Sydney's Indian kebabs, off a real fire.
Eight kebabs on the à la carte, cooked in a 450°C coal-and-clay tandoor by chefs who've stood over one their entire working life. Halal-sourced, hand-marinated overnight, plated in front of you at Sky City Bella Vista.
Most kebabs in Sydney come off a gas grill. Ours come off a clay tandoor packed with hot coals — the same vessel that's been cooking meat on the subcontinent for four hundred years. The heat radiates from every wall of the pot, the marinade caramelises in seconds, and the fat drips back down onto the coals to smoke the meat from below.
That's why our tandoori tastes different. That's why our lamb chops carry a smoke that a barbecue can't reproduce. And that's why we've been booked out for eight of the last ten Fridays.
Seekh Patiala Shahi
Punjab · LambHand-minced lamb, royal cumin, mint and fenugreek, moulded raw onto the skewer in front of the tandoor. Chunky, smoky, the seekh Patiala built its name on.
Barrah Kebab (Lamb Chops)
Old Delhi · LambFrench-trimmed cutlets marinated 24 hours in yoghurt and ground whole spices. Pink centre, charred edge, rendered fat — the kebab everyone photographs.
Tandoori Chicken
Punjab · ClassicOvernight yoghurt marinade, six-spice rub, 450°C clay tandoor. The benchmark every Indian kitchen is measured against. Ours has held up 2,000+ reviews.
Malai Tikka
Mughlai · ChickenBoneless chicken thigh in cream, cheese, white pepper and green cardamom. Almost ivory off the skewer — for guests who think they don't like Indian.
Galouti Kebab
Lucknow · Awadhi · LambLamb pounded to a paste with raw papaya and 30+ spices, pan-finished. So tender it melts before you chew. Rare on Sydney menus.
Reshmi Kebab
Mughlai · ChickenSilk-textured chicken mince with saffron cream and cardamom. Delicate, aromatic, the kid-friendly kebab that still tastes like something.
Paneer Tikka
Vegetarian · North IndianHouse paneer, capsicum and onion in a yoghurt-and-carom-seed marinade, kissed by the tandoor. Sydney's most-ordered vegetarian kebab for a reason.
Fish Tikka
Coastal · Halal-sourcedFirm white fish in ginger, lime, mustard oil and green chilli — thirty seconds too long ruins it, so we time it to the second.
Overnight marinade. Live fire. Nothing pre-cooked.
Every kebab is marinated the night before service in yoghurt, ginger-garlic and whole spices we pound in-house the same morning. Meat goes onto skewers in front of the tandoor, not out of a warming tray. The pot runs at 450°C by 5pm and stays there until close.
Fish tikka comes off in ninety seconds. Lamb chops go three minutes then rest. Tandoori chicken hangs for eight. There is no shortcut, no reheating, no microwave anywhere in the building.
The kebabs with their own story.
- · Tandoori chicken — the benchmark, plated whole
- · Lamb seekh kebab — the Patiala classic
- · Paneer tikka — the vegetarian centrepiece
- · Best kebabs in Sydney — the ranked shortlist
If it's your first visit, order these.
Barrah Kebab (Lamb Chops)
24-hour yoghurt marinade, pink centre, rendered fat. The kebab we photograph most and the one first-time diners remember.
Read more →Seekh Patiala Shahi
Hand-minced twice on a wooden block. Royal cumin and fenugreek. The seekh that ruins supermarket seekh forever.
Read more →Tandoori Chicken (Whole)
The benchmark. Overnight marinade, six-spice rub, 450°C tandoor. Plated whole for the table.
Read more →Which occasion is this menu for?
Order the metre-long Kebabiya Platter — seekh, barrah, tandoori chicken, malai tikka, paneer tikka on one board. One decision, everything covered.
All meat is halal-sourced end-to-end. Corporate lunch drops to Norwest Business Park, Bella Vista and Baulkham Hills — mixed kebab platters travel well.
Call the restaurant to reserve a long table near the pass so guests can watch the tandoor chef work. Metre-long platters photograph beautifully.
Kebabs reheat cleanly on a hot pan — thirty seconds per side. Direct orders from kebabiya.com.au skip platform fees.
Round out the table.
Garlic naan or Kashmiri naan
View →Non-negotiable with tandoor food. Order two per person and one Kashmiri to share.
Dal makhani or rogan josh
View →A slow-cooked gravy after the char. The kitchen simmers dal makhani for eighteen hours; the rogan josh is Kashmiri with no tomato.
Hyderabadi or Sindhi biryani
View →Follow the kebabs with a sealed-pot biryani cracked open at the table. The share-plate for four to six.
See the whole tandoor menu
View →Every dish that touches the pit — kebabs, breads, vegetables — in one list.
The combinations regulars build.
Metre-long platter + garlic naan basket + dal makhani + Kingfisher
The table for six. One platter, one basket, one gravy, four beers — the order our staff recommend to first-timers.
Barrah + seekh + tandoori chicken + Kashmiri naan + Sindhi biryani
The 'we came for meat' Friday. Three tandoor proteins, one sweet bread, one biryani finish.
Paneer tikka + tandoori broccoli + malai tikka + laccha paratha
The mixed vegetarian-and-mild table — everyone eats, nobody argues about heat.
Ready to eat? Choose your channel.
Kebabs travel and reheat better than anything else on the menu — the go-to for catering across the Hills. Direct orders skip platform fees — call (02) 8824 7944 for large groups.
Sydney's kebab questions, answered.
- Where can I get the best Indian kebabs in Sydney?
- Kebabiya in Bella Vista has been building its menu around a coal-and-clay tandoor since 2014. Eight kebabs on the à la carte — from Patiala seekh to Awadhi galouti — plus the metre-long platter for tables of six or more.
- Are your kebabs halal?
- Every piece of meat that touches our tandoor is halal-sourced from certified suppliers, end-to-end since 2014. The venue is fully licensed (so not formally Halal-certified), but no non-halal meat crosses the pass.
- What's the difference between an Indian kebab and a Turkish or Lebanese kebab?
- Indian kebabs are marinated in yoghurt and whole-spice blends (garam masala, cardamom, mace) and cooked in a vertical clay tandoor at 450°C, not on a horizontal rotating spit. Textures range from chunky (seekh) to melt-in-mouth (galouti), and they're served with mint chutney and naan rather than pita and toum.
- Do you deliver kebabs across Sydney?
- Direct order from our website (no platform fees) or via Uber Eats and DoorDash. We deliver hot to the Hills District, and pickup runs Sydney-wide from Bella Vista.
- Which kebab do you recommend for a first visit?
- Order the metre-long Kebabiya Platter — seekh, tandoori chicken, malai tikka, paneer tikka and lamb chops on one metre of wood. Six people, one photograph, decision made.
Come for the fire.
Dine in at Sky City Bella Vista, order kebabs to your door, or plan a platter for your next event.