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South Indian Dosa Mahal Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Indian Indian [Edit]
1262 Bloor St WToronto, ON M6H 1N5
Neighbourhoods: Brockton Village, Bloordale Village, Wallace Emerson
(416) 516-7701
- Hours:
Mon-Sat 11 am - 10 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
18 reviews for South Indian Dosa Mahal Restaurant
18 reviews in English
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Review from Matt H.
Toronto, ON
10/14/2011 1 Check-in Here
If there was the ability to give 3.5 stars, i would have done so. Short and sweet. Came here with a group of 20 and they were very helpful when we had to add more people.
Ordered a bunch of veggie samosa's, potato roti and spinach and potato deep fried something (I can't remember since I didnt order it) to start. All were great.
As a main, i chose the meat and veg thali with goat. I was fantastic. Girlfriend ordered the mysore dosa which was a nice spicy, not too hot. The food was great, but when it came to trying to get water, order and utensils, it all took so long. While they were helpful when it came to adding people to our table, they seem to lack in the smaller things.
This place looks great for take out. -
Review from D'Arcy M.
Toronto, ON
5/5/2012
Gosh, this place is cute.
I have to say I love the neon pink and orange theme, colourful sari draped ceilings, and foam hearts on the wall. It kinda makes this place for me, how kitschy and sweet it is.
I've been getting takeout samosas/pakoras/bhajis from here every once and a while for a few years now. for 3/$1 you pretty much get what you pay for and its simple and doughy and greasy and yummy. But opt for the $1.25 coconut/tomato sauce to dip in and you've really got it made- that stuff is incredibly delicious! I like to pick these treats up for little gatherings at my house where people are drinking before going out.
Yesterday I decided to meet a friend here and enjoy some food off the menu. It was nice. I had the veg and meat thali and she had a spinach dosa (the dosas and poppadums here are gluten-free, which is wonderful!).
The woman serving us was lovely, an older Indian lady who seems like she probably owns and runs the place. She told me I looked young and insinuated I'd sneaked out of my parents house. It was a pretty funny way to start the meal.. her teasing was totally charming and adorable.
My thali came with a tasty, crisp poppadum, some nice doughy soft naan, and rice along with a few different stews and pickles. I chose goat for the meat and I was very pleased with the fall-apart tender morsels of goat in delicious gravy served in a fair-sized bowl on my thali tray.. except that a few of the pieces were just fat. The vegetable stews that came along with my meal were hot and miss. There was an eggplant and tomato one that had a nice, smoky strong flavour of roasted eggplant that I loved. Another side of yellow lentil daal was boring and runny, under-seasoned even for my somewhat limited palate for daal (I love daal, but 'm not super knowledgeable in indian cooking and I can't wholly say what makes a great daal). Another smoother daal. perhaps made from orange lentils, had a nice flavour of tasted spice and a nice sourness. The mashed-up curry spiced potatoes that came with the dish were also a bit bland, and seemed like they might be samosa filling. The hot pickle and raita were quite nice, and lent a lot of complimenting complexity to the other flavours.
I became a bit food jealous of my friend's dosa. For one thing, it was incredibly massive. It came with the spinach cooked into it and it came on a thali plate with similar accoutrements to my dish- but better! The curries/sauces were tastier, more complicated curries comprised of more than one or two main ingredients. Eggplant and potato and onion in a yellow curry sauce, some delicious cauliflower curry in a thick tomato sauce, and that fantastic coconut/tomato sauce was served with her order, as well as the potatoes, pickle and daal I had.
I think next time I'll order the namesake dish and revel in the experience. -
Review from Howard H.
8/6/2011
The tale of two SIDMRs. Yup- if they have the vrashan to give a little restaurant on Bloor West a five word name, then I'm going to do the proper thing and reduce them to an acronym. This is not about acrimony; I'm a professional.
