Title: Brunch at Dosa on Fillmore
Date Taken: February 5, 2012
Today I went out to brunch with a few friends at Dosa on Fillmore. The food was really good and the restaurant's ambiance was really nice (the service was friendly and a good level of attentiveness) but overall I would say it is a little pricey. Look at what I ate!
We made reservations at 11:45 a.m. and the restaurant was sort of empty. I don't know if it was due to the fact that the Superbowl was today, or the fact that their brunch wasn't as popular. There was four of us total and we ended up ordering 4 Mango Lassis, 3 appetizers, 1 Masala Dosa, 3 plain Dosas, 2 orders of Uttaban, 2 orders of the Masala Potatoes, and another dish. With tax and tip, we paid $28.00 each (there were 4 of us total) and had a serving left over.
Item: Lassi Natural Mango = A refreshing natural yogurt drink
Price: $5.00
I tried a version in Florida when I went to Harry Potter Land a couple of years back, but that version was very "watered" down compared to this. It's a yogurt drink, so it is fairly thick - there are times where you have to put extra effort to drink out of that straw. It was not as sweet as the other one I tried, but this is more authentic according to my friend. Both are good, but I think I might prefer the one I tried in Florida.
Item: (Top left) Samosas 'North and South' = Savory pastries filled with caramelized onions & vegetables (South) and spiced potatoes (North)
Price: $9.00
Item: (Bottom left) Crispy Fish Pakora = Sustainably-caught fish, marinated in chile, cumin, ginger & garlic, fried, w/chile & sweet onion chutneys
Price: $11.00
Item: (Top right) Pani Puri = Small hollow, crispy breads to be filled with spicy-sour mint & tamarind & mint, mildly spiced
Price: $9.00
I definitely liked the Pani Puri the best. You're supposed to break the top just big enough to fill the inside with the 3 items and then eat it in one bite. My mouth is pretty small, but I was able to fit it in my mouth (with a little extra effort). There were actually 6 of those crispy breads, but I took the picture after we devoured some of the food.
Item: (Top left) Dosa = plain individual orders (we ordered 3 of these; two is pictured here because one more was on the way)
Price: Not sure... :(
Item: (Middle left and right) Uttapam = a pancake-y/thicker version of Dosa (we ordered 2 orders, therefore 4 pieces total)
Price: Not sure... :(
Item: (Top right) Dosa Masala = The classic Dosa filled with creamy spiced potatoes, onions, and cashew nuts (masala)
Price: $11.00
Item: (Middle) Masala Potatoes = Creamy spiced potatoes, onions, and cashew nuts
Price: $4.00 (we ordered 2 orders)
Item: (Bottom middle) Poori = Two puffy round pieces of fried bread made from whole grain durum wheat (aatta)
Price: $4.50
I'm not 100% sure that was Poori; one of our friends ordered everything, and I think this is what we ordered. I don't see how much the Dosa and Uttapam were since we ordered it individually, and those descriptions I put for those two are my own. All other descriptions are coming from their menu on their main page.
I tried everything except the "Poori" - it's not that I didn't want to try it, but I was way too full! Warning: you eat with your hands at this restaurant so make sure your hands are clean!
Overall: The restaurant is in a nice location (near Japantown), the ambiance is nice, service was good, food tasted good. The only downfall would be the price for me, seeing it's a bit more expensive than I thought I would pay. But I would go back, just rather for a special occasion.
Later days,
Karen
