I've been here twice now - both Saturday lunch - which automatically makes this place my family's…read morego-to for Indian food because we haven't gone a second time to the other Indian restaurants we've eaten at so far.
The entire restaurant is vegetarian and there are a number of vegan options. What makes this place stand out is that that they have nut-free and gluten-free options. AND they have Jain options too. This is all a concern for my family because (1) we follow a Jain-like vegetarian diet (we avoid alliums) and (2) my youngest kid has multiple food allergies to wheat, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, avocado, kiwi, and pineapple.
They are clearly popular. Both times I've gone, it doesn't seem like there's people but within 10 minutes of opening, it starts to get packed and by the time we leave, people are waiting for tables. A vast majority of the diners are Indian which gives me the impression that the food's authentic! They do close between lunch and dinner services so be aware of that. We probably would have gone here more if they opened during the odd in-between hours because that's how we roll on the weekends.
You're greeted by a hostess who leads you to your table and a waiter will come by within 5 minutes. We got the same waiter both times - shout out to Vivek! There are tablets on every table with the menu and you can filter out allergens or for special diets which is quite handy. You do not order on the device; you order with the waiter but it does cut down on questions. We still go through the whole allergy spiel and that we don't eat alliums in an attempt to make sure the order is put in correctly.
As a side note, they have an extensive menu which is quite impressive that encompasses dosa, steamed items, curries, even a thali set, dishes I haven't heard of... all the way to desserts and even sweets (burfi, etc). Their falooda looks epic! I haven't ordered any of their sweets. Most all of them are things my youngest can't have. However, once I filter out for Jain, gluten-free, nut-free options, our menu shrinks. It makes it easier to order, but is sad if you have your eye on something. For instance, I love malai kofta. I cannot have the one here. Nor can I have the Bhel Puri or the thali or any of their meal sets for that matter.
We've ordered:
COCKTAIL SAMBAR IDLI - little steamed (GF) cakes dunked in sambar. I got this for fun. I did not expect it to be my youngest's favorite dish. Hands down his favorite. He asks for it every so often. If you avoid alliums, make sure you double check. The second visit, the kitchen accidentally prepared it with the regular sambar and not the Jain one... There was an onion floating in the sambar.
PALAK PANEER - this is my kids' favorite curry. It's quite good. If you forget to specify the level of spice, it will come with little chunks of spicy green chilies that pack a little punch. Depending on which side of my mouth chewed on it, that ear with ring and burn.
PLAIN DOSA - this comes as a HUGE dosa with a small bowl of sambar. It was excellent. My kids even ate some; one prefers the crispy bits, the other the softer bits. An oldie, but goodie.
DAHI VADAI - GF donuts (I think it's a lentil/chickpea batter) in a pool of yogurt that's both tangy and very slightly sweet and spiced. I loved this. It comes with 2 3-inch donuts.
BREAD - flatbreads are extra and only comes with one piece. My daughter always insists on it. She had parotta the first time and then roti the second. No complaints from the picky eater so that's a win!
RICE - we ordered PANEER PULAO-turned-VEG FRIED RICE before. All their rice dishes are well seasoned and tender... likely with ghee. You could probably eat them alone. A note: Even though we used the filters and the Paneer Pulao popped up, it came out with cashews. The cook said it always comes with cashews. It was changed to a vegetable fried rice. Luckily, we looked through it before we gave some to our kid. I played it safe the second time with Jeera (cumin) Rice.
Overall, good experiences. Aside from the cashews in the rice the first time and the non-Jain cocktail sambar idlies the second time. My youngest hasn't had any allergy reactions so at least cross contamination isn't happening. Service is pretty good, the place clean, and the food is delicious. If they can get the food right consistently, then that would push this to 5 stars. So far, it hasn't happened yet.
