Think tapas — Indian-style.

That’s what husband-and-wife owners Ajay Walia and Reena Miglani had in mind when they revamped the menu at their Saffron restaurant in downtown San Carlos three weeks ago.

Regulars shouldn’t fret, as their favorites are still there, only portioned in smaller sizes so that diners can try a greater variety of dishes now.

Want to enjoy a pav slider, but you’re vegetarian and your dining companion is not? Now, you can order them by the piece, so that everyone gets what they crave.

Indeed, the restaurant has added a sizeable “Saffron’s Bites” section to the menu, that allows you to do just that.

I had a chance to try the new menu when I was invited as a guest of the restaurant last week. In fact, Executive Chef Vivek Tamhane was amenable to making some of the “bites” even smaller so that I could try that much more.

About those sliders? Who doesn’t love a little fluffy bun slathered with chutney, slaw, and pickled onions, and snuggling either a lamb ($8), chicken ($8), or spiced potato-vegetable patty ($7)?

I’m partial to the chili chicken ($10) that’s reminiscent in taste to Chinese sweet-and-sour. The boneless chunks of chicken are battered and fried, then coated in a sauce heady with garlic, ginger, soy, and chili.

Similar but vegetarian is the General Tso cauliflower ($8) that has the fried florets tossed in a spicy and tangy Indochinese sauce.

Fried shrimp can be mundane. Not so with the Rawa fried shrimp ($12) that get dusted in semolina, then fried to an exceptional crunchiness. A spicy mint yogurt revs things up while a fresh radish slaw cools things off.

Flaky paratha flatbread acts like a tortilla for a filling of yogurt-marinated grilled chicken, peppers, and onions ($8). Everything gets rolled up, much like an Indian version of fajitas.

Samosa chaat ($9) may remind you a little of poutine. A fried potato-filled samosa is smashed, then smothered in yogurt, tamarind, and chutneys. Dig around and every mouthful will be a little different.

Saffron now offers thalis, too. Designed to serve one person, these platters ($24 to $25) come with daal, salad, raita, vegetables, naan, rice, papadam, and pickles with your choice of protein.

The kitchen was kind enough to place two different proteins on my thali, so that I could try both the butter chicken, a Saffron signature that’s creamy, bright with tomato, smoky and rich tasting; and the lamb curry that’s slow-braised with 21 spices, leaving it fork-tender and deeply flavorful.

The accompaniments included a carrot salad, cooked carrots and green beans, a spicy mango yogurt, and crunchy, salty pickles.

Desserts also have gotten smaller with a lower price-point, which will suit well diners who need just a little bit of sweet at the end of a meal.

The restaurant now serves Humphry Slocombe’s rose & fennel ice cream ($6) flecked with candy-coated fennel seeds, and garnished with strawberries and chopped pistachios. Even if you don’t think you like the flavor of rose, rest assured that the taste is not overpowering, and that the ice cream will nicely cool off the palate after all that spicy food.

There’s also the traditional gulab jamun ($5), small cheese dumplings afloat in a sweet syrup with pistachios strewn over. They’re soft and candy sweet.