Desi Rasoi

Desi Rasoi is another Indian vegetarian street eats take-out place that I had discovered simply by fooling around on Google Maps (which I am wont to do)! A young couple with some restaurant experience has gotten this place up and running only since this past November so it's not surprising that I hadn't seen it before. They are tucked in a tiny corner of a building, the purpose of which I cannot explain, at Scott Road and 95th.

They have been doing take-out only (and catering, I expect when it is allowed) since the start which was maybe a good plan. The customer area in this restaurant is so small that you need to step outside to change your order, so do everyone a favour and order online or by phone. They have an order system that allows you to set a pickup time well in advance (tomorrow at 5 say) which is very convenient. So we placed our order and drove all the way home to give it a try.

The fun thing about street eats is that you can order a bunch of small dishes. We started with Spring Rolls. These were filled mostly with noodles which made them a new and tasty experience! A bit of a carb-fest  (which doesn't bother us at all) but crunchy and tasty and they came with a sweet-spicy dip.

We have grown to love chaat and this one is Bhel Puri. Crunchy bits of crackers, puffed rice, noodles, and a tangy tamarind sauce. It's hard to leave it alone once you start dipping in.

This is the second time (second restaurant) that we have ordered Pao Bhaji. It's basically a thick vegetable curry served with a soft bun. We like the novelty of it and it is flavourful and rich but I don't think it will ever be our street food go-to dish. 

I'm not sure what I was expecting from Chole Kulche. It turned out to be a sort of white bread bun filled with potato and chickpea and some mild Indian spices. Not the most exciting thing in the world. We made use of the onions, chile and lemon to liven it up a bit.

Once again, I am thrilled with the surprisingly messy Noodle Burger experience! This burger is based on a sauteed potato patty and then smothered with noodles and a slice of paneer. It also comes with some usual burger ingredients like lettuce mayo etc. A slippery variation on the usual veggie burger, we liked this a lot.

I wouldn't really expect them to make their own tortillas but their tacos came with Old El Paso shells which weren't my favourite thing. They were a little lean on filling but were tasty enough, crunchy and a little refreshing. This happened to be Mharie's favourite so that shows what I know!

So full-on vegetarian which is good; creative and not very expensive. We applaud what they are doing here especially in mid pandemic! There is a lot on this menu that we didn't try including some creative beverages. We'll be back and we think you should give them a try also! 

Food                    3 out of 5

Comfort               NA

Service                4 out of 5

Value                   3 1/2 out of 5