Jalsa was an incredible caterer for our wedding! We had the opportunity to do a tasting before we booked them. Normally they charge for tastings, but they gave it to us for free. We also had the opportunity to take home other dishes we wanted to try, especially when they had new offerings on their menu - they pretty much insisted which was very sweet. All of their food was incredible and got a lot of compliments from our guests. We tried to do a mix of normal classics that you see at weddings (Butter Chicken, Saag Paneer), but also mix in some Bengali dishes like Aloo Posto and Luchi. We also really enjoyed all the desserts. The raspberry lamington is a cake I'll never forget - if only I could get more in the future! They are a little hard to get hold of sometimes via email, but nonetheless they were responsive enough to our needs and executed perfectly at the wedding. Everything was fantastic and we cannot thank them enough for making our special day so tasty! read more

Have been ordering for parties and events for several years now. It's always a hit with our guests and very reliable. While a bit more expensive than other Indian places it's worth the added cost. read more

Everyone loved the food catered by Jalsa. Though everything was wonderful, Rasmalai and Panna Cotta were best selling items. Definitely a successful lunch at my baby shower event :) read more

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Jalsa catered our wedding on July 5th 2025 in Napa, and they did an excellent job catering to our guests and providing excellent food and service. We've included individual reviews from each of them, but we would highly recommend them for your wedding: Rishabh: Jalsa provided amazing food and the presentation was superb. Great fusion food, flexible service, and adequate staffing for all the events. Resmi and Lakshmi were both very responsive and attentive to our guests' needs. Would highly recommend them as caterers for any type of event. Kaj: Jalsa brings the luxury to Indian Weddings. Reshmi and their team did an amazing job elevating our wedding to insane heights. Our guest loved every minute of the food, presentation, and live demos throughout. We loved working with them and their attention to detail is quite insane. Thank you for working with us and making our wedding a memorable experience. read more

Great food. I would love to have more. My son said it was the best Indian food he has ever had. He is very picky.

We had Jalsa Catering for our event and were so impressed with their progressive Indian menu. The dishes were creative yet comforting--like the undhiyu empanada that everyone raved about, and the paneer jalfrezi which was also a huge hit. Everything was presented beautifully, came right on time, and tasted fresh and clean. Our guests loved the variety and flavors, and many mentioned how unique the menu felt while still being relatable. Jalsa made the whole experience seamless, and we'll definitely be going back to them for future events. read more

I had the opportunity to try their food and was not a fan. They catered some events and let's just say there was a lot of food thrown away. At one event there was Indian food and some sort of fusion mexican indian food. No one was in the mexican food line which of course made the food line ridiculously long. They made something that was a "smashed chicken" taco or tostada. I spat out the chicken because the flavoring was a bad mix of Indian and mexican spices. The only part I could eat was the corn tortilla. I went home from that event needing to eat at home. The next day the food was even worse. Safron pullao that was more safron than rice. Safron is supposed to be used sparingly, this was like eating straight safron. Saag Edamame babycorn and snap peas dish, Beet kofta, Lemongrass cauliflower, Asian pear min raita. Basically someone on their cooking staff thought they would make new edgy food and all they did was make a bunch of food that went to waste. Indian food was not meant to be made with Edamame or asian pears! Stick to normal indian food. I am sure there is a market for weird indian food but most of us enjoy normal Indian food. I thought at least dessert would be good but unfortunately the dessert was again drowning in safron to the point of not being edible. I think the mango mouse was the only thing that was edible. Basically if you go to an event catered by them be prepared for weird bad fusion dishes and make sure you have food at home so you dont go to bed hungry. read more

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I tried Jalsa catering through a work related event and was very impressed with their dishes. The coconut curry chicken was delicious, and had a great spice level. Not too hot and not mild. Truly medium-hot and enough to keep you on your toes without being overpowering. (I like spicy so YMMV) The chole was also delicious and the rice and naan were perfectly prepared. I would absolutely order from them again. read more

Many of our guests said this was the best food they have had at a wedding! These compliments were from both Indian and non Indian guests. The only negative aspects from our experience was that the communication was quite slow and hard to follow, since it was mostly through long complicated email chains that were hard to follow. During our tasting, they did not remove the allergens like we asked. However, we were able to put a no allergen clause in our contact and there were no issues during the actual event.. There was also an instance where one of the cooks asked some guests for a tip, but when I brought it up, they apologised and said that the cook should have not done that. Overall though they got the most important thing right, which was that the food was delicious. I definitely will be recommending them to all my friends and will be using them for future events! read more