The first SIDMR is the snack counter up front. It's just not that good. There are all foods that I normally enjoy - and let's not kid each other - I am not the type of man who shies away from a bulk snack deal. But still... no. After the first bite of a pakora I spontaneously Yelped out a mini review "Wow! They fried the cheap right into these puppies" Uh huh - they're so cheap because - wait for it - they're so cheaply made. My dining companion and I mused as to the primary ingredient - she said sawdust, I said recycled yellow pages (cuts down on the turmeric expense...)
SIDMR was firmly ensconced in the write off pile at this point. Until fate intervened and I was compelled to visit again at the best of a vegan friend (NOT my BVF) We were in the neighborhood, she was hungry, saw the word vegan and - poof - in we went.
The non-Industrial "restaurant-styled" restaurant in the back actually churns out some decent South Indian food! The Dosa veggie thali is worth a shot - with a major caveat. Their sambar is as generic as possible while still retaining a whiff of hope that the person who programmed the machine that spat it out ever flew over the Indian sub-continent. The curries that come with thali were actually all quite good. The tomato coconut chutney redeemed them a bit in the condiment. Since I was with a VF I did not consume any of the animal protein offerings; respect, yo!
The rating was a toughie for me; Do restaurants get better with age? Rarely. As the Blandsdowne market gets more competitive, my belief is that SIDMR will have to either up their game or up and go. So my 3 star rating represents my belief in market forces and/or Darwin. -
Review from Lauren M.
6/8/2011 1 Check-in Here
Great place!
Not sure what the heck is going on with the decor... did they decorate it for Valentines Day and forget to take it down, or are all the hearts and pink tablecloths permanent? Bizarre.
Very interesting place with take out samosas and typical Indian "street food" available at the front counter for bargain prices ($1 for 3 pieces, or 10 for $3). Also a dine in area with seating for 20-30 or so. Average sized menu with mothly roti and dosa combos.
I'm not gonna lie, this was my first time trying a dosa so I have no basis for comparison. But wow, it was delicious.
I tried the spinach dosa stuffed with vegetables. It had 3 "gloops" of different stuff inside - one potato based, one tomato based and one of lentils. Everything was seasoned really deliciously. The actual dosa was just so tasty and NOT greasy. I always anticipate that any Indian food will be quite oily or greasy, but this was not the case. Pleasantly surprised.
The dosa came with some sauce type things for dipping and a small soup. All for $7.95 -
Review from Patrick M.
Toronto, ON
6/19/2011
I'll be quick on this one, as I think others have summed up Dosa rather well.
The key is to avoid the supremely cheap, fried takeaway options on display at the front of the restaurant. They are simply not good, as others have noted: dry, too doughy, kind of old/stale.
The actual menu items are actually very good, which leaves me torn as to how to rate them. They're pushing a 4 star for their menu, but a 1.5 or 2 star for the $3 / 10 samosas (and similar "specials")
Of particular note is that you can order items of the same name off the menu... and they're more expensive. There's a reason for that: they're made fresh, and are much higher quality.
So, I'll go with a 3 star rating and bookmark 'em for further review. If their menu continues to impress -- and I can forget about the mediocre takeaway stuff -- I'll up it to a 4. Really, they should just flat out stop with the cheapies, as they reflect poorly on an otherwise good restaurant. -
Review from Susan D.
Toronto, ON
1/15/2011 2 Check-ins Here
The Mysore Dosa plate is highly recommended. My friend and I had lunch here yesterday--I ordered the biryani combo (vegetarian), which was tasty. My friend got the Mysore Dosa combo (or something like that--or was it Madras? My brain says Mysore. It was one of the spicy selections.)--which was absolutley fabulous. There were many of the same items offered, but the Mysore dosa plate presented more options and larger sizes (it was done South Indian style, as a thali, in which there are portions of a wide variety of dishes provided in separate containers or compartments on a plate). We ended up sharing our plates, and everything was delicious.
Definitely stop by. We also purchased some of the fried takeout items. They looked good, but some of them were a bit dry on their own--I hadn't thought to get sauces for any of them. They were fine, but not the highlight of this spot! Go for the dosa!!
