It was a plan to meet some out of town colleagues who were visiting California and we had a mix of folks who preferred only vegetarian food and some who could eat meat. This restaurant served everyone and the food was good too. Service was also good. Considering we had kids of varying ages, infant to young adults, the restaurant staff was quite accommodating. I'm not sure if the other guests were affected or not. We enjoyed our experience and would love to visit again. One thing that I recall is their menu wasn't very expansive, that might be a good thing in a way. Looking at the ambiance, we were sceptical in the beginning but the food won us over
Raj60
Dear vegetarians: watch out! Except vegetable curry, potato dosa, which you can buy better at the kiosk for $12.50 all your food is fried in a deep fryer that fries chicken, calamari, and fish I am the former owner of Malabar Restaurant. If you don't believe me, please ask our homeless cook Adam, Brian, Miguel, and Carlos. 10 days ago we had to kill a rat at 8 pm in the empty dining room. Red blood was cleaned up later on. Adam found rat p*** in the rice bin. The new owners threw the rat p*** away and cooked the same rice. I found rat p*** on the rice lid, behind the pastry table is the main rat hole. They don't have pest control. Miguell is the rat trapper. Adam is the one who releases them back into the wild. I have seen this. In the night they don't do the leftover dishes so fruit flies. They only sweep the kitchen floor and don't mop it. If I am lying, you can see the beginning part of the dining room is so greasy it sticks to the shoes. Indian customers complains about potato fillings. When I ran the restaurant, I wrote $1000 worth of produce from Wednesday farmers market. They bring cheap warehouse produce from San Jose. 15% of it is spoiled. When they bring produce, they transport their dog. One time when myself and Carlos were unloading the car we found dog vomit. They all rise. They put it in the rice cooker put water and heat it up. Bacteria & soggy rice. After their crock pot broke, they keep the dal soup on a two burner with a hand made steam pot.Once the water is over at the end of the night they put it in the microwave. Bathrooms are cleaned 3x's per week. When I ran the restaurant twice a week I bring in a janitorial company and polish the dining room. I only have seen them mopping the dining room two times after Covid. Dirty metal dish rack and behind that rack is so dirty. Behind the pastry table is dirty. Underneath the work station is dirty. Work plumbing now broken. Broken table in the storages food are not kept about 6". When I ran the kitchen on Mondays we used to clean the kitchen for 6 hours. If I cannot find anybody to clean it, my 87 year old dad used to come help me do it. Now they clean the kitchen once a month so night for 20 minutes. Baseboards are already dirty. Uncovered food in the walk in. Containers to keep walk in water leakings because I got this walk in 15 years ago. Handwashing sink has no hot water. Cold saucer and chutneys not kept in ice for service. Updated from previous review on 2022-12-23
Raj60
Dear vegetarians: watch out! Except vegetable curry, potato dosa, which you can buy better at the kiosk for $12.50 all your food is fried in a deep fryer that fries chicken, calamari, and fish
I am the former owner of Malabar Restaurant.
If you don't believe me, please ask our homeless cook Adam, Brian, Miguel, and Carlos. 10 days ago we had to kill a rat at 8 pm in the empty dining room. Red blood was cleaned up later on.
Adam found rat poop in the rice bin. The new owners threw the rat poop away and cooked the same rice. I found rat poop on the rice lid, behind the pastry table is the main rat hole. They don't have pest control.
Miguell is the rat trapper. Adam is the one who releases them back into the wild. I have seen this. In the night they don't do the leftover dishes so fruit flies. They only sweep the kitchen floor and don't mop it.
If I am lying, you can see the beginning part of the dining room is so greasy it sticks to the shoes. Indian customers complains about potato fillings. When I ran the restaurant, I wrote $1000 worth of produce from Wednesday farmers market. They bring cheap warehouse produce from San Jose. 15% of it is spoiled.
