Raju Parikh

Besharam isn’t your typical Indian restaurant—it’s a love letter to Gujarati flavors with a bold, creative twist. Chef Heena Patel has taken the comfort and nostalgia of traditional Gujarati cuisine and reimagined it in ways that are both surprising and deeply satisfying. Every dish feels like a memory brought to life, but with an unexpected spin. The flavors are familiar yet exciting, from beautifully spiced snacks to home-style classics with a fresh, modern take. Whether it’s a playful version of a childhood favorite or a completely rethought regional dish, the chef finds a way to make each bite feel both comforting and new. Gujarati food has never seen this kind of creativity. If you’re looking for food that’s packed with heart, heritage, and a little bit of adventure, this is the place to be.

Rushi

The best Gujarati food I ever have in the States. That kachori and dabeli gave me the taste of Ahmedabad. That Ringla no Olo make me feel so nostalgic and it reminds me of My Granny. When I will visit San fransisco again, I will visit this restaurant again for sure. Highly recommend this place.

Julie Conover

Really fun dining experience. We eat Indian food a lot, but were totally lost with this creative menu. I think you can probably just pick anything & it will be delicious. It would be nice to have 3 or 4 people to share things with, so you could try more dishes. Cocktails are really creative & well made too!

sahithya baskaran

The undhiyo pie here was the highlight - right balance of spices and really delicious. We enjoyed the unique combinations and the service but for us it’s a one time visit as we can get authentic gujrati food in the Bay Area at more affordable prices. I would still recommend this restaurant for a more modern take on indian food and for an occasion/date.

Fulldistance Going

The ambiance is open and inviting and I found it pleasing. The service was fast and friendly. They do require that guests order all of their food choices at one go. Over all the dishes we ordered were well liked but a few things took away the Fifth Star. The Pani poor water … really no taste … more on the flat side with zero hint of tanginess/spice. That was a complete let down. The Undiye was just okay and one reason was the pastry actually didn’t add anything to the taste. The Paneer Muska was another slight disappointment…very little crumbled paneer in its raw form sprinkled atop spinach. Nope. The Ringan was up to par. The chutneys were acceptable. Anyway overall a pleasant evening.

+11

Preetham Eranki

We were a party of two. Went in on a Thursday afternoon around 12:30 pm for lunch and we were alone. But, slwoly 3-5 parties came in and tables got occupied. It is very easy to spend $50+ per person if you order a drink as well. Food was no doubts great and only vegetarian menu available for lunch which was a huge bonus for us

+4

Sandeepa Dey

Excellent food, service and atmosphere. Besharam serves mainly Indian food with unique touches of fusion here and there. We went on a Saturday and got the brunch menu from where we ordered the Masala Omelette, Ras Malai French Toast, Chole and Lamb Masala Burger. The Masala Omelette was unique, stuffed with shiitake and complimented with chutneys. The Ras Malai French Toast was absolutely delicious, French toast served with a topping of malai (fresh cream) and berries. The Lamb Masala Burger is plant based but so well made that it was hard to make out and the garlic naan that came with the Chole is unforgettably good. We also ordered a Papri chaat to start with and that too was an instant hit with all its sweet and sour, tangy and spicy flavors dripping 😍. We were seated promptly and the service was fast and polite. Overall great experience, though on the pricier side for a mainly vegetarian/ eggetarian menu.

+4

Himani Patel

Good Gujarati fusion. The inside atmosphere was great, but in spite of a reservation, they made us sit in a garage kind of a structure for a birthday dinner:(

Mohammad Hamza Kirmani

Creative chai with rose syrup that we liked. Masala mushroom to begin was a bomb! Loved every bit of it. The khadi-bhindi, again creative but the raw garlic in there overpowered the dish to an extent we hardly ate any of it. Definitely have had softer/smoother malai koftas.

hungry_runner

20% gratuity mandate per table is something that’s unheard of. And also price doesn’t match the food being served. Brunch thali was below average. Happy trying the place? Meh it was alright. Going to try again? NO.

+3

Mohit Punia

Not good food. I know people are writing good reviews but authentic flavor of Dal Makhani is missing. You can call it a dal but not Dal Makhani. Chef has done efforts in presentation. Which is good. This place could be your experiment to try different things but don’t expect authentic flavor in main dishes. Lastly, manager was not acknowledging feedback about food instead being stubborn.

Shivani Kaw

Other than the papdi chaat everything else was bleh. The cholas had an excess of a certain ingredient that was overpowering and tasted weird. The tacos were overtly sweet and the drinks were quite average.

Reena Patel

Was really looking forward to a meal here whilst on holiday in SF.Walked in and received a very sour greeting by the front desk (perhaps the co-owner) I had forgotten to add that we were bringing our 10month baby along to the reservation which he was clearly unhappy with and told me so. The food however and table service was good. I liked the appetisers for flavour and presentation. As we left the same person was at the entrance and completely ignored us and there was no polite goodbye. Very disappointing and ruined our evening.

ayush kalani

I had high expectations after hearing about this restaurant from my friends, but unfortunately, this place was a bit of a letdown. An Indian restaurant that charges for chutneys - that's a red flag in my book. Let's start with the positives first. Finding the restaurant tucked away in the Minnesota Street Project felt like stumbling upon a hidden gem. This also meant that parking was easy to find, which is great. The restaurant is vibrant and has a warm and pleasant ambiance. Now, let's switch gears. Besharam definitely lived up to its name (which translates to "shameless" in hindi) when it comes to service. We were a party of 5. While the 4 of us were waiting for our 5th friend to arrive, we decided to order some appetizers, only to be told by our server that they only take full order (not sure if that's the restaurant policy but we didn't bother to clarify). Anyway, after our friend joined us, we decided to order a few appetizers and one entree. When we were ready to place our order, our server kept pushing us to order more food for our party size, despite us telling him that we were okay with what we were getting. We've never had a server be so pushy that it felt a bit sales-y. When we politely opted for our own selection, he seemed almost disappointed. Speaking of selection, the pacing of our food left a lot to be desired. Everything seemed to arrive at once, turning our meal into an unintentional eating competition. We were inhaling food to make space for the next dish on our table (partly because our servers didn't do a good job of removing empty plates from our table). The food itself was a mixed bag. Mango lassi was delicious - thick and creamy with perfect sweetness level. The masala chai was okay. Most of the dishes fell flat and were bland. The Dahi Wada, a lentil dumpling in creamy yogurt, was good and flavorful because of the tamarind chutney. The Pav Bhaji Puff, a unique take on the classic street food, had potential, but the pastry crust was a tad dry. The Drunken Pani Puri, a fun twist on the traditional pani puri with a boozy filling, was a playful idea, but we could hardly taste the gin. The Dabeli Paratha, a flatbread stuffed with spiced potato filling, was decent, but nothing special. The Kachori Dumplings, another lentil dish, were a bit underseasoned. The Malai Koftas, vegetable dumplings in a creamy sauce, were the clear winner - flavorful and rich. The Garlic Naan, on the other hand, was very cheesy and filling. Apart from their a la carte menu, they also have a tasting menu priced at $75/person that is served family style and requires everyone at the table to participate. In my opinion, it is not worth it. You are better off ordering items from the a la carte menu.

+13