Also, though my biriyani plate was supposedly medium spice, it wasn't that spicy, where the Mysore dosa thali had a decent kick to it, but did not obscure the delicious flavours of the dishes (I don't like too spicy, because then the spice is all you taste--this wasn't the case, here). -
Review from Stephanie M.
East York, ON
5/26/2011
I was with 4 other friends. I do not like a lot of spice hence I enjoyed my meal.
$8.50 for veggie & meat thali which satisfied me. I love all the little separate compartments on the tray. I ordered a side of the veggie samosas which are out of this world in my opinion, light and flaky and not greasy. I ordered 10 more to go!! 10 for $3!! The coconut & tomoato chutney was $1.25 and delicious. The chipatti was fresh, crisp yet doughy and delicious.. I ordered an extra one. 2 cans of diet coke and one mango juice. Total was $21 and change, great deal in my opinion for all that food!
One friend didn't find it spicy enough for him. He was disappointed she brought the equivalent to tobassco sauce to him, he then asked for a hot pepper. He took the spicy stuff off of my tray.
My other 3 friends enjoyed their meal. You must love pink, mauve and anything in between to be able to sit through your meal at this place!! We did find the service to be a bit slow. It was busy and it was the one lady, presumably the wife and their daughter who is too young to be given any real tasks to accomplish. But if you have great company you really don't notice it that much. -
Review from Jennifer K.
Markham, ON
CMYE: Bloordale Bar Crawl #3
Drink??? Food: Cheap Fried Treats
Dear Yelp Drinking Buddy,
Thanks so much for buying me these treats... $3 for 10 and you stop complaining!
Yes I am a cheap date... and I think I deserve better...
And you ate 3 out of the 4 Samosa which already is the better of all those that we got and so you should be happy.
Told you we should order the Dosa...but no.. we ended up just staring at Vivek's dosa and wondering if he ever comes back or we should just have his for dinner...
blah blah blah... Where is my food!!!
To be continued..... -
Review from Bloordale M.
Toronto, ON
6/7/2011
Finally made it to this beautiful pink palace of warm spices and friendly service. What a treat!
As soon as we sat down we were brought a beautiful pink pitcher of water and a set of metal cups.
The longer I sat here the more I realized there just is not enough pink in my life.
I had the vegetable dosa - light as air dosa and lovely flavours in the accompanying eggplant, potato and cauliflower fillings (3 separate). I do not enjoy super-caliente food and found the level of spiciness quite perfect for me.
One friend had goat curry. The other had roti and fish curry with roti and rice (can't remember what exactly things were called on the menu). They both raved about the deliciousness of everything.
We tried a samosa and one of us exclaimed - "This is the best samosa I have ever had!"
And, as everyone has mentioned, the prices are amazing.
No liquor license but they have nice juices and lassi.
Go there. You will have FUN! -
Review from neesa r.
10/27/2010
Ok I have to start with the fact that the food is awesome and cheap! and for that only I would rate this place as 5+ but the design and the look from outside is terrible and would hardly get a highest mark of 2....
honestly why is it soooo pink and sparkly? so cheesy? it doesn't carry indian spirit.... argh!
but oh the food! I've been to this place many times and will come again just to have the yummy dosas! -
Review from Spring B.
Vancouver, BC
10/22/2011
I have been to this restaurants several times last year and once this year. Have tried their samosas, mango Lassie, vegetable dosas and puri with meat curry. Excellent food for a quick cheap lunch and the service is ok.
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Review from Ktimene G.
1/16/2009
Masala dosas, savory and crisp and pleasantly sour, just like in Chennai/Madras. Super mango lassi so thick, I was still sipping on my drive home. Worth a trip!
If you don't know what a dosa is, it's South India's answer to the crepe. Made of fermented rice and lentil flour, it's typically stuffed with spiced potatoes or coconut chutney. South Indian fare is typically gluten free (and usually vegetarian), as they rely on rice instead of wheat for flour.
