What do you know about South Indian food? I love the fact that South Indian food (and Sri Lankan by extension) is so distinctive to the cuisine of its neighbouring counterparts. Strong prominent flavours, curry leaves, coconut, spice, amazing fish curries and savoury pancakes to name a few. The savoury pancake is what we want to focus on in this post and let’s give it its proper name: Dosa. The reason for this focus is because our restaurant focus today is named after this wonderful dish. Crispy Dosa is a restaurant based in London that specialises in vegetarian Indian food especially South Indian food. They have a few branches actually and they’ve recently been doing the rounds on social media it seems. So, let’s see what all the talk is about.
Restaurant
Crispy Dosa is an authentic South Indian restaurant that has a fully vegetarian menu. They have branches in Greenford, Reading, Watford, Harrow, Woodgreen, Windsor and Hounslow. They are inspired by the South Indian Chettinad cooking style and their menu and food is reflective of that. They’ve got South Indian classics like the Dosa. A dosa is a savoury pancake that is that from a fermented batter of ground black lentils and rice. Crispy exterior and a sponge-like interior make for a delicious roti alternative. You can get it filled or just plain as is.
Our order
We opted for the namesake of course – got a couple dosas. We got the filled versions that came with dips and chutneys. They were both delicious as dosas usually are. They are a bit big, so I think it’s enough for two to share and then you can get something else to try too. The bottom of the dosa did get a bit soggy, but that is understandable I guess considering it was filled… and filled generously. We also got parotta with a curry. The parotta didn’t feel or taste as fresh as it could’ve been to be honest. It was a bit tough and not the expected flaky and fluffy. We also got the famous South Indian filter coffee. It just tastes like extra milky Nescafe (in fact I think that’s what they use), but it’s all about the process with this drink. You shift the drink to and from the given little metal pot to cool the piping hot drink down – it’s an interesting procedure.
Overall, a great little restaurant that does good South Indian food. I need to go back and try more of the menu to pass a full judgement, but due to its accessibility (many branches), I think it is sure to be a hit and a popular spot for anyone looking to try South Indian food.
