The exotic Indian dish as a lot to offer, and House of Dosas makes the most of it
Mia Stainsby
Sun
House of Dosa chef, Param Shnam (left) and owner, Raja Kumar Muttavanchery with a specialty dosa. The thin, crispy crepes are rolled up with a filling and diners have about 30 to choose from. Photograph by : Ian Smith, Vancouver Sun
As the name suggests, you go here for dosas. The menu offers up some 30 different fillings.
Dosas, for those unfamiliar with this wonderful south Indian dish, are thin, crispy crepes as expansive as angel’s wings, which are rolled up with a filling. They’re delivered on regular dinner plates but really, they’re sized for a wheelbarrow. The overhang on the plate is considerable.
The dough is made from a fermented lentil/rice slurry and the most common dosa is masala dosa with its filling of potatoes and spices.
But really, why stop there?
Owner Raja Kumar Muttavanchery does one called Gunpowder Dosa. Worry not. It won’t be your last meal. It’s a mix of chicken, veggies and spices that look like gunpowder.
I was happy with my spinach and Indian cheese (paneer) filling. The top seller, he says, is lamb spinach dosa. You can rachet up the heat to your tongue’s content — super-mild, mild, medium, medium-hot, hot, and extra hot.
If you would like more crepe to mop up the filling, you can order it plain, for $4.99. The most expensive is the prawn dosa for $12.99.
There are other offerings — south Indian appetizers like vadai (doughnut made from lentil or potato) and idli (steamed dough) and, the restaurant’s best-selling appy, Chicken 65.
“Back home, we were supposed to use 65-day-old chicken for this dish while the bones are still chewy and tender. Here, we just use boneless chicken,” says Muttavanchery.
On Monday, there’s a biryani special. But my advice is that you stick with dosas. I tried the vadai and idli as well as a prawn curry, which came with hot, but watery sauce. I think the strength here is in their specialty, the dosas.
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HOUSE OF DOSAS
1391 Kingsway, 604-875-1283.