Bring a handy wipe or hand sanitizer, because the most authentic part of this experience was eating with the hands. As with any hole in the wall, service was fast, food was cheap, and bathrooms were not advisable. -
Review from Rafi N.
Toronto, ON
6/9/2011
I came here for some snacks while out drinking on a CMYE. The snacks are not too good.
*** FOOD ***
I had samosas and some pakora like snacks.
* Pakora *
All of these were dry and crumbly. You really need to have a drink to eat this with. Some have whole lentils in them which adds an unnecessary crunch.
* Samosa *
A lot of dough, and not much substance. The filling is mostly potato and it's quite mushy. The filling isn't as spicy as it should be for an Indian restaurant.
*** APPEARANCE ***
There's a lot of pink in their decor. The restaurant looks clean.
*** SERVICE ***
The people working the counter are friendly and quick.
*** PRICE ***
4 samosas + 6 assorted snacks
All the snacks totalled $3.
The pricing is good, because you can get a lot for just $3. However, I think $3 would have been better spent as part of a meal rather than snacks.
*** TAKE-AWAY ***
I should have probably tried the dosa which is what they seem to be famous for. Judging solely on the snacks, I can truly say that I've experienced better.Listed in: Curry Favor
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Review from Garry C.
Whistler, BC
Updated - 8/19/2010 2 Check-ins Here
I finally got to dine here! A friend took me for dinner here and the menu was pretty extensive.
I wasn't that hungry so we got some somosas and the vegetable biryani. The somosas were great as usual. What really blew me away was the veg biryani. It came with the standard rice and veg, but had some sides (thali?) with it. The rice was also nicely cooked, spiced and not too greasy. It was well presented and tasted awesome!Listed in: Toronto Eats
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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6/9/2010
The take-away menu is cheap and good. My friend lives around the corner from here, and she always… Read more »
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Review from Tia B.
North York, ON
7/9/2011 1 Check-in Here
So my boyfriend and I went here to try to find the equivalent to a Dosa place we love in Vancouver. It was alright but not the best. The meat masala dosa is what we had and the chicken was ranchid! The chutneys were good and the dosa was alright. The place Is decorated with very bright colors! It's like being in a giant pink goo puddle.
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Review from Soobey S.
Toronto, ON
3/3/2011
Great for many important reasons - most noteabley authenticity and price.
For well under $20 you can get a full dinner and an entire day's worth of samoas, vidai's, mango balls, spinach rolls ect.
Owners are incredibly kind and helpful in this family run establishment. Many dishes heavily spiced.
There is great value and great authentic interesting food here. Its not fancy but is such a refreshing change to the butter chicken/channa marsala type-places that are everywhere. -
Review from Ramanan S.
Toronto, ON
4/26/2009
A mom and pop South Indian place in Blansdowne: it's hard to be objective. The place is all kinds of authentic. The food is tasty, and they have a great selection of South Indian dishes. Don't show up expecting Butter Chicken or Tandoori. If you've been craving a dosa, uthappam, sambar, etc, this is the place to go. (If you're downtown, you'd also have few other options open to you.) My friend had a dosa, while my wife and I had the only Sri Lankan dish on the menu, kottu roti. The kottu roti isn't spicy unless you ask them to make it so -- in which case they'll chop up a bunch of green chilis and toss them in when cooking. Everything was delicious. The fact everything is wicked-cheap is also a nice plus. The restaurant actually recently moved locations, just down the road, so there is a lot more space than before. The new place is nicer than the old, but it's still an ugly restaurant. It's definitely not a first date place. No matter, this is a place to come to experience the food.
Listed in: I live in BLANSDOWNE!
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Review from K Lee H.
Toronto, ON
1/1/2011
Pity the people living in the burbs who don't have access to a dosa spot. This is yum in several different south Indian styles, and at a price that will keep you coming back for every variety. Ok, it may not stand up to the best joints in Mississauga, but it's an oasis of Indian goodness at Bloor and Lansdowne. Hideous decor, but my stomach doesn't care. Yum.
