the last two nights had dinner at the same restaurant tho different branches.. first night it was three guys and a lil lady, and the second night it was a double date plus one guy on his way to a date. on both nights, the boys had me in stiches with their wisecracks. we also had the luck of being served by a waiter, no make that sales rep as he likes to be known, with the most personality.

the place we went to was here. they have two branches. ala carte at the upper dickinson branch on one night and buffet at the bellios branch on the other night. this is a vegan place, and once in a while you will find the harekrishna types in addition to your indian families. somehow tis happen to be our favourite south indian vegetarian eatery and have been faithful customers, having stopped visiting the fast food komalas.

when i was a kid, indian vegetarian just meant thosai and its variations of masala or with egg.. now i love my paneers and pakoras. and from my stable of multiracial friends, among whom a few are indians, i got to learn the difference between my pooris and my bathuras and my idli and my uttapam. just like my korean friends thought me the difference between kimchi and kimbap, and my chinese friends thought me the difference between fun choy and lor mai kai. the hara halal version of coz. i in turn took the responsibility to tell them it's 'nasi le-r-mak' not 'nasi lomak'.


* related link: Lil India Food Index