Top 5 Dosa Spots in Brampton
Published December 24, 2018 at 12:13 pm
Dosa is hands down one of the best kinds of South Indian food. If you’ve never had a dosa, it’s basically giant savory crepe. Dosas are typically filled with potatoes, onions, red chilis, and a number of spices, and served with tomato, coconut, and coriander chutneys and sambhar, a thin lentil and tamarind broth. If you’ve had a dosa, you know all about the crispiness of the dough, the soft paste filling, the flavorful chutneys and sambhar, and the best part – true dosa lovers eat the dish with their hands.
My mouth is already watering, and I’m itching to share my findings with you. Without prolonging the main event, here are the top five dosa spots in Brampton, all of which boast fresh dosas, chutneys, and sambhar made in-house!
This little hole-in-the-wall sits in a plaza at Kennedy Road and Clarence Street. I had the spring masala dosa at a reasonable $10.99. This dosa had a mix of fresh cabbage, onions, carrots and green peppers, and spiced potatoes as filling, which gave it a Chinese-South Indian fusion vibe, reminiscent of a spring roll. The dosa was presented well on the plate, cut into thirds which was unique for a dosa, and the service was friendly and quick. The sambhar had a smokey taste to it which was unusual, and the crepe was thin and crispy which was great. This dosa came with tomato and coconut chutney, both of which tasted pretty standard, and if anything the coconut chutney was too sweet. They have a standard selection of dosas ranging from a cheap $5 for a plain dosa to $11 for a loaded dosa.
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Nilgiri’s is in a plaza on The Gore Road and Ebenezer Road, and they have the best chutneys on this list. Their tomato chutney was the right amount of spicy, their coriander chutney had a kick of flavour, their coconut chutney was the perfect neutral, slightly sweet and creamy balance, and they all had a good consistency. I had the mysore masala dosa with onion, and it was pretty good. The crepe was covered in mysore paste (a garlic chili chutney), the potato filling was tasty and not too spicy, and there were a lot of onions which actually balanced the flavours. The only drawback was that the dosa and the potatoes were a bit oily. Other than that, the service was quick, the price ranges from a cheap $6.75 to $9.75 and they have a good variety of dosas. Also, when I went, the place was packed, which was a good sign. I noticed they have kal dosa, a spongy version of dosa, which added something fresh to a standard menu. Nilgiri’s also sells their dosa batter, if you’re looking to make their dosas at home!
Madras Restaurant is at Bovaird Drive East and Professor’s Lake Parkway, right near Brampton Civic Hospital. What I really appreciated was the variety of dosas on their menu. Usually, I’ve found that dosas are vegetarian, but this place had meat dosas, and even a chocolate dosa! I had to try the meat dosa, so I chose the chicken masala dosa, spread with special chicken masala on the inside and served with a special gravy. Let me tell you, this was one delicious dosa. The crepe was thin and crispy, the filling was flavorful, there was a good amount of chicken in there, and the sambhar complimented the whole meal nicely. There were a lot of red chillies in my dosa, so I would request less spice if I had a low spice tolerance. Their coriander chutney could have been thicker, but their tomato and coconut chutneys were solid, and their service was quick. My dosa was a reasonable $9.95, and their dosas range from an average $7.75 to $10.75. I’d definitely like to try their chocolate dosa next time.
2) Simply South
Simply South opened about a year ago at Countryside Drive and Airport Road, and they have quick, kind service and a gorgeous interior. Their dosas are on the pricey side, ranging from $8.50 to $13.50, and they don’t have a large variety, but they stick to the classics and their quality doesn’t disappoint. And, as you can tell from the picture, their presentation is on point. I had their Chettinad dosa, which is smeared in a special chilli powder, and filled with a traditional potato and onion paste. Their dosa was light, crispy, and golden brown, their filling was flavourful and the powder added a nice kick, and their chutneys were delicious. The best part? Their sambhar. A perfectly balanced mix of tamarind, curry leaves, and lentils, their sambhar was a good compliment to their dosa and chutneys – I almost drank the whole thing.
At Hurontario Street and Steeles Avenue, Anjappar Chettinad’s most popular dosa is their mysore masala dosa, and for good reason. Anjappar’s mysore masala dosa had the best filling and crepe on this list – their dosa was crispy, and their potato and onion filling was flavourful and had a good amount of spice. Their dosas come with two chutneys, tomato and coconut, and a good serving size of sambhar, perfect in proportion with the size of the dosa. All of their chutneys and their sambhar were packed with flavour. Anjappar’s not only good for dosas, they also have a variety of South Indian food, but their dosas are a highlight on their menu. While they don’t have a large variety of dosas, they stick to the classics and they’re high on quality. They do have meat dosas on their menu, with chicken or mutton, and those are only served on weekends. To top it off, their service was the quickest on this list and their prices range from a reasonable $7.99 for a plain dosa to $13.49 for a mutton dosa – their veggie dosas don’t exceed $10.50.
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