Malabar Restaurant offers an impressive selection of vegan and gluten-free dishes inspired by Southeast Asian cultural. We specialize in vegetarian cuisine. And now offer a variety of seafood dishes.
Come join us and try our staple dishes and new creations from our chef who been in the behind the restaurant for over 30 years.
Open for dinner, Tuesday through Sunday, 5:30 pm until 8:30 pm. Open for lunch, Tuesday through Sunday, 12:00 pm – 2:30 pm. No reservations.
Industrial-chic eatery serving vegetarian Asian-fusion fare & tropical, health-conscious drinks. Based on 326 reviews, the restaurant has received a rating of 4.2 stars. Price $$
Address:
514 Front St, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Phone: (831) 201-4438
Website: http://malabar-restaurant.com/
Menu
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Reviews
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.
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Taylor Shin
I am not exaggerating when I say that eating at Malabar was life changing. I will never forget the first time I took a bite out of the Gobi Manchurian. I thought I was eating a delicious Indian/Malaysian version of orange chicken but something felt slightly “off”. As I was chewing I realized that what I was eating was not chicken. The only possible explanation to this mystery was that it was potato. But upon closer inspection I found out that the divine, scrumptious object in my mouth was cauliflower! Somehow the edges of the cauliflower were crispy while the inside was soft and chewy. And to top it off, the sauce was heavenly as it had a perfect balance of sweet, salty, and savory. The Gobi Manchurian was without a doubt a 10/10. The group I was part of ordered food family style so I got to try many different dishes. My personal highlights aside from the Gobi Manchurian were the Mango Lassi, Egg Roti, and Kofta India. On top of the delicious food, the service was fantastic! Definitely check out Malabar if you can, you will not regret it!
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Internet Person
Couldn’t wait to take a pic of the food it looked so good. I had the Yellow Curry w/Snapper and it was amazing. There was an acoustic band playing that was pretty nice. Very nice restaurant, staff, and atmosphere. A bit pricey but the excellent food made it worth it.
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Lizzy
Got the Peanut Boda, Gobi Manchurian, and Vegetable Curry, all were amazing and full of flavor. The service was very good too. Highly recommend and we will be coming back to try many more dishes!
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Amy Vincent
The food was amazing. They had so many vegan options. We got the nassi Gorin and peanut boda. Both were incredible! Such an underrated place.
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Mahalingam Rajasutha
The fusion of sri lankan food. The devil shrimp was good not spicy though, and the msian fried rice was awesome. The masala chai can be improved as we expected strong steamimg tea with more spice flavours, but it was quite subtle. Otherwise loved their potato dosai, Kerala fish. The owners were awesome too.
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Debranee Mitra
Dishes were all on the sweeter side. Dal Soup was just Indian Kali dal tadka.
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Lillie Lemon
The food here is amaaaaazing. Everything I’ve tried from the menu was delicious. I love their variety of vegan options. My favorite was the seven vegetable curry, which was well balanced in flavor and texture.
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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.
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sonam famarin (vMail4Sonam)
Wednesday night at Malabar. We met at 5pm, opening. Comfortable ambiance. We ate delicious food and stayed a little longer just talking. We didn’t feel rushed. Average price per person, with a beverage was $20. But then again, I had samosa and shared a pear salad. The homemade ice cream was the real treat! All vegan and vegetarian cuisine!
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