When they bring produce, they transport their dog. One time when myself and Carlos were unloading the car we found dog vomit. They all rise. They put it in the rice cooker put water and heat it up. Bacteria & soggy rice. After their crock pot broke, they keep the dal soup on a two burner with a hand made steam pot.Once the water is over at the end of the night they put it in the microwave.
Bathrooms are cleaned 3x's per week. When I ran the restaurant twice a week I bring in a janitorial company and polish the dining room. I only have seen them mopping the dining room two times after Covid. Dirty metal dish rack and behind that rack is so dirty. Behind the pastry table is dirty. Underneath the work station is dirty. Work plumbing now broken.
Broken table in the storages food are not kept about 6". When I ran the kitchen on Mondays we used to clean the kitchen for 6 hours. If I cannot find anybody to clean it, my 87 year old dad used to come help me do it. Now they clean the kitchen once a month so night for 20 minutes. Baseboards are already dirty. Uncovered food in the walk in. Containers to keep walk in water leakings because I got this walk in 15 years ago. Handwashing sink has no hot water. Cold saucer and chutneys not kept in ice for service.
Updated from previous review on 2022-12-23
Rajhita Weerasekare
Dear vegetarians: watch out! Except vegetable curry, potato dosa, which you can buy better at the kiosk for $12.50 all your food is fried in a deep fryer that fries chicken, calamari, and fish
Shannon H.
We squeezed in 30 minutes before closing. In spite of closing early for a party the next day, they seated us and the service and foo were great. We had the aloo cauliflower appetizer and it set the stage for the spice road journey ahead. The flavors were on point, so rich and deep. We shared butter chicken and yellow curry and both were yummy and flavorful. While the spices were powerful they weren't overwhelming. Also no late night tummy upset! I highly recommend Malabar and will eat there again when I'm next in Santa Cruz.
priya patel
The food is delicious and the service is even better. I’m vegetarian and my friends aren’t we both had so many options to choose from. It was my first time trying Sri Lankan food and I loved it. It’s simple to Indian food but a lot less spicy.
Alexa Thornton
Haven’t been to Malabar since 2020 due to Covid so to be back felt so good. Great service, so very friendly and attentive. Food brought so much life and flavor to each bite. We always bring a new friend with us to dine at Malabar because EVERYONE should sit and enjoy a meal here. Such a great “secret” place of Santa Cruz. Definitely need to give it a try if you haven’t yet.
Johnny Z.
This was the first time my wife and I have ever eaten at Malabar tonight. We went there to see a duet called Devi (vocals/violin) and Enzo (guitarist). We had heard the food was good long ago but we don't usually go to downtown Santa Cruz. Well I'm sure glad we tried Malabar because my yellow curry salmon was amazing and my wife said the butter chicken was as good she's ever had. We were disappointed that we got there too late to see the entire show but I guess the music starts earlier than we thought at about 6. What a good deal it was to to have great live music and food. We will certainly be back!
Marty D.
Food wise, as a vegan, I enjoyed my meal, my wife, not so much. She said the sauces were heavy. I thought they were delicious. We had the cauliflower appetizer, Gobi Manchurian (yum!) and the flatbread. I had the Dosa with eggplant. The Dal soup was a tad salty. My wife had the Curry Mee - same complaint about the sauce. My vegan lassi was tasty. The dining room was a little on the cool side, with low lighting. Service was good and responsive. They had live music, which was too loud for the room, made it difficult to converse. Not enjoyable and it definitely detracted from the experience. A little more light, a little more warmth and more appropriate music...that would have elevated the experience.
Hafeeza M.
Great fusion. it was my second time trying Sri Lankan food, and this was wayyy better. Even the veg dishes were good enough that as a meat eater I felt very satisfied.
