| It was a dreary, rainy Thursday night when my brother and I visited Tiffin Curry and Roti House. I was hoping to raise my spirits and warm my blood with some spicy curries and homemade roti.
Tiffin (which translates to lunch or light meal) is set up as a take-out restaurant, but also accommodates visitors with a comfortable and pleasantly modern decorated dining area complete with TV screens playing various Bollywood videos.
The menu, as in most take-out restaurants, offers a plethora of combos as well as individual selections such as curries, samosas, ribs and, of course, roti.
My brother and I opted to try the combo option of one meat curry, one vegetable curry, rice, three rotis and one choice of chutney ($10.50). On the night we visited, the menu offered a green bean and pea curry, chickpeas and potato curry, a mixed vegetable curry, sweet and sour toor daal (yellow split pigeon peas), butter chicken, beef curry and a cabbage curry. The vegetable and meat curries can be purchased separately for $4-$5 each.
We opted for the butter chicken, mixed veggie curry, chickpeas and potato curry. Upon ordering you can also choose from a wide variety of sauces and chutneys to accompany your meal that include mild yogurt sauce, hot sauce, mango-pickle chutney and green chili and cilantro chutney.
While placing our order, we noticed the staff was cooking up some fine-looking ribs on an open grill and thought we should give them a whirl too ($10.95). They came in a spicy range of mild to "crazy hot." We asked to try the hot but our host took one look at us and told us to try the medium. ’Nuff said. He was right. The medium was plenty hot for our palates.
Taking our trays to a table, I noticed how pleasingly our food was presented. The rice and rotis were placed on silver plates with metal bowls for the curries. The chutneys came in tiny metal dipping bowls. Cute.
Digging into our Indian feast, we noted right away that the vegetable curries were très spicy. I needed the spice though – after a week of having a major head cold, I was ready for all the heat I could take on. The curries gave my taste buds the jump-start they needed. Sadly, the butter chicken was average. It didn’t have the rich colour or flavour I have grown accustomed to in a butter chicken. It was disappointingly bland.
The roti is interesting, as it is made on-site right before your eyes at the counter (roti is kind of like naan and is more commonly used in West Indian cuisine). The chutneys that accompanied them were tasty accoutrements to the overall meal. Beware of the green-chili-cilantro though – it’s a hot child in the city. Yeow!
The ribs were delish. They were extremely spicy, but had a lovely lime-citrus flavouring to them that eased the heat. The serving was generous and great for sharing.
Other goodies on the menu included beef, chicken and vegetable samosas (4 for $5.95) and a range of masalas. Tiffin also serves a variety of domestic and import beers ranging in price from $3.95 to $6.50, in addition to their heartwarming Chai tea ($2).
The staff is friendly and helpful in educating their customers about Indian cuisine. So helpful that just when I couldn’t eat another morsel, my meal was packed into a convenient TV dinner-like to-go package. Hungry indeed.
So, if you are looking for Indian cuisine on the fly, Tiffin is the spot for you. The fare is decent and the prices can’t be beat.
Tiffin is located at 188-28th Street S.E.; phone, 273-2420. |
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