Correction (1 October 2026): an earlier version of this page listed twelve “Indian food” venues in Collingwood that we could not verify, with generator-written seat counts, prices and tips, under a postcode (3174) that belongs to Noble Park, not Collingwood. It has been rewritten from scratch. Every venue below was confirmed at two independent sources, and every price was copied from the venue’s own menu or ordering page on 1 October 2026.
Collingwood’s Indian food is a short list, and it is worth being honest about that. Searching the suburb itself, we could confirm one Indian kitchen with a current menu: Punjabi Curry Cafe on Johnston Street. The other three we could check sit across the border in Fitzroy. So this is an “in and around Collingwood” guide: four kitchens, what their dishes are, and what they cost.
Community context: at the 2021 Census, Collingwood had 9,179 residents, and India was not among the top countries of birth the ABS lists for the suburb; after Australia, the top five were England, New Zealand, Vietnam, Ethiopia and China. Vietnamese was the most common language used at home other than English, at 4.0 per cent. So the Indian kitchens here are a handful of restaurants rather than a community precinct, and their menus lean North Indian, with street-food chaat and a few regional dishes alongside.
The precinct: Smith Street is the line. Collingwood runs east of it to Hoddle Street, Fitzroy runs west, and Johnston Street crosses both, which is why two of these kitchens share a street name but not a suburb. Menus move and specials rotate, so give each one a squiz before you head out.
The quick picks
| If you’re after | Head to | Start with | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indian food inside Collingwood | Punjabi Curry Cafe | Butter chicken | $24.99 |
| A Johnston Street curry house | Fitz Curry Cafe | Baingan patiala | $23.99 |
| Street-food chaat | Masti | Pani puri | $18 |
| A modern Indian dinner | ISH Restaurant | Chef selection menu | $74.90 a head |
Punjabi Curry Cafe — 87 Johnston St, Collingwood VIC 3066
The Indian kitchen inside Collingwood whose menu we could read in full. Its own site says it specialises in North Indian cuisine and puts its tandoor, the clay oven, where diners can watch the naan and kebabs go in; it is fully licensed and also takes BYO wine, and the site lists it as open every day from 5pm. On its online ordering menu, butter chicken is $24.99, chicken biryani is $23.49 and garlic naan is $5.00. The meal deal ($61.99) bundles a vegetable samosa, butter chicken, lamb rogan josh, saffron rice and two garlic naan.
On the menu: aloo baingan masala ($21.99) is eggplant and potato cooked with cumin and spices, a lighter vegetable curry to set beside the richer ones.
Start with: butter chicken, $24.99.
Fitz Curry Cafe — 44 Johnston St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
Further west along Johnston Street, on the Fitzroy side of Smith Street. The cafe’s own site says it has been “Serving Fitzroy since 2001”, is open seven days from 5pm, and names Collingwood among the suburbs its customers come from; online orders are for pickup. On its ordering pages the chicken makhani (butter chicken) is $25.99, chicken biryani is $26.99 and garlic naan is $4.99. Daal maharani ($22.99) is black lentils slow-cooked with cream, close kin to dal makhani.
On the menu: baingan patiala ($23.99) is eggplant cooked with tomatoes and onions; Patiala is a city in Punjab, and the name signals a Punjabi-style dish.
Start with: baingan patiala, $23.99.
Masti — 354-356 Brunswick St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
On Brunswick Street in Fitzroy. Masti’s menu opens with chaat, the salty, sweet and sour street snacks of India: pani puri is $18 (“Crisp puris, three spiced waters”), papdi chaat is $20, and the house butter chicken is $28. It also lists Chettinad chicken ($26) from Tamil Nadu and a goat curry ($30), and its site names Collingwood among the suburbs it delivers to. The kitchen is closed on Mondays, and the menu notes a 10 per cent Sunday surcharge.
On the menu: dal makhani ($22), which Masti calls its signature, is whole black lentils cooked low and slow, here for 24 hours by the menu’s account, until thick and creamy.
