Pure · Veg · Saivam

Come,let’s eat.

A celebration of plant-based South Indian cuisine rooted in Tamil tradition.
Made with in Milpitas.

Order Online View the Menu

Our Philosophy

சைவம்

/sai·vam/ · Tamil · noun

“vegetarian; food that is pure, grown from the earth.”

Saivam is the Tamil word for vegetarian. Ours is a celebration of plant-based South Indian cooking: seasonal ingredients, traditional technique, and the quiet joy of food made slowly, the way our grandmothers made it.

Good food is real food. We cook with coconut oil, avocado oil, butter and ghee. Never industrial seed oils, never MSG, never artificial colors. What we serve must nourish body and soul, and create happy memories along the way.

Come, let’s eat.

The Menu

Authentic Saivam,
made with love.

Straight from our live kitchen. Everything pure vegetarian, everything homestyle. See prices & order online

Appetizers Saivam Specials Dunkables Tiffins Idlys Aapams Dosas Uthappams Desserts Drinks

Appetizers

14 dishes

Milagu Baby CornGFNFVegan
Pepper spiced baby corn.
Japan Mushroom
Crackling sweet and spicy tossed mushrooms.
Potato-Cauli Chaat
Crisp potatoes and cauliflower, tossed street-chaat style.
Masala PooriGlutenNFVegan
Street style chaat. Mini pooris (5 pcs) topped with spiced peas curry and onions.
Paneer PollichathuGFNFDairy
Spiced paneer banana leaf wrap.
Rava Kara PaniyaramGlutenDairyNF
Spiced semolina fritters (10 pcs) served with coconut chutney and kara chutney.
Veg Kola CutletsGlutenNFVegan
Raw banana spiced cutlets (4 pcs) served with mint chutney.
Keerai PakodaGFVeganNF
Mixed greens and lentil flour fritters.
Cauli Malli FryGFVeganNF
Cilantro spiced fried cauliflower florets.
Vazhakkai BajjiGFVeganNF
Plantain and gram flour fritters (4 pcs) with coconut chutney.
Roattukadai KalanGFVeganNF
Coimbatore-inspired street style spiced mushrooms.
Pidi KozhukkattaiGFVeganNF
Steamed savory rice dumplings (5 pcs) with coconut, veggies and spices, served with coconut and kara chutneys.
Apollo PaneerGFNFDairy
Spicy tangy paneer with onions, peppers and curry leaves.
Masal VadaiGFNFVegan
Spiced lentil fritters (4 pcs).

Saivam Specials

8 dishes

Chatti Choru
South India's OG thali bowl with an assortment of poriyal, kootu, rasam, yogurt, thogaiyal and dessert served atop a bed of rice, topped with pappadam. Choose one curry.
Special Biryani
Chef special weekend biryani.
Thayir Sadham & Urulai PottalamGFNFDairy
Creamy tempered yogurt rice topped with chili pickle, served with a potato mash parcel.
Chili IdlyGFNFDairy
Fried idly tossed with onions, peppers and spices.
Chili ParottaGlutenDairyNF
Fried parotta pieces tossed with onions, peppers and spices.
Kothu ParottaGlutenDairyNF
Street style pan-fried crumbled parotta cooked with veggies, served with salna and raita.
Kizhi ParottaGlutenDairyNF
Flaky layered parottas with salna and paneer in banana leaf parcels, pan-grilled and served with raita.
Kothu IdiappamGFNFDairy
String hoppers tossed with veggies and spices, served with raita and salna.

Dunkables

7 dishes

Made for dunking. Pick your dip and go.

Mini Idly
Mini idly (10 pcs) with your choice of dip.
Idly
Idly (2 pcs) with your choice of dip.
Ilaneer Thatte IdlyGFNFVegan
Tender coconut water flavored idly (2 pcs).
Medhu BondaGFNFVegan
Crispy lentil donuts (6 pcs).
Kara Kuzhi PaniyaramGFNFVegan
Spiced fried fermented rice and lentil dumplings (6 pcs) with coconut chutney and kara chutney.
Ven PongalGFNutsDairy
Rice and yellow mung porridge.
Set Dosa
Soft spongy dosas, stacked for soaking.

Tiffins

6 dishes

IdiappamGFNFVegan
Steamed string hoppers served with sweetened coconut milk and choice of curry.
Red Rice PuttuGFNFVegan
Steamed red rice and coconut cake served with sweetened coconut milk and choice of curry.
Poori MasalVeganNFGluten
Deep fried wheat flour bread (2 pcs) served with spiced potato mash and coconut chutney.
ChapatiGlutenGheeNF
Whole wheat flatbread (2 pcs) served with salna and choice of curry.
ParottaGlutenNFDairy
Flaky layered flatbread (2 pcs) served with salna and choice of curry.
Medhu VadaiGFNFVegan
Crispy lentil donuts (3 pcs) served with coconut chutney, kara chutney and sambar. Please note: sambar contains ghee.