I stopped by with a few friends and this place was amazing. The food is very well portioned and delicious. We even forgot to take pictures because we immediately started eating as soon as they came out lol. The service was great and the dishes were catered to all of our dietary needs. The owners were so sweet and helped us out with Togo boxes and bags for all our stuff. The actual place itself was very warm and inviting and beautiful to enjoy with friends. Definitely would love to come back. Would give it more stars if I could!
andyjng
The menu is completely online and you'll be asked to scan a QR code to access. I clarified with the staff that the "V" meant vegan, and it turns out that a lot of items could be made vegan upon request. We started with the Vegetable Pakora and Rosemary and Garlic flatbread, which I was told was made vegan. They did however still include the oil on top but luckily it's easily removed. I loved the flatbread the most and the pakora were great too, although I would've liked a bit more chutney on the side. For our mains, I ordered their Mango Almond Plantain Curry ($15). My curry was quite tasty although I felt there wasn't as much plantain compared to mango slices. I still very much enjoyed this Sri Lankan curry and my parents liked their salmon too. Overall, it was a nice dinner at Malabar with what we ordered. In the end, I would've probably subbed the pakora or curry for the vegan Nasi Goreng to add more bang for your buck. Next time I'll have to give that a try,
andyjng
The menu is completely online and you'll be asked to scan a QR code to access. I clarified with the staff that the "V" meant vegan, and it turns out that a lot of items could be made vegan upon request.
We started with the Vegetable Pakora and Rosemary and Garlic flatbread, which I was told was made vegan. They did however still include the oil on top but luckily it's easily removed. I loved the flatbread the most and the pakora were great too, although I would've liked a bit more chutney on the side.
For our mains, I ordered their Mango Almond Plantain Curry ($15). My curry was quite tasty although I felt there wasn't as much plantain compared to mango slices. I still very much enjoyed this Sri Lankan curry and my parents liked their salmon too.
Overall, it was a nice dinner at Malabar with what we ordered. In the end, I would've probably subbed the pakora or curry for the vegan Nasi Goreng to add more bang for your buck. Next time I'll have to give that a try,
Sam Little
We loved our food so much. The calamari was so tender and flavorful and the devil lanka had such a nice spice profile. The only problem was their blender was broken so I couldn't try the lassi, but the traditional chai was delicious.
Sudatta J.
Good food, do ask for recommendations based on your taste. Great service. Clean, open space. Has both outdoor and indoor seating
It was a plan to meet some out of town colleagues who were visiting California and we had a mix of folks who preferred only vegetarian food and some who could eat meat. This restaurant served everyone and the food was good too. Service was also good. Considering we had kids of varying ages, infant to young adults, the restaurant staff was quite accommodating. I'm not sure if the other guests were affected or not. We enjoyed our experience and would love to visit again. One thing that I recall is their menu wasn't very expansive, that might be a good thing in a way. Looking at the ambiance, we were sceptical in the beginning but the food won us over
Dear vegetarians: watch out! Except vegetable curry, potato dosa, which you can buy better at the kiosk for $12.50 all your food is fried in a deep fryer that fries chicken, calamari, and fish I am the former owner of Malabar Restaurant. If you don't believe me, please ask our homeless cook Adam, Brian, Miguel, and Carlos. 10 days ago we had to kill a rat at 8 pm in the empty dining room. Red blood was cleaned up later on. Adam found rat p*** in the rice bin. The new owners threw the rat p*** away and cooked the same rice. I found rat p*** on the rice lid, behind the pastry table is the main rat hole. They don't have pest control. Miguell is the rat trapper. Adam is the one who releases them back into the wild. I have seen this. In the night they don't do the leftover dishes so fruit flies. They only sweep the kitchen floor and don't mop it. If I am lying, you can see the beginning part of the dining room is so greasy it sticks to the shoes. Indian customers complains about potato fillings. When I ran the restaurant, I wrote $1000 worth of produce from Wednesday farmers market. They bring cheap warehouse produce from San Jose. 15% of it is spoiled. When they bring