Pijja Palace

Avish Naran built an Indian sports bar on Sunset and put malai rigatoni and a green chutney pijja on the menu. The name is the Indian pronunciation of pizza.

Why go

Naran had a pinned tweet before he had a restaurant: We don't have the Indian dining scene that New York and San Francisco have, so I'm just going to build it myself.1 He opened in 2022 in a Silver Lake strip mall and called it a sports bar.

The menu is where the argument lands. Chopped salad with a chaat vinaigrette, okra fries, dosa onion rings, malai rigatoni, and a green chutney pijja that comes under a house blend of fenugreek leaves, parmesan, chili flakes and oregano.1

The name is a joke he committed to. In Indian pronunciation the z softens to a j, and palace was a dig at every Delhi Palace and Taj Palace on the strip. His words: I'm a pretty jokey dude, so I wanted to keep it pretty fun, you know?1

Order this / avoid

Order: the malai rigatoni, and the green chutney pijja beside it.1
Order: the jaggery old fashioned. It is Naran's own pick off the cocktail list.1
Avoid: turning up at kickoff without a table. This is a sports bar and it fills like one.

What locals & experts say

LAist, Virali Dave, 21 July 2022: Pijja Palace is a Silver Lake spot that calls itself a sports bar and serves the best Indian American food you will find in Los Angeles.1
On the pizza itself, same piece: a crispy, thin crust, with flavorful sauces that showcase a range of Indian spices, and enough cheese to put a full jar of Lactaid to work.1

Good to know

Booking: taken through the restaurant's own site.2
Getting there: 2711 West Sunset Boulevard, in the strip on the Silver Lake side.2

Verdict

should-visit — Avish Naran opened a sports bar because that is the room he wanted, then put a real Indian American kitchen inside it: malai rigatoni, dosa onion rings, a green chutney pijja under fenugreek leaves and parmesan. Virali Dave, who covers this food for LAist, called it the best Indian American food in Los Angeles in July 2022 and explained why that sentence was even possible to write. The bar pours a pata-quiri built on rooh afza and a jaggery old fashioned. It stays a rung below the top because the record is thin and four years old: one visit, from the opening summer, and no Michelin standing anybody could verify.