At Cupertino’s Safar by Karimi, you’ll find delicious North Indian and Pakistani dishes, as well as a sleek bar with modern chandeliers.

But what you won’t find is beer, wine or any alcohol.

Or any pork for that matter.

That’s because the restaurant, which opened last December, is halal.

While it doesn’t explicitly spell that out on the menu or on its website, you get the gist immediately when you look over the beverage menu, which offers plenty of teas, lassi variations, and non-alcoholic coolers blended in-house, but nothing at all boozy.

Far from turning off potential customers, it seems to be bringing them in if last week was any indication when the restaurant was bustling with folks coming in to break the fast at sunset for Ramadan. That’s when I dined, having been invited as a guest of the restaurant.

The restaurant was opened by three brothers: Rifakat Saiyed, Ashfak Saiyed, and Yunus Saiyed. They also operate the more casual Karimi Restaurant in downtown San Jose, The Cupertino restaurant on Stevens Creek Boulevard has the bonus of having its own parking lot, too.

“Safar” is the Arabic term for “journey.” That’s what the restaurant aims to offer with its extensive menu, which adds some surprising ingredients such as burrata, cranberries and white truffle oil to a classic Indian repertoire.

My husband can never resist a mango lassi ($8), and this one is as creamy and thick as a milkshake. It really does the job, too, to cool off those taste buds. I opted for the Blood Brilliant ($13), a riff on a Moscow Mule that’s even served in the same copper mug. A mix of blood orange juice muddled with ginger, it’s tangy, a little sweet, citrusy, and moderately gingery.

An amuse of panipuri arrives, the crispy, hollow semolina shells filled with avocado and tamarind. Eat it in one bite to get the full effect — and to not make a mess.

As you look over the menu, enjoy a basket of papadams ($12) It’s a feast of crunch with chips of all sizes accompanied with a finely chopped salad that’s like the Indian equivalent of Mexican pico de gallo.

The Safar KFC ($23) stands not for Kentucky fried chicken but for South Indian “kurryleaf” that flavors this fried chicken. It’s got great crunch, and boasts moist flesh. A fun touch is the spiced Kewpie mayo (yes, India meets Japan) to dip pieces into.

When it comes to the trend of corn ribs, I confess I’m at a loss. Surely, they’re no easier — and maybe even more difficult — to eat than full-on corn-on-the-cob. I blame Instagram for its buzz. In any event, I did order them here. Inspired by Mumbai’s tradition of grilling at the beach, these corn ribs are slathered with pickled butter and spicy chili. They’re fried, rendering them bronzed, crisp, and stick-to-your-teeth chewy.

If you’re a fan of Indian flatbreads as I am, you’ll much enjoy the kulchette ($20). The tandoor-baked round wheat bread gets stuffed with a saucy house-made sausage mixture seasoned with cinnamon, chilies and a touch of vinegar. They arrive two to an order, blistered with leopard spots like a Neapolitan pizza, and topped with a zesty tomato paste. I love their smoky taste.

More delicious smoky flavor can be had in the bihari lamb chops ($28) that are charcoal grilled. A marinade in yogurt leaves them super tender; poppy seeds plus a cumin-coriander scented garam masala add a robust, earthy warmth. For me, though, they were a bit oversalted.

Lagan Ka Murgh chicken curry ($28) is a very saucy dish as deep green as jade. With its glorious color, no wonder it’s a wedding staple. It has a grassy, vegetative note plus a good amount of heat. You’ll definitely want an order of steamed basmati ($6) to soak up all that gravy-like sauce. Or scoop it up with the multiseed roti ($6) that gets a lovely toasty, nutty taste from pumpkin, papaya and sunflower seeds strewn over the top.

If beans can be a guilty pleasure, then this dish of black lentils and kidney beans ($20) qualifies. Simmered overnight, it gets ever so creamy and buttery tasting plus a little sweet from tomato paste. Finally, it’s charcoal-smoked to impart even more depth.

Chaat may technically be a snack, but the paan patta chaat ($17) is practically a meal. It’s a show in and of itself, too. The large bowl comes to the table with plumes of dry ice spewing from it. (See video.) Large betel leaves are lightly battered and fried, and act almost like huge tortilla chips for a 7-layer-dip so to speak. This mound of dip is enveloped by sweet yogurt foam, as airy as shaving cream. Underneath are spiced potatoes, spicy lentils, and rose petal chutney.

You don’t initially expect the potatoes and lentils to be cold, but you get used to it after one taste. With a range of textures from creamy to crunchy and flavors from gently sweet to spicy to floral, it’s a dish that entices you to come back to again and again to discover more and more.

For dessert, there’s the khoobani ka meetha ($15), a royal dessert from Hyderabad in Southern India that’s traditionally a rich compote of sweet dried apricots. Here, it’s reinvented as a mille feuille or Napoleon with layers of puff pastry, apricot jam, and citrus cream with a praline crumble scattered on top. It’s at once crispy from the pastry plus sticky-chewy from the apricots, and with a touch of rose to accentuate its Indian roots.

Safar by Karimi definitely led me on a journey, a most unexpected and pleasurable one.