Jalsa just catered my Jaggo and I cannot recommend them enough. Every single one of our guests was left absolutely raving about the food. They let us do multiple tasting sessions to make sure that the food was just right, and the chef even recommended some dishes to add as well. We also met with Reshmi, the co-owner, before the event and she was such a pleasure to work with. Photos courtesy of Wedding Documentary read more

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We asked Jalsa to cater our reception dinner in Mountain View and they were the best! The food was not only great and well presented, but the service staff went above and beyond to make the event a great success. We will surely refer our friends to use Jalsa's services for future events. read more

Jalsa Catering was exceptional for our corporate event's closing dinner for 50+ people. They accommodated our growing headcount, dietary restrictions, and dinner schedule with ample food that stayed hot throughout the evening. The slider bar was a hit. read more

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They were amazing. Quality and quantity was good. Everyone enjoyed the food and it came right on time as well

We hired Jalsa to cater our three day, Indian fusion wedding in October 2022 for 175+ people. Food was the #1 priority for my family, and we booked Jalsa before we even booked our venue! Jalsa's food is incredible. It's tasty, fresh, innovative, and pleasing to all palates. Reshmi is flexible about crafting a menu that is custom for your event and a full tasting is included, so that you can make sure you like what is on their catering menu for the year. Getting a hold of them via email was sometimes challenging (try giving Reshmi a call instead) but they did a wonderful job on all three days of our wedding events. We got compliments about the food on each day, as they were able to do a superb job delivering authentic flavors with vegetarian South Indian food for our religious ceremony lunch, street food for our outdoor Sangeet, and traditional North Indian buffet for our reception. Even their desserts are very creative and different, with lots of fusion flair. Their staff knows what they are doing, and are professional and on time. Overall, I would hire Jalsa again for future events. read more

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Jalsa is the benchmark for Indian wedding catering in the Bay Area and Napa. We hired Jalsa to provide appetizers and dinner service for our sangeet (150 guests) and wedding reception (250 guests). Chef Vittal worked closely with us to ensure each event had unique and complementary flavors - he has a strong pedigree and is able to make items that are not listed on Jalsa's formal menu. For our sangeet, our appetizers and dinner items included specialities from both North and South India. For our reception, we included food items from Jalsa's main catering menu. All the food items - including the flatbreads, sides, and desserts - were freshly made and delicious, with our guests consistently going back for seconds and thirds. Our guests also appreciated that Jalsa was able to make both classic dishes (e.g., panipurri, samosa chaat, idiyappam, etc.) and elevated modern ones (e.g., lotus root chaat, kimchi pop appetizer, etc.). Our non-vegetarian guests kept raving about the vegetarian dishes (such as the cauliflower appetizer, rolled eggplant main dish, and green apple kofta). We even had guests telling us that they had never had such fresh paratha or naan at such a large event. Desserts were also the right size and correctly made (e.g., every gulab jammun was a perfect sphere with the right texture and amount of syrup). Everything ran smoothly when it came to logistics - the food was ready on-time and all of the minor details were ironed out weeks in advance so there were no surprises during the events. This came as no surprise as Jalsa was very experienced with our venue (and probably has experience at every major venue for Indian weddings in the Bay Area and Napa). The Jalsa team also communicated well with us as they responded to our questions promptly via emails and phone calls. Ultimately, if you are planning an Indian wedding in the Bay Area or Napa and want elevated Indian cuisine for any of your events, then you should strongly consider Jalsa. The food and service are both top-notch, and your guests will walk away extremely satisfied from the food from your wedding. read more

Jalsa catered our Indian welcome party during our wedding. They accommodated our specific requests, far away venue, and more, and we couldn't be happier that they did. We received many, many compliments on the food from both Indians and non-Indians which was great to hear. We particularly appreciated the attentiveness of the onsite staff who made sure we, as the bride and groom, had what we needed and got to eat. Thank you Jalsa! read more