produce, they transport their dog. One time when myself and Carlos were unloading the car we found dog vomit. They all rise. They put it in the rice cooker put water and heat it up. Bacteria & soggy rice. After their crock pot broke, they keep the dal soup on a two burner with a hand made steam pot.Once the water is over at the end of the night they put it in the microwave. Bathrooms are cleaned 3x's per week. When I ran the restaurant twice a week I bring in a janitorial company and polish the dining room. I only have seen them mopping the dining room two times after Covid. Dirty metal dish rack and behind that rack is so dirty. Behind the pastry table is dirty. Underneath the work station is dirty. Work plumbing now broken. Broken table in the storages food are not kept about 6". When I ran the kitchen on Mondays we used to clean the kitchen for 6 hours. If I cannot find anybody to clean it, my 87 year old dad used to come help me do it. Now they clean the kitchen once a month so night for 20 minutes. Baseboards are already dirty. Uncovered food in the walk in. Containers to keep walk in water leakings because I got this walk in 15 years ago. Handwashing sink has no hot water. Cold saucer and chutneys not kept in ice for service. Updated from previous review on 2022-12-23
Dear vegetarians: watch out! Except vegetable curry, potato dosa, which you can buy better at the kiosk for $12.50 all your food is fried in a deep fryer that fries chicken, calamari, and fish I am the former owner of Malabar Restaurant. If you don't believe me, please ask our homeless cook Adam, Brian, Miguel, and Carlos. 10 days ago we had to kill a rat at 8 pm in the empty dining room. Red blood was cleaned up later on. Adam found rat poop in the rice bin. The new owners threw the rat poop away and cooked the same rice. I found rat poop on the rice lid, behind the pastry table is the main rat hole. They don't have pest control. Miguell is the rat trapper. Adam is the one who releases them back into the wild. I have seen this. In the night they don't do the leftover dishes so fruit flies. They only sweep the kitchen floor and don't mop it. If I am lying, you can see the beginning part of the dining room is so greasy it sticks to the shoes. Indian customers complains about potato fillings. When I ran the restaurant, I wrote $1000 worth of produce from Wednesday farmers market. They bring cheap warehouse produce from San Jose. 15% of it is spoiled. When they bring produce, they transport their dog. One time when myself and Carlos were unloading the car we found dog vomit. They all rise. They put it in the rice cooker put water and heat it up. Bacteria & soggy rice. After their crock pot broke, they keep the dal soup on a two burner with a hand made steam pot.Once the water is over at the end of the night they put it in the microwave. Bathrooms are cleaned 3x's per week. When I ran the restaurant twice a week I bring in a janitorial company and polish the dining room. I only have seen them mopping the dining room two times after Covid. Dirty metal dish rack and behind that rack is so dirty. Behind the pastry table is dirty. Underneath the work station is dirty. Work plumbing now broken. Broken table in the storages food are not kept about 6". When I ran the kitchen on Mondays we used to clean the kitchen for 6 hours. If I cannot find anybody to clean it, my 87 year old dad used to come help me do it. Now they clean the kitchen once a month so night for 20 minutes. Baseboards are already dirty. Uncovered food in the walk in. Containers to keep walk in water leakings because I got this walk in 15 years ago. Handwashing sink has no hot water. Cold saucer and chutneys not kept in ice for service. Updated from previous review on 2022-12-23
Dear vegetarians: watch out! Except vegetable curry, potato dosa, which you can buy better at the kiosk for $12.50 all your food is fried in a deep fryer that fries chicken, calamari, and fish
We squeezed in 30 minutes before closing. In spite of closing early for a party the next day, they seated us and the service and foo were great. We had the aloo cauliflower appetizer and it set the stage for the spice road journey ahead. The flavors were on point, so rich and deep. We shared butter chicken and yellow curry and both were yummy and flavorful. While the spices were powerful they weren't overwhelming. Also no late night tummy upset! I highly recommend Malabar and will eat there again when I'm next in Santa Cruz.
The food is delicious and the service is even better. I’m vegetarian and my friends aren’t we both had so many options to choose from. It was my first time trying Sri Lankan food and I loved it. It’s simple to Indian food but a lot less spicy.
