Off the Eaten Track

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This is the third restaurant in my quest to identify restaurants which you can be proud to take your guests.

Previous columns have listed Vincent's Spot and Zen. This week I have picked Madras Palace as having some of the best Indian food around. Although it's not too intimate (tables are close together and the wicker chairs are large), it is a pleasant dining room in warm red, green and wood tones, complete with carved wooden screens on the windows.

I have received mail from reader Michael Hayward asking for vegetarian recommendations, and one of my favourite cuisines to deliver on this concept is South Indian. Madras Palace also includes Northern Indian dishes, so both vegetarian and carnivores can co-exist here. There are seven vegetarian appetizers available including Samosas ($2.50 each) and vadai, a savoury shaped like a doughnut and made of lentils or potatoes ($2.50 and up). I adore dosas, and the potato version (listed as masala dosa) is the king of the heap at $5.95, filling and satisfying.

Complicated to make, the dosa is a large fermented lentil crepe that is spread out in a thin disc on a griddle and crisped to perfection. Trust me, it tastes much better than its description. I tried, for a change of pace, the chilli dosa ($5.50), with black pepper, dry red chili, and green chili chopped right into the batter. With a cooling coconut chutney, it went down well. A plate of butterflied and sauteed shrimp ($7.50), served on a bed of onion, lemon and hot sauce were shared by the table. We also ordered a sprightly chilli chicken masala ($6) with naan ($2) to ensure our spice needs were met and our bellies were full. For an inexpensive, yet fancy meal you owe it to your Indian food loving guests to sample Madras Palace's carefully prepared cuisine.

 

Madras Palace

1249 Ellesmere Rd

South side, west of Brimley Road

(416) 759-5400

Wheelchair access:

Washrooms in basement

Hours:

Sun- Thurs: 11:30 am - 11:30 pm

Fri-Sat: 11:30 am - midnight.