We ordered food from Jalsa for a small event. Not only is their menu very different from every other Indian restaurant, it is delicious. And the quantity is also very good. Highly recommended. read more

Jalsa catered two dinners for our wedding events (sangeet stations and reception buffet, including cocktail hour appetizers) and everyone loved the food and service. The variety across the two days was also very good. In addition to being able to try most of the dishes ahead of time at the extensive tasting session and suggest changes, we were also able to serve some of our favorite bakery's pastries and wines from our own collection with the help of Jalsa's staff. We appreciated their flexibility and willingness to make and/or serve exactly what we wanted. For example, we were able to have both a dosa station and a chaat station at our sangeet event, which is an unusual combination for a single caterer to do well. They were also able to make some of the reception buffet dishes (which are typically very heavy) lighter by request. It is convenient that they are very familiar with many Bay Area venues and many other vendors who may need to coordinate with them. Some comments from guests: "I thought the food on Friday was amazing, and then the food on Saturday blew my mind!" "The food was simply awesome. And the service was superb." Reshmi and the Jalsa team are usually very responsive by phone and/or email. We appreciated their clear communication and relatively quick responses to our many questions, requests, and clarifications. If you have a high guest count, catering will likely be your biggest expense regardless of the vendor. While Jalsa likely won't be the cheapest option for catering, they are definitely one of the best, and their food and services felt very worth it. We also recommend booking far in advance to lock in dates and the best possible pricing in your contract, since it tends to increase year-to-year with inflation. read more

I come to Jalsa every chance I get with a new clients, from top noche Indian cuisine to thoughtful fusion custom menus.... I've never been dissatisfied with their delicious dishes. It's been 9 years of partnership on weddings and I highly recommend them for your South Asian , Fusion or anytime of wedding especially if you're a foodie... read more

Tried their catering food for an event. Oh so delicious. The plating is a delight. Very tastefully presented. Ordered from their weekly menu online and enjoyed their dishes. Great customer service and delicious food. read more

Vithal catered my fusion Hindu wedding and did a truly masterful job. Our guests had very different tastes and Vithal nailed it for everyone. The main compliment I received on the wedding from guests was that the food was amazing, and a few people told me (completely unprompted) that it was the best food they'd ever had at a wedding. I can't recommend Vithal highly enough. read more

Jalsa catered our cocktail hour and reception for our wedding day in December 2023 in Berkeley. WOW! Jalsa was absolutely spectacular in both food and service. The creativity of taking traditional south asian dishes and putting a California, contemporary twist on them blew us and our guests away. We had multiple days of wedding celebrations with a lot of Indian food and this was the perfect way to end the wedding because it felt really unique. The food was delicious, filling, and not too heavy for dancing the night at our reception. The pani puri bar was a goddamn hit, and we heard from no less than half of our guests that that was their favorite part. We were so appreciative of getting to have the lassi bar (with our specially branded cups!) and a very special dessert display that was dedicated to my father who passed unexpectedly just a few months before our wedding. I have celiacs and am vegetarian, and Jalsa was outstanding in the preparation of our menu to make sure that I and others with dietary restrictions were able to eat. We did ask them to prepare separate plates for two guests with extremely severe food allergies, and those friends weren't able to get those plates, which might have been a miscommunication during the event, but they were both able to speak with staff and figure out what options would work for them. Consistently over the year of planning, Reshmi and her team were super communicative and generous with accommodating our many, many requests. We would definitely work with Jalsa again! read more

The food is awesome. Our guests loved both veg and non-veg items. And their salad is not just a menu filler but is a dish by itself! They help you craft a balanced menu and accommodate reasonable changes. I will also call out their their staff, Venkatesh for punctual delivery and a very organized set up. I am a repeat customer and I am very satisfied with Jalsa. read more

We were referred to Jalsa by our wedding planner for our wedding. We choose Jalsa as our vendor because their food was good and had a unique way of presenting food. However, we ended up being completely disappointed by their professionalism, and product presentation. During our tasting and planning process we had a certain vision for our food for the sangeet, wedding, and reception but Jalsa FAILED to deliver the food as presented. They also didn't serve the quantity of food we paid for! See pictures... As businesses expand without adequate resources their lack of quality shows. Also, communication was always delayed, and till this day we never received an apology by Reshmi or her team. For future people who are considering Jalsa DON'T do it read more

