Having visited their New Jersey location a couple of years ago and loving the food, I was excited to try this spot.
Ambiance (5/5): The interior is spacious, modern, and clean, featuring bright yellow chairs and olive-green booth seating with sleek gold accents. Modern, circular glowing chandeliers light up the high ceilings, and the marble-patterned tables give it a fresh, elevated touch. I loved the large glass window along the back wall that lets you watch the chefs make fresh dosas right on the flat-top grill. They also have cool wall art showcasing their global locations and an India map made of spices. An interesting touch is that they use traditional stainless steel glasses and water jugs at the table, which I've never seen at other places.
Food:
-Madras Coffee (3/5): Served in a traditional steel glass set inside a steel cup with a nice layer of foam on top. We requested it with sugar, and our server mentioned adding half a teaspoon. It came out pretty strong and not very sweet, but after finishing, I realized all the sugar had settled at the bottom.
Main Course:
-Benne Dosa (3/5): Though cooked a bit unevenly, it was tasty, flavorful, and spicy. The potato masala filling was very flavorful compared to other places where it can be bland or under-salted. However, having had benne dosa at Tiffin Hut, this didn't quite live up to that mark. The portion size was also on the smaller side for the price.
-Benne Podi Masala Dosa (3/5): Similar experience with great flavor in the filling, but small serving size.
-Masala Dosa (3/5): Very thin--so thin that our table discussed whether they had accidentally given us a paper masala dosa instead.
-Ghee Roast Masala Dosa (3/5): I was still hungry after the small portion of the benne dosa, so I ordered this. It was just alright. The potato filling was served pretty conservatively, and the thinness and taste were identical to the regular masala dosa, so I couldn't really taste any distinct ghee roast flavor.
The dishes came with tomato chutney, coconut chutney, and green chutney. Sambar was served conservatively in a small cup, though staff clarified extra sambar is free upon request. I learned this is a Tamil restaurant, which explains why they don't serve peanut chutney (commonly found at Telugu spots). While I missed peanut chutney, I really enjoyed their tomato chutney, and the coconut chutney was fresh and delicious.
Service (5/5): Staff were super friendly and extremely attentive--I was able to flag someone down in under a minute all four times. Coffee and food came out quickly. Our server was super helpful, explained why they don't serve peanut chutney, and tried helping me understand when I questioned about the masala dosa and ghee roast masala dosa basically being a paper dosa. Our water jug was replaced within 10 minutes--I don't know how they are able to tell, since it's not see through! There were staff making rounds every so often, making plate removal a very smooth process.
Areas for Improvement:
-Menu Transparency: Having checked the menu online beforehand, I knew to ask about the 3 different types of Benne Dosa since only 1 was listed on the physical menu. Listing all available options on the physical menu would be appreciated.
-Food Timing: The two Benne Dosas came out together, and we were halfway through before the Masala Dosa came out. It kinda sucks for the person without food, and it would've been nice for everyone to get their food at the same time.
-Portion & Pricing Consistency: The higher price point doesn't align well with the smaller portion sizes. Additionally, different menu items (like the Masala Dosa and Ghee Roast) should have noticeably different tastes.
Overall, the service is superb and the place is very elegant, but if the food is not up to par, then it doesn't make sense for me to dine here again. read more