Haven’t been to Malabar since 2020 due to Covid so to be back felt so good. Great service, so very friendly and attentive. Food brought so much life and flavor to each bite. We always bring a new friend with us to dine at Malabar because EVERYONE should sit and enjoy a meal here. Such a great “secret” place of Santa Cruz. Definitely need to give it a try if you haven’t yet.
This was the first time my wife and I have ever eaten at Malabar tonight. We went there to see a duet called Devi (vocals/violin) and Enzo (guitarist). We had heard the food was good long ago but we don't usually go to downtown Santa Cruz. Well I'm sure glad we tried Malabar because my yellow curry salmon was amazing and my wife said the butter chicken was as good she's ever had. We were disappointed that we got there too late to see the entire show but I guess the music starts earlier than we thought at about 6. What a good deal it was to to have great live music and food. We will certainly be back!
Food wise, as a vegan, I enjoyed my meal, my wife, not so much. She said the sauces were heavy. I thought they were delicious. We had the cauliflower appetizer, Gobi Manchurian (yum!) and the flatbread. I had the Dosa with eggplant. The Dal soup was a tad salty. My wife had the Curry Mee - same complaint about the sauce. My vegan lassi was tasty. The dining room was a little on the cool side, with low lighting. Service was good and responsive. They had live music, which was too loud for the room, made it difficult to converse. Not enjoyable and it definitely detracted from the experience. A little more light, a little more warmth and more appropriate music...that would have elevated the experience.
Great fusion. it was my second time trying Sri Lankan food, and this was wayyy better. Even the veg dishes were good enough that as a meat eater I felt very satisfied.
Restaurantji Recommends
I stopped by with a few friends and this place was amazing. The food is very well portioned and delicious. We even forgot to take pictures because we immediately started eating as soon as they came out lol. The service was great and the dishes were catered to all of our dietary needs. The owners were so sweet and helped us out with Togo boxes and bags for all our stuff. The actual place itself was very warm and inviting and beautiful to enjoy with friends. Definitely would love to come back. Would give it more stars if I could!
The menu is completely online and you'll be asked to scan a QR code to access. I clarified with the staff that the "V" meant vegan, and it turns out that a lot of items could be made vegan upon request. We started with the Vegetable Pakora and Rosemary and Garlic flatbread, which I was told was made vegan. They did however still include the oil on top but luckily it's easily removed. I loved the flatbread the most and the pakora were great too, although I would've liked a bit more chutney on the side. For our mains, I ordered their Mango Almond Plantain Curry ($15). My curry was quite tasty although I felt there wasn't as much plantain compared to mango slices. I still very much enjoyed this Sri Lankan curry and my parents liked their salmon too. Overall, it was a nice dinner at Malabar with what we ordered. In the end, I would've probably subbed the pakora or curry for the vegan Nasi Goreng to add more bang for your buck. Next time I'll have to give that a try,
The menu is completely online and you'll be asked to scan a QR code to access. I clarified with the staff that the "V" meant vegan, and it turns out that a lot of items could be made vegan upon request. We started with the Vegetable Pakora and Rosemary and Garlic flatbread, which I was told was made vegan. They did however still include the oil on top but luckily it's easily removed. I loved the flatbread the most and the pakora were great too, although I would've liked a bit more chutney on the side. For our mains, I ordered their Mango Almond Plantain Curry ($15). My curry was quite tasty although I felt there wasn't as much plantain compared to mango slices. I still very much enjoyed this Sri Lankan curry and my parents liked their salmon too. Overall, it was a nice dinner at Malabar with what we ordered. In the end, I would've probably subbed the pakora or curry for the vegan Nasi Goreng to add more bang for your buck. Next time I'll have to give that a try,
We loved our food so much. The calamari was so tender and flavorful and the devil lanka had such a nice spice profile. The only problem was their blender was broken so I couldn't try the lassi, but the traditional chai was delicious.
Good food, do ask for recommendations based on your taste. Great service. Clean, open space. Has both outdoor and indoor seating