DC Dosa

"The subtle star of the Waterpark eateries! Don’t miss out! My meal was incredibly tasty, lots of delicate flavors and delicious bites. The curried potatoes with the eggplant & sweet potatoes were a winning combo. And the coconut chutney was a bonus ping of flavor. Large portion so I brought the leftovers home and served them with shrimp. Super friendly staff too. I admired the dexterity of the young man preparing the dosa."

"This is serving kiosk in the highly popular Waterfront food area in Crystal City. The place also shows up as a popular Indian food in various listings for the DC area. The first surprise for me that the place is not run by Indians. Dosa is a speciality item native to the southern part of India. While it Is a staple of south, it’s a hugely popular restaurant item all over the country and indeed the world. It’s tricky to make genuine dosas. The rice is soaked, ground and fermented to prepare the batter. The precise fermentation is key to preparing light, crispy dosas. Keep the batter around for a while and it will over ferment becoming sour or bitter (better suited for Uttapam). The art of slow frying the wafer thin dosa with a judicious mixture of oil and water requires skill and patience not seen outside traditional South Indian cooks So I was understandably surprised to see a couple of African Americans behind the counter and the stove at the Dosa place. However the mystery was soon solved. They sell an adaption of the dosa - closer to the pancake version . The batter is not fermented rice but mung dal paste. They cook the dosa more like a thin crepe or pancake. Their filling is just food fare like potato curry, eggplants or sautéed veggies as opposed to lightly sautéed boiled potatoes, lightly spiced (mostly turmeric) with mustard seeds and curry leaves. Their chutneys tasted reasonably well. I did not particularly enjoy it as a dish and certainly not as a dosa. They were a bit over priced at $15 though I guess working in the expensive Crystal City area may also contributed to this."

"I got the yellow lentil with potato and veg. So good! I brought my friend who was born in India and she said it tastes like home! Come on at here. The staff is great!"

"A great place for South Indian classics like dosa, uttapam, and sambar. As a South Indian, this place has really impressed me. It does take some time for them to make the dosas, but it’s worth it. Will definitely be back!"