grand opening. My husband and I won’t be coming back to this place– let me tell you why:
I called for pick up and was told it would be ready in 20 minutes. Got there and the lady (who by the way was very nice and soft spoken) told me it’ll be another 10 minutes because she didn’t put in my order because it was busy. Okay, I’ll let that slide. Twenty minutes later, she said it’ll take 2 more minutes.
An hour later, I got my order.
Let’s talk about the actually food. Both my husband and I order the 2 meat combo. I don’t know if they were being lazy, but we ordered different meats so that we could try each other’s dishes, but they gave the same meats. The Chicken Marsala tasted like creamy tomato and I’m not sure if the second meat was Chicken Curry or Chettinad… probably Chettinad (very salty).
I was very disappointed. They need at least 2 cooks or 2 servers a shift because BOY service was poorly managed.

Great flavors
Cool space and decent value
Will return and highly recommend
Not necessarily traditional Indian though the food and menu has most of the basics

Veggie burger was underwhelming. Hecka mayo, ew. Burger was ²⁄₃ the size of the bun. And there was cheese on it, which was not explained on the menu.
The kale fritters (don’t know the name) were hecka salty. Like they should come with a thermos of water.
I really want to like you guys.

Time: 6:42pm/61°F mostly sunny
Purpose: Watch the transformation being done when it was announced few weeks back. In eastbay doing my meet ups. Thinking why not? Sure let’s go for it!
Ambiance: Since last tenant The Punchdown wine bar close up. The space was left untouched till BB’s came along. Place is a 27 person seater with 6 seater for the bar counter and nine adjustable lab stools facing window terrance area. All tables inside have purse hooks even bar counter as well. Only fork and spoon wrapped with napkin on all tables. All other utensils they bring it out. The front has two high tables with backless square stools. High ceiling with hanging studio light bars paired up with projector playing girl in swimsuit and skimpy outfits. Two ceiling fans set at medium speed, but quiet. Rods and curtains covering entrance way to restroom area. Floor is faux wooden sheets covering with color scheme for place matt black and primer. Frame picture a painted on wall mural for finishing touch. Bar counter with average shelf fill with all the necessities of bar maintenance. Couple of large vases/​pots brings in some coloring effects to avoid that dark sadden feel.
Staff: There were plenty of workers on hand anticipating for busy night. I don’t know who was an employee or not, but I saw employees of five ethnic backgrounds. Indian, Vietnamese, Ethiopian, Caucasian, Mexican tells me owner (s) must have success in the past. They were all friendly and welcoming. Checking up on me every 5 minutes or so, refilling water and taking taking away used plates. I must’ve dealt with every single one of them. Each time when I needed something, a different person appears. Even when paying for bill different person. At one time I thought the chef was coming out to check on me too. Despite all that service was impeccable from start to end.
Cleanliness: Grade A, immaculate nothing to say or talk about. Place was clean from front to back. However, one minor gripe the workers sweeps when people are eating. Not a pleasant scene when debris creates mini dust clouds.
Eats/​Drinks: Went with chicken tikka masala/​lamb vindaloo combo $ 9.95, order of beef samosa $ 3.95, Taj lager beer $ 3.95. The combo plate come with only rice, but you get a choice of all salad instead of rice. Samosa was very tasty, I kid you not! Comes with hot and mint/​yogurt sauce. These were not your typical triangular shape. Instead, its little round satchels with a crinkle knot on top. All I can say is this, delicious and satisfactory! No skimping on fillings plenty of beef with green pea mixed in. Seasoned perfectly as bite after bite comes with delectable crunchy flaky dough. What ever the size of wrapper was, it was all filled up no gaps. Combo entrée was good, but flavor wise only, portions not so much. Tikka chicken were tender white meat pieces drench in tomato curry sauce. It was just average at best, reminds me of buffet places, the butter chicken version. Lamb vindaloo was better may be just a tad salty, but with the help of rice it fare better. Nice tender cubes of lamb seasoned perfectly not hard tough pieces. Without any carbs you’re in trouble, because the portions are small here. I had four pieces of lamb the rest were potatoes and sauce. You get more sauce than meat here. How much? Well, lets do a simple percentage pie chart. Meat 25%/sauce 75%.Don’t get me wrong now. It’s definitely drool worthy with pleasing flavors compare to others near by. I just wish that I had 2 – 3 more pieces of meat on each item pick from CYO combo. Feels like I pay $ 1.25 for a piece of meat on both choices with the count given. Potatoes and rice don’t count.
Products/​Services: Veggie burger, samosa, tacos, pakoras, fries, naan (after 7pm only), salads, tofu, daal, masala, mattar, kofta, Gobi, paneer, tikka masala, curry, phulka, vindaloo, chettinad, biryani, curry bowls, red/​white wines-​glass or bottle, mango lassi, chai, import/​export beer. Side of white rice $ 1.95/brown $ 2.50. Takes plastic no minimum.
Punch Lines: Better than your average, pleasing flavors, modest cost, drool-​worthy, easy night out, personable staff, sumptuous, calm vibe, well-​prepared, light bites, zippy service, lively atmosphere, business lunch, can’t go wrong, truly addictive, casual and delicious, worth the wait, kept its standards, crowd pleasing. Parking easy after 6pm, accessible by all modes of transportation.
Tradeoffs: Lesser portions given to commensurate for the cost of building it together at a faster pace than normal.
Final Thoughts: Bombay B’s it’s a great place to hang out after work for appetizers and drinks. Food and services are definitely up there no doubt. However, I hope that portion sizes will increase over time. Maybe it’s just a soft roll out to get feedbacks from customers. Not sure if this is the way to go or not. Uptown needs a Indian restaurant there’s not much up town. Only a few on telegraph ave or a drive across town to Berkeley, its sprouted with them.

I was excited to have an Indian place in Uptown. It’s right across the street from our apartment. It opened just last week so there is time for improvements.
The entrees are 2 choices (veggie or meat) plus rice — $ 8.95 to $ 9.95
The portions are pretty small, about 3 Tbsp each. Taste wise, it wasn’t bad but not great. I think I went in expecting Mehfil or Shalimar which are tough standards to meet. I didn’t get a chance to try the naan because it’s only available after 7pm.

There aren’t many Indian restaurants around Oakland (at least not that I know of) so seeing this place next to Ike’s was pretty exciting!
The inside reminds me of Burma Superstar, it has a nice open feel. Wood and metal furniture, a bar with beer and wine and yes, there are purse hooks for all you ladies!
The menu is pretty simple, a one pager with the main option of either having 2 veggie curries ($ 8.95) OR 2 meat curries ($ 9.95) with rice or salad. The biggest disappointment for me was that they only offer their naan after 7pm. Why Bombay B? Why no naan?!
Now for the nitty gritty food details! I opted for the 2 meat curries option with rice: Chicken Tikka Masala and Chicken Chettinad. The Chicken Tikka Masala tasted like chicken in tomato sauce and was way too sweet. To be more descriptive, it tasted like they opened up a can of San Marzano tomato sauce, threw in some chicken and chopped up cilantro. The Chicken Chettinad although the better choice was still also nothing to go crazy over.
Needless to say, I’m unsatisfied, still hungry and probably will not return.

Attended opening night tonight and had a wonderful evening. This place did it right: bringing a touch of India to Uptown Oakland. Which was much needed.
Loved the light buttery naan. Veggie somosas came out hot out of the frier, yum! Must try the spicy yogurt dipping sauce.