ottawa foodies

Last night I stopped in for dinner at the Light of India before a screening at the Mayfair. I hadn't had dinner there in ages and since I was getting a hankering for Indian food I decided to stop in for a visit. I decided to get a combo dish since I like those the best - I get a bit of everything. When I was seated the waiter brought some water, a basket of papadums, and the menus. I love curries especially if it involves lamb so I settled for the Bombay combo for one. I started with a Mulligatawny soup which was very hot in temperature but lacking in spice. It would have been nice it they put in some kind of seasoning rather than just the broth and veggies. The waiter came by after with the lamb curry, steamed rice, and sag paneer. The lamb was delicious - a little spicier than what I am used to - but I enjoyed every morsel. The rice was delicious although I would have preferred peas pulao but it was tasty none-the-less. And the sag paneer was the best I've ever had. Service was slow but attentive. Next time I am not going to wait so long to go back.

Ok, it's hard for me to be objective. My friends and I have been coming here for years so it has become a bit of a familiar dinner outing for us. I am certain this has to be North American Indian food, but hey, I like it.

Pictured is the chicken dhansak and the chicken korma. The dhansak is a slight sweet and sour spicy sauce with some spices. The korma is a yogurt based sauce with raisins. Both very tasty over basmati rice and a side of naan. The portion of rice is huge! The garlic naan is a bit chewy but quite flavourful. East India Café has a much fluffier naan in comparison.

I also like the red wine they order specially from the Niagara region that is made for Indian food: Angori.

Service is friendly but it can be a bit slow at times, especially for bigger groups. Sometimes, they throw in some onion bhaji when the wait is really long.

A small bowl of fruit is also served at the end of the meal, usually pineapple and grapes.

My god, the Tarka dal here is like crack. I have tried other options at this restaurant but that dal has me crawling back every time. Fortunately it's a staple in their weekday lunch buffet, and it makes the visit worthwhile.

Ibid. If you don't pass sanitation we don't eat there.

Travel colleague concurrs calling it " the blight of India ".

Don't risk it.

I used to eat here, the food was good but I can't get myself over all the failed inspections this restaurant has had over the last 2 years. I will not eat at a restaurant knowing that it does not respect basic sanitation.

You won't see me write a bad review for every restaurant that has a non-compliance, but there are no excuses for repeat critical non-compliances.

I dined at LOI for the first time this weekend. It was an enjoyable experience.

The complemrntary pappadum was a great start - they are very generous with the portion they give.

Yummy mango lassi.

We ordered the onion bhaji (very good), mulligatawny soup (I didn't taste it), naan (very disappointing, quite doughy), tandoori shrimp masala (the sauce was delicious although the shrimps themselves, while plump, lacked flavour), curry chicken (tasty), and sag aloo bhaji (spinach with potatoes - also tasty).

The service was good although it took a while for us to put our order in. I think they were particularly busy with takeout orders.

There was ample food for the two of us. The leftovers sustained me for two entire additional meals.

We had a curry craving tonight and so we got takeout. We've had curries from here many times and never been disappointed (note : I believe they only do pickup, no delivery)

While it isn't my all time favorite Indian in Ottawa, I think it is the best in the Glebe - the quality is good & very consistent and the service is friendly.

I like that they arrange their menu by heat (mild, medium, hot, very hot & extremely hot) allowing you to experiment with different curries in your particular comfort zone (medium to very for me depending on the night).

Mrs Rat always goes for the Butter Chicken. Personally I'm not keen on it (like Zep, I find it wayyyy too sweet, but my wife says it's the best ever). So if you are a butter chicken aficionado, just be forewarned you'll either love it or hate it (might be best to sample it at the lunch buffet than ordering as a main in the evening).

We normally get an order of onion bhaji to start. It's quite generous with ~ 8 pieces so easily shareable between 2 people (especially since the main courses are generous).

I'm particularly partial to their eggplant curry (Begun Bhaji) which is wonderfully smokey. In fact even as a die hard carnivore, I really enjoy all of their vegetable curries.

I also like the freebies when you get takeout ... you get a generous bag of poppadoms (and while waiting if it isn't ready). You also sometimes get a free dessert of rice pudding. I'm not that bothered about it, but I'll eat it if it's free. It's a bit random whether they include it or not though.

Cheers,
Ratty.

I have not eaten at this establishment for at least ten years. My girlfriend and I typically frequent Moni Mahal on Laurier, but have found that the last few visits were somewhat lacking so, we decided to give Light of India a try for their Sunday buffet.

We arrived early and found only one other table occupied. When we spied the buffet table, however, we were somewhat disheartened. Having been used to the plethora of options at other restaurants, we noticed only one steam table and a few options nearby. We actually debated whether or not to stay, fearing that there would be few vegetarian options available.

Thankfully, we decided to give it a chance. Needless to say, we were amply rewarded for our choice. Not only was 75% of the buffet vegetarian-friendly, but the quality of the food more than made up for the lack of variety.

I do believe that this was some of the freshest Indian food I have ever eaten. All of the dishes were incredibly fresh, light, and flavourful. The batter they use is as light and tasty as any I've sampled. According to my girlfriend, the vegetable biryani rice was to-die-for. All of the sauces tasted as though they had just been made of only the freshest natural ingredients. Desserts were also incredibly fresh and light.

My sweetheart followed here meal with a traditional chai tea which she described as perfectly spiced without any unnecessary sweetness. All said, an excellent meal with attentive service for a price that was comparable to any other Indian buffet we have attended.

We will definitely be returning to this restaurant. Perhaps, next time, we will try their evening dinner service.

Excellent meal with friends there last Friday. Might have to book again soon. The atmosphere was nice (not too kitchy), the service friendly and the food was very enjoyable. And they have a decent selection of wines to enjoy with Indian food. We had the Pelee Island Gewurz which went very well with the on-the-sweet-side butter chicken (called Masala here), the muttar paneer, and the goran josh which was spicy. Excellent naan and love the little heating plates on each table to keep the food warm until the second round.

This is my favourite Indian restaurant. We often get the Vegetarian Krishna dinner for two. They are good with substituting a dish in the combo if you want something else. Staff is friendly but service can be slow when the restaurant gets busy, so I recommend going when you are not in a hurry to leave.