The Best Dosas Around NYC
The masterpiece of South Indian vegetarian cooking is represented all around the city and adjacent New Jersey
Hailing from southern India, the masala dosa must be among the world’s most perfect foods. It consists of a crisp pancake rolled around a filling of potatoes aggressively flavored with spices. The pancake is made from rice and lentils ground together into a batter that can be cooked rapidly — a much more efficient use of energy than the long-boiling plain rice and lentils require. The batter relies on fermentation, which gives the finished pancake a memorably tart taste.
Most dosa places offer multiple configurations: Mysore masala dosa has a spice mixture rubbed inside the pancake, and so does gunpowder dosa. Pondicherry dosa boasts a salad inside in addition to spiced potatoes; butter dosa has gee brushed on the wrapper; rava dosas use semolina in the batter and are sometimes unfermented; onion dosas incorporate onions and green chiles; paper dosas are thinner, crisper, and unfilled; and so on! Here are a dozen places to find great dosas.
Saravanaa Bhavan
The Amsterdam Avenue outpost of this international Indian chain is one of two in Manhattan. Here, as in India, the establishment has something of a cult following. The dosas are large, distinctively shaped, and served with three chutneys (tomato, coconut, and tomato). The fiery gunpowder dosa is a favorite. 413 Amsterdam Avenue, Upper West Side
Adyar Ananda Bhavan
Near the 59th Street Bridge, this narrow storefront is part of a chain based in Chennai. The dosas and rava dosas are a major focus, with names like rocket dosa (a variant on the unfilled paper dosa) and ooty spring dosa, filled with pepper, carrots, and cabbage. Dosas are served with three chutneys. 1072 First Avenue, Sutton Place
Temple Canteen
Temple Canteen is one of New York City’s “can’t miss” culinary destinations, as perfect in its own way as Katz’s. Located in the basement of a Hindu temple, its customers are extended families who feast on regional dosas and rice dishes, snacking on idli, vada, and other small plates. Whether Hindu or not, you’ll be made very welcome — grab a tray and scoot along the steam table.143-09 Holly Avenue, Flushing
Ammi
Located in Market 57, this stall is an offshoot of GupShup. The dosa is smaller and thicker than most, nicely chewy and crisp, and comes with three potential fillings — of which you should pick potato, which is more like a mixed vegetable curry. The tomato and coconut chutneys are splendid, but no sambar. Pier 57, 25 Eleventh Avenue, West Chelsea
Pongal
This vegetarian South Indian restaurant is a long-running flagship of Curry Hill, moving across the street not long ago. It has a long list of dosas and uttapams, in variations that include cheese, butter, the spice mixture known as podi dosa, and the unfilled paper dosa. 103 Lexington Avenue, Curry Hill
Hillside Dosa Hutt
This sunny cafe in far eastern Queens is very modest looking, but has one of the most comprehensive Indian vegetarian menus, with adjustments made for all the religious groups — Jains, for example, can’t eat onions. The list of dosas includes such arcana as spinach dosas, cheese dosas, and chocolate dosas. 258-15 Hillside Avenue, Glen Oaks
Semma
Semma concentrates on regional cuisines of southern India, an elegant and upscale place. The gunpowder dosa is a case in point — rarely has a dosa been rendered so perfect, and note the luxuriance of the sambar, that seems not like a side dish, but as an appetizer unto itself. 60 Greenwich Avenue, Greenwich Village
Sri Ganesh Dosa House
Ganesh presides over the dining room at this wonderful place. Dozens upon dozens of dosas are offered, and you can see the cement-mixer contraption mixing the batter in the kitchen. Coconut and peanut chutneys are offered, and you can help yourself to unlimited sambar from a warming pot. 809 Newark Avenue, India Square
NY Dosas
Thiru Kumar first parked his cart on the southern end of Washington Square in 2001, and it has been a Village fixture ever since. He makes his masala dosas to order, either regular or Pondicherry style. The sambar is superb and the coconut chutney freshly made. Check the IG to see if he will be there any given day. Washington Square South at Sullivan Street, Greenwich Village
Dosa Spot
Dosa Spot is a shop in the Newport Centre Mall not in a food court. Mobbed at lunchtime, it offers 25 types of dosas. The sambar is chunkier than most, and the coconut chutney tastes of cilantro and fenugreek. 30 Mall Drive West, Newport Centre Visit Website
Dosa Royale
This establishment has recast the dosa parlor as a bistro while going outside the box where fillings are concerned. One is stuffed with spinach and paneer, another with a sweet potato masala, and still another with chicken — which defeats the whole purpose of the dosa as far as I’m concerned. 258 DeKalb Avenue, Clinton Hill Visit Website
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