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When naan doesn't look/taste good you know there is something wrong. My fiancé and I had heard raving reviews from family members about Jalsa, and even on Yelp they received many positive reviews so we decided to do a tasting for our upcoming wedding. When we received the menu, I noticed it seemed a bit odd I know they're attempting to do something new with indian food, so it's fusion but the fusion based on the menu seemed more of a miss than a hit. Trying to give them the benefit of the doubt, I kept an open mind for our tasting. However, after trying over a dozen items my initial impressions were correct. Their attempts at fusion were lost on me. Full disclosure: do not enjoy lemongrass flavors, so the lemongrass paneer was a hard pass for me. Their other fusion dishes, I couldn't even taste any "fusion" components or in the case of their take on saag "slow cooked mustard greens, spinach with water chestnuts" was inedible! Their naan was thin and over cooked, crispy to the point of breaking apart and served cold. There were two highlights of this meal: the gentlemen serving us was very kind, and their fried cauliflower was a 5/5. But after trying almost two dozen items and walking away with only truly loving one was a disappointing way to spend my afternoon. Everyone of our six member party felt the same way. We appreciate their time, they did offer to do another tasting for us after learning of our disappointment upon the initial one but if a restaurant can't deliver on their first chance why would we spend a small fortune to serve 400 people on one of the biggest days of our lives? read more

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We originally booked Jalsa to cater our wedding in September 2020. Due to Covid-19, we had to move our wedding to September 2021. Reshmi and her team were extremely flexible and helpful in adjusting our contract and date and making sure they were available for our new date. Jalsa provided a wonderful wedding tasting experience where we were able to select our choice of dishes for the wedding. Additionally, Jalsa was extremely helpful in providing special meals for certain dietary restrictions with no issues on the day of the wedding. The food and dessert were exceptional and all of our guests raved about the food! We would absolutely recommend Jalsa for all future event catering needs! read more

We have been Jalsa customers for over 5 years now. We have had Jalsa cater for various events of various party sizes. Right from 200 people to just our little household. The overall experience with their food has always been very positive. I think their USP is that they retain the authenticity while adding such a fine and sophisticated touch to the dishes. With the widely employed shelter-in-place, Jalsa has begun catering to smaller orders and has a weekly menu. We've tried at least 4 different items on the weekly menus and each has lived up to their own high standards. Cauliflower Au Gratin, Beet Kofta, Awadhi Biryani, are some of the dishes we've tried recently. We've also loved their takes on desserts. Classical Indian desserts with a modern/contemporary touch. Phirnis, Halwas, Shahi Tukdas - served alongside or integrated with panacottas and cannolis as examples. Now, not everything is super rosy - their deliveries (if you use their delivery service) - have not always lived up to the high standards of their food. Reshmi (one of the partners) is most often very responsive on the phone, but one can imagine that they're very busy and so the response times are at times where they could do a bit better. The staff too - perhaps under the pressure of the volume of work - tend to err - mixing up orders or often missing to deliver key items. But then, to play devil's advocate, if one zooms out, these are little things that are kinda part of the game. For a company that aims to be at the top of their game, these glitches are totally avoidable. The food certainly stands out from the average Indian restaurant. Even among the better restaurants, Jalsa measures up sizably. read more

This review is several months overdue and I still daydream about the meal. Jalsa catered my intimate wedding back in August and it was incredible. The service and attention to detail are outstanding but then....there's the food. So full of imagination, sophistication, and deliciousness. With the creativity that goes into it from presentation to outside the box ways to accommodate dietary restrictions it is hard for to me imagine anyone doing a better job. Reshmi and her team clearly cared so much about their work and not only feeding us well but making sure we were delighted by the experience. THANK YOU for helping to make our day so special. Now, if I could find a way to get the recipe for those Sri Lankan fish rolls (gluten free no less) lol...... read more