Start with: pani puri, $18.
ISH Restaurant — 199 Gertrude St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
The modern-Indian option, on Gertrude Street. ISH describes itself as bringing “the bold spices of India to Gertrude Street with a modern Australian touch”, and its menu mixes the two: roti duck tacos ($22 for two), dahi puri ($12 for two), a Kerala beef fry ($44) and the ISH butter chicken ($37). The chef selection menu is $74.90 a head, and the restaurant opens Tuesday to Sunday from 5:30pm. Card payments carry a 2 per cent merchant fee.
On the menu: palak paneer ($37 here) is fresh cheese simmered in a spinach gravy; the ISH menu describes “St David’s House-made Cottage Cheese” in a blanched spinach and Roma tomato gravy, finished with confit ginger.
Start with: the chef selection menu, $74.90 a head.
Quick answers
Is there an Indian restaurant in Collingwood itself?
Yes. Punjabi Curry Cafe at 87 Johnston Street, Collingwood, is the Indian kitchen inside the suburb that we could confirm with a current menu on 1 October 2026. Three more, Fitz Curry Cafe, Masti and ISH Restaurant, are west of Smith Street in Fitzroy.
Where can I get Indian takeaway in Collingwood?
Punjabi Curry Cafe takes orders through its own online ordering site. Fitz Curry Cafe on Johnston Street in Fitzroy takes online orders for pickup, and Masti on Brunswick Street names Collingwood among the suburbs it delivers to. Delivery zones and fees are set by each venue, so check your address at checkout.
How much is butter chicken in and around Collingwood?
On 1 October 2026 the venues’ own menus listed it at $24.99 (Punjabi Curry Cafe), $25.99 (Fitz Curry Cafe, as chicken makhani), $28 (Masti) and $37 (ISH Restaurant).
Is there a modern Indian restaurant near Collingwood?
ISH Restaurant, 199 Gertrude Street in Fitzroy, describes its food as Indian with a modern Australian touch. Its menu lists roti duck tacos and a Kerala beef fry, and a chef selection menu at $74.90 a head.
Where can I find Indian street food near Collingwood?
Masti in Fitzroy opens its menu with chaat: pani puri $18 and papdi chaat $20. Punjabi Curry Cafe lists a samosa chaat at $14.99, and ISH Restaurant serves dahi puri at $12 for two pieces.
How we checked
On 1 October 2026 we read each venue’s own website, menu or online ordering pages and copied every item and price exactly as printed. Punjabi Curry Cafe’s prices come from the menu data behind its own ordering site; Fitz Curry Cafe’s from the product pages of its own ordering shop; Masti’s from the menu on its website; and ISH Restaurant’s from the menu PDF linked from its home page. We confirmed each address at a second, independent source: Best Restaurants of Australia, the Australian Good Food Guide or OpenStreetMap. Census figures are from the ABS 2021 QuickStats for Collingwood; the suburb’s boundaries are from Wikipedia. We searched for other Indian kitchens inside Collingwood and could not confirm any with a working website and a current menu. Online prices can differ from counter prices, and surcharges apply at some venues on Sundays and public holidays. The photos are illustrative, from Unsplash: they show the kind of dish, not the venue’s own food.
Seen something out of date? Email [email protected] with the page link and what has changed, and we will check it again.
Sources
- Punjabi Curry Cafe: punjabicurrycafe.com.au and its ordering site; address also at Best Restaurants and OpenStreetMap
- Fitz Curry Cafe: fitzcurrycafe.com.au, its ordering pages and areas we serve; address also at OpenStreetMap
- Masti: menu and Collingwood page; address also at OpenStreetMap
- ISH Restaurant: ishrestaurant.com.au and its menu PDF; address also at AGFG and Best Restaurants
- Collingwood population, birthplaces and languages: ABS 2021 Census QuickStats
- Collingwood boundaries: Wikipedia
