Having been open for just over a few months, Sāmbār has quickly become the spot of choice among respected chefs such as Roy Choi, Sherry Yard, Walter Manzke, and Kris Morningstar, and Indiaphiles who have come in to experience fellow chef Akasha Richmond’s take on modern Indian fare. The 120-seat Indian-inspired restaurant, located in the old Ford’s Filling Station space just a few miles from Sony Studios in Culver City CA, offers a modern take on Indian cuisine emphasizing an Indian inspired collection of dishes from small plates and snacks.

Open for lunch and dinner, Sāmbār showcases the diversity of Indian cuisine with an invigorating array of bright flavors featuring dishes that are multi-regional across the Indian Subcontinent. The menu includes traditional dishes from the north and the south of the Indian subcontinent with a twist, emphasizes a balance of sweet, spicy, hot, and salty, dishes such as Gunpowder Smashed Potatoes, Truck Stop Goat Curry, or Black Quinoa Uttapam–a small fermented pancake. A section on the menu dubbed “New Wave Masala” includes more Americanized dishes like Masala Lamb Burgers and Mississippi Masala Wings.

Unlike a lot of mom-and-pop Indian restaurants in Los Angeles, Sambar also pays close attention to the bar side, with a line of cocktails enhanced with classic Indian ingredients, like tamarind syrup and rose petals. Mixologist Clare Ward oversees the diverse cocktail menu, which features spice-forward drinks using exotic ingredients such as Kokum (sour fruit from Southern India), Indian cardamom bitters, as well as fermented ingredients to name a few. Stand-out cocktails on the menu include: The Maharaja, Smuggling Monk with coffee infused scotch, Vegetable Wallah or Bangalore Blues using turmeric infused gin.

For the complete menu or more information, visit Sāmbār.

Photo Credit: Jesus Banuelos