Thanjai was a suggested Indian restaurant by a few close friends. At arrival, the curry scent was so prominent that I was certain my friends didn’t lead me to the wrong restaurant!

The menu is so extensive, with dishes I’ve never heard before. Good thing we have wifi to be able to search what some dishes are due to incomplete explanations in the menu. We were tempted by the unknown…

Potato Bonda

This is basically fried potato balls. Like a twist of tasty tater. It was rather dull.

Samosa

This is the first time that I like Samosa. I like how there are chucks of lentils. Other Samosa I’ve tasted are usually filled with mainly potatoes, barely having any other fillings. Be sure to share this with others or you might not be able to go ahead with your main dish.

Parotta

I never knew this was called Parotta! It’s been a while I’ve been trying to explain Parotta to staff from Indian restaurant, but they never understood what I was looking for. I always ate Parotta in Hong Kong’s Indian restaurant (100% Authentic Indian), as they never served naan. For some reason, Naan bread is more commonly known in Montreal. When I saw Parotta in the menu, I was intrigued so I searched what it was on the net. and I squealed when I saw the picture! It is what I’ve been looking for for such a long time! I found it!

Sadly, it is no comparison to what I’ve eaten in Hong Kong. They weren’t as soft, or as layered. But for now, since it’s the only place I know so far in Montreal that serves it, I shall remain content.

Chappathi

We were also curious about Chappathi. It’s almost like a pita, less hard, with more spices in it. I did not really enjoy it. I rather have naan bread, or even better, Parotta! Sorry, I have to keep mentioning Parotta in order to have it ingrained in my memory forever.

Chicken Curry

The curry they serve in Thanjai is very different from any curry I’ve tasted. Their curry has cinnamon! That’s a first! Other than that, their curry is rather mediocre. Wished it could taste stronger.

Tomato Uthappam

Uthappam? What’s that? That was exactly my question. What’s better than ordering it to see it myself! It’s basically like a pancake, but an Indian version. I found it lacking flavor…in the piece that I had, I couldn’t taste the tomato.

Mirch Masala Dosa

Since the Thanjai is popular with their extensive list of Dosa, I had to try one myself! Plus, I never had any dosa before! Because of who I am, I had to pick the spiciest one out of all of the Dosa, or at least that’s what the menu says so. It was filled with hot peppers. The filling was mainly just hot peppers and…guess what? more potatoes! At this point, I was sick of eating potatoes, mostly because the potatoes didn’t taste much. I guess those 3 little bowls served with my dosa would help a bit. Beware, the spiciness did not hit me at first, but gradually it did that I needed other food to tone it down.

Mutton Curry

This is like the chicken curry, but instead of the chicken, it’s mutton, obviously. I like this better because the mutton is much more tastier than the chicken.

Overall, this restaurant is VERY affordable. The service was so friendly that really made an impression. It makes me want to come back again even the food was mediocre in general. I would like to think it’s because I did not order the right dishes…there must be a reason why my friends recommended this place!!

Zuuchini