SpiceCityTo

Journalist Sarah Efron explores strip malls and hole-in-the-wall restaurants in search of the city's best ethnic food

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Dosa specialist is a Bloordale favourite

Bloordale resident Quaison is such a fan of South Indian Dosa Mahal (located at 1262 Bloor Street West) that when his son was born a few months ago, he ordered 200 samosas from the restaurant for the baby shower. 

"Before I started coming here, I didn't realize that South India has a different style of food than the rest of India," says Quaison (second photo below). "The food here is very reasonable in terms of price and the dosas are light, so they're not a burden on the digestive system."


Indeed, dosas—a type of crepe made with a batter of ground rice and lentils—are the specialty here. You tear off in pieces of the dosa and dip it into the assorted small dishes that come with the meal—samplers of zucchini curry, coconut chutney and eggplant. 

The veggie dishes are decent but meat eaters should try the powerful goat curry, which was my favourite. The rasam soup—a flavourful mix of tomato, cumin, garlic and tamarind—is supposed have medicinal properties. The bill for three people, including appetizers, is just shy of $30. 

The another notable thing about South Indian Dosa Mahal is the over-the-top pink decor, which is accented by ribbons and hearts on the walls and ceilings. "My daughter chose the colours—she loves pink," explains owner Naomi Logan (above), who founded the restaurant in a smaller location eight years ago. And the hearts? "This is a family restaurant, so people need love."

Thanks to Neeraj for the tip. 
South Indian Dosa Mahal is located at 1262 Bloor Street West near Lansdowne. Its hours are 11am to 10pm Monday to Saturday, closed Sundays and holidays, tel: 416-516-7701.


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9 comments:

  1. Agree! Love this place.

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  2. awesome! can't wait to try it! always looking for the hidden gems in Toronto!

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  3. IF your in the east end check out Udupi Palace at Gerrard and Coxwell for great Dosas

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  4. Unfortunately I went to this place after a friend heard a number of rave reviews about this place... after we left the restaurant we were told that those reviews were from non-Indians. Yes I am a Indian food snob.
    Moral of the story: if you know what good South Indian food is, don't go here. If you don't know, you'll probably be happy.

    Best non-Scarborough (cause Scarborough probably has the best) South Indian place in Toronto is Udipi as the other commenter mentioned.
    Best South Indian in the GTA that I know of is GuruLuxmi in Mississauga.

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  5. Hmm, I brought some self-proclaimed Indian food snobs to both South Indian Dosa and to Banjara down the street and both earned raves, and repeat visits! What better review could you ask for. Delicious food here. Make sure to grab savoury snacks on your way out, too.
    And it's all cheap: two can eat for $20.

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  6. Udupi Palace! Best!

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  7. I love it and I appreciate the fabulous vegan cooking -- no meat anymore, people. She is the queen of Dosa. Although I do agree, Udupi Palace does rock a big one too (they're different though)....

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  8. I love it and I appreciate the fabulous vegan cooking -- no meat anymore, people. She is the queen of Dosa. Although I do agree, Udupi Palace does rock a big one too (they're different though)....

    ReplyDelete