Idlys

4 dishes

Mini Ghee IdlyGFNFGhee
Fluffy mini idly (15 pcs) coated with ghee, served with coconut chutney, kara chutney, podi and sambar.
Mini Podi IdlyGFNFGhee
Mini idlies (15 pcs) tossed in spicy lentil powder, served with coconut chutney.
Classic IdlyGFVeganNF
Idlies (3 pcs) served with coconut chutney, kara chutney, podi and sambar.
Ghee Podi Ilaneer IdlyGFNFGhee
Tender coconut flavored idly (2 pcs) topped with spicy gunpowder and ghee, served with coconut chutney and sambar.

Aapams

3 dishes

AapamGFNFVegan
Steamed hoppers (2 pcs) served with sweetened coconut milk and choice of curry.
Chili Cheese AapamGFNFDairy
Hoppers topped with chilies and cheese (2 pcs), served with choice of curry.
Coconut-Jaggery Appam
Sweet hoppers with coconut and jaggery.

Dosas

8 dishes

Plain Dosa
Thin crispy crepe of fermented rice and lentils.
Ghee Roast
Crisp golden roast in pure ghee.
Masala Dosa
The classic, folded over soft spiced potato masala.
Mysore Masala Dosa
Fiery red chutney layered inside, with potato masala.
Benne Masala Dosa
Butter dosa with soft potato masala.
Ghee Podi Masala Dosa
Ghee roast dusted with gunpowder podi, with potato masala.
Paneer Burji Dosa
Scrambled spiced paneer folded in a crisp dosa.
Neer DosaGFNFVegan
Mangalore style lacy rice crepes (2 pcs) served with kara chutney and coconut-jaggery mix.

Uthappams

3 dishes

Onion UthappamGFNFGhee
Soft fluffy fermented rice and lentil pancakes topped with onions, served with coconut chutney, kara chutney, podi and sambar.
Cauli Masala UthappamGFNFGhee
Topped with spiced cauliflower masala, served with chutneys, podi and sambar.
Mushroom Masala UthappamGFNFGhee
Topped with spiced mushroom masala, served with chutneys, podi and sambar.

Desserts

6 dishes

Badam HalwaGFNutsDairy
Sweetened almond fudge.
Kavuni Arici ChakkarapongalGFNutsDairy
Black rice pudding sweetened with jaggery.
Paal KozhukkattaiGFNutsDairy
Steamed rice balls in jaggery sweetened milk.
SuyyamGFNFGhee
Deep fried dough balls stuffed with jaggery sweetened chana dal and coconut (2 pcs).
JigarthandaGFNFDairy
Madurai special Jigarthanda.
Filter Coffee AffogatoGFNFDairy
Vanilla ice cream topped with filter coffee decoction.

Drinks

8 dishes

Filter CoffeeGFNFDairy
South Indian style filter coffee with milk.
Masala ChaiGFNFDairy
Spiced Indian style tea with milk.
Mango LassiGFNFDairy
Sweetened mango flavored yogurt drink.
Masala MoarGFNFDairy
Spiced buttermilk.
Blue Pea Lemonade
Butterfly pea lemonade, shaken fresh.
Ginger Mint Lemonade
Zingy ginger with fresh mint.
Rose Chia Almond MilkNuts
Chilled rose almond milk with chia.
Canned Soda

The Saivam Promise

Good food is real food.

Four rules we never break, in every pot, every day.

No Seed Oils

We cook only in coconut oil, avocado oil, butter and ghee.

No MSG

Flavor comes from fresh spices, slow cooking and honest technique.

No Food Dyes

No artificial colors, no preservatives. Real food, real color.

Homestyle, Always

Seasonal, local produce cooked the way it is done at home.

Under the tree, there is always
a feast waiting.

Our Story

From Saapaaduu,
with love.

Saivam is the newest chapter from Theera Foods, the family behind Saapaaduu in San Jose and Once Upon a Dosa in San Francisco. Where Saapaaduu celebrates the grand Tamil saapadu, Saivam is a bold step into mindful dining: a kitchen devoted entirely to the depth and diversity of vegetarian Tamil cooking.

Seasonal ingredients. Traditional techniques. Contemporary craftsmanship. And the same promise that made Saapaaduu a community favorite: real food, cooked with care, served with warmth. Come, let's eat.

Catering & Events

Your feast,
our fire.

Talk to us about your next gathering. We take care of the food while you spend time with your guests. From traditional no-onion-garlic sattvik menus to playful fusion spreads, we handle it all.