They catered a small event for us this week. And everything - from the first email to the phone call from Reshmi to discuss the menu and the delivery of food was flawless (and contactless). Reshmi is responsive and had some great menu suggestions that made our dinner party spectacular. All guests enjoyed: 1. Podi idli with coconut chutney - it was crispy, fresh and, in one word, addictive! We had no leftovers (to my husband's dismay). 2. Veggie empanadas - were delicious and had the right amount of filling to the dough. 3. Achari paneer - highly recommended! I am a big paneer fan and this dish did not disappoint. 4. Veggie biryani with salan and raita - mmm... so good! I'm dreaming about it for lunch now. 5. Naanizza - which is a pizza and naan hybrid. We ordered just cheese ones for the kids and they loved it! I don't even have the right words to express just how amazing the food was and how fantastic and communicative Reshmi was. She listened to all my ideas and incorporated everything beautifully. Also, the chef went above and beyond to create such sublime delights. I would recommend them for all your events in a heartbeat. read more

There is no one better than Jalsa not just in bay area but in areas around. I was given the hard task of organizing my sister's wedding and was only given 8 weeks to finalize everything. Reshmi and Prateeksha were so accommodating and helpful in the whole process of organizing the menu and maximizing the different varieties. I am so glad they accommodated all our requirements and requests in such a short period of time. And, what do I say about the food,I and every guest at the wedding says this in unison that we have not had better Indian food ever. Everything served at the wedding was top notch. Thank you so much Reshmi for taking care of us and our guests. I would highly recommend, whoever reads my review to stop your search right here and go ahead and blindly trust them with your wedding/ event catering. read more

We recently used Jalsa for our wedding, and every one of our guests left the evening with stuffed tummies and were blown away by not only the taste, but the elegance and creativity put into the presentation of all the food. Many were even taking pictures of their plates! We had a fusion wedding for about 130 people, where our audience was a mix of native born Indians, Chinese and Americans (as my husband and I are Chinese-American and Indian-American, respectively). We tasked Jalsa with a difficult challenge: to develop a menu that would appeal to a broad audience by giving a cross-cultural spin to classic Indian dishes. Over many months and multiple tastings, Jalsa worked with us to craft a completely custom menu, with three different food stations that included Indo-inspired Mexican and Indo-Chinese food, and an eclectic mix of appetizers and desserts. Some of the notable items were: --Nepalese steamed momos --Masala crab cakes with a coconut curry tartar sauce --Elaichi saffron cannolis (a HUGE hit with our guests! This is a must) --Mango Pannacotta Our menu successfully appealed to a cross-cultural audience of varied ages and backgrounds. Additionally, the Jalsa staff was punctual and attentive to the guest experience, they even prepared a special gluten-free plate for one of our guests who has Celiac's. As clients, we couldn't be happier with the level of service they provided us to make our day special. read more

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Jalsa catered our wedding and we were so incredibly happy with them! From the time of menu selection through the whole event, they were communicative, professional, and the food was creative and high quality. We gave Reshmi an idea of some fusion items we wanted for our tasting, and the team had that and more (including podi idli fries, sundried tomato kofta, and penne tikka masala). Food was the most important thing to us and our guests are still raving about it. Highly recommend! read more

This is long overdue. I have had Jalsa catering for 2 past events and they catered for my daughters sweet 16 party recently . I cannot think of a single guest who did not come and tell me the food was simply amazing! They have unique new flavors every time which wow everyone and the presentation and service is impeccable! They make the entire process very easy for you. The team helps you all along the way - right from the menu selection, helping you decide what time to serve the food and working with your timeline, to backend processes like paperwork that venues need from vendors is taken care of seamlessly by the team.I would go as far as saying that I would not book a date for a party before first checking their availability. read more

My wife and I hired Jalsa to cater our wedding. I'll break down this review into 2 sections: Professionalism/Customer Service, and Food. 1) Professionalism/Customer Service If I could give negative stars, I would. I have never worked with anyone who was less responsive or worse at communication. Our wedding venue in the Bay Area had a limited number of approved vendors, and Jalsa was the only Indian food caterer, so unfortunately we had limited options. Initially, before we hired them, they were decently responsive - it took a week or two to get responses, but they would come, and we nailed down a quote and basic menu without too much hassle. HOWEVER - after we signed, it became incredibly difficult to get ahold of them. We were managing the bay area wedding from NYC, so I had to fly in for 4 days to manage a tasting, venue visits, and vendor visits. The day I fly in, I email them to confirm our tasting - the person on the email (not Reshmi) says that they can't do it anymore... After frantically emailing and calling them for 24 hours, I finally get ahold of Reshmi, and have to move around my entire schedule to get the tasting menu. After we signed, it would take at minimum 3-4 repeated emails to get a response, and multiple weeks, with the responses not always addressing our concerns. We essentially signed a wedding planner just so we wouldn't have to deal with Jalsa anymore. 2) Food The food was decent - 3-4 stars. Nothing epic, but definitely not bad. Our guests said it was solid indian food, but not particularly memorable. I will say the desserts got rave reviews! And Jalsa did help us create a menu that was true to our wedding theme. Basically, if you don't have to deal with them, and are willing to pay exorbitant amounts, and have no other choice, you might as well go with Jalsa. But if there are other options, I'd probably keep exploring. read more

The entire team of Jalsa is fantastic. Let's start with the Chef/owner Vittal Shetty. I wanted a unique menu for a birthday party and he delivered. He was extremely efficient and timely with all correspondence (replies within hours or sooner). He devised an authentic Manglorean/South Indian menu per my request. He came up with unique vegetable, lamb, chicken and fish dishes. A dosa chef on site preparing not only dosa but serving up yummy appetizers was a huge hit. All this organized by Chef Vittal. There was ample food and you could tell they came prepared. Extremely reasonable cost with the *wow* factor! Next working with Reshmi/co-owner/event coordinator was totally stress free. The party was a surprise which added layers of complications logistically. Reshmi educated her team and made sure the event went on without a hitch. She provided a bartender, server and on site chef for a party of 30+ within days of the request. She also helps with designing and staffing the event. Anything you need, she can provide (lights, linens, dish ware etc). Her price quote was at least 30% cheaper than what I found via private agencies that help with staffing and event coordination. Finally the staff sent by the team: chef, server, bartender were extremely professional. They came 10 min ahead of time. They were completely prepared, coordinated and fun to work with. Bartender (Travis) was awesome and improvised with amazing cocktails. Service provided by Nimesh was spot on. The passed appetizers was a great change from buffet style eating. Nimesh even packed up the leftovers which was awesome . The dosa chef was extremely talented, food was coming out hot and delicious. If you want really tasty food for a very small party of 10 to huge events, this is the place to go! The food, staffing and event coordination all done by one team is often hard to do but Jalsa has it dialed in! read more

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Jalsa catered our wedding in San Mateo/SF for all of our events (Sangeet, Wedding, and Reception) and our guests couldn't stop raving about the food. First off, any time a guest heard it was Jalsa they were already excited because of their reputation, and boy did they live up to it. Reshmi and team was super accommodating with our tastings and all of our requests and they incorporated every bit of feedback on every dish. Not only does their food taste amazing it has great presentation value. If you're doing an Indian wedding in the Bay area, you've got to go with Jalsa. read more

Absolutely scrumptious, delicious food. Fantastic catering service with all the utensils and containers.

I went to a friend's house party and they had food catered from Jalsa. Everyone commented on how good the food was and I thoroughly enjoyed the meal. The food was tasty and fresh and they had some unique items like the edamame paneer. read more

Food: 4/5 Customer Service: 1/5 Service staff: 1/5 Jalsa has good Indian fusion food but I would not recommend hiring them for your wedding or any big event. Wedding/big events are already stressful and a bad customer service (taking days to reply to any query) can make your life *miserable*, which is the last thing you need when you are planning a big event; and cherry on top is the bad service staff- we opted and payed for seated dinner instead of buffet style but Jalsa's bad service staff ruined everything. Keep in mind that have to give deposit upfront to these vendors and even make the full payment 2 weeks before your event so basically you cannot do much about the bad customer service and service staff if you already paid them unless you are fine with losing all your money and starting the caterer search from scratch, which I know is next to impossible towards the end for big events like wedding. read more

We worked with Jalsa for our recent Wedding, Sangeet, and hospitality catering. We were blown away by the support from Reshmi and Vittal and the amount of care and attention they paid to make all of our events so magical. The food was incredible and all of our guests thoroughly enjoyed. We were so impressed by the team's creativity and thoughtfulness in creating menus that were unique & tasty. They went out of their way to help bring to life special touches like a Creme Brulee station and Coconut water station. All in all, we were so lucky to work with Jalsa for our events & I would highly recommend anyone looking for event catering to work with Jalsa - truly the best in the Bay Area! read more