Dhaba (309 King Street West) is suffering an identity crisis.
The restaurant was featured on the Food Network’s Restaurant Makeover, in hopes of reviving its stale image. However, even with famed chef Susur Lee and designer Brenda Bent behind the up-do, it seems to have lost its soul.
Mind you, the buffet is impressive, numbers-wise. The offerings are infinitely more numerous and diverse than neighbouring Aroma’s, with curries that actually look different from one another.
However, too much work is invested in quantity and not quality, with most dishes barely extending past the level of mediocrity.
What makes this all the more painful is the jarring amount of intercontinental fare — I’ve not seen such a ragtag display of dishes since ogling the remains of an Old Country Buffet, closing time on a Friday night. Okay, so I lie. It didn’t look THAT disgusting. But what the heck are spaghetti, muffins, and an omelette station doing in an Indian restaurant? And… stuffed grape leaves?
W-what is this? And where am I? (Blinking. Rubbing eyes.)
To make matters even worse, the server sure took his special time cleaning our dirty table after we’d sat down. We even had to ask for napkins, just to dab the mediocre sauce from our lips.
The only redeeming factor was the omelette station attendant, who seemed eager to please. I suppose I would be, too, if I was left to serve food that no one actually wanted.
Anyway, Dhaba, if you transferred this excess energy towards perfecting your Indian food, you’d probably have something going.
Until then, I’m going elsewhere, Susur-inspired or not.
Out of all restaurants that are good, there is always that one person who will not like it (even if the food and service is AMAZING, I still have yet to understand this odd pattern). I sadly have to say that person is you!
I’m not sure what restaurant you went to, because this doesn’t sound like Dhaba. You seem to be a freshman in the hospitality world as your untrained eye cannot depict true taste or style.
This restaurant is easily in the same league as other fine establishments from Toronto, and all the way to central London UK. This isn’t me saying this, it is a person I know who travels the world tasting food, owning 3 cookbook stores in toronto, being a doctor by profession, and being a critic for food for a VERY long time.
I still remember seeing you on that day you took this picture, I was also dining at Dhaba (sitting across the omlete station). I’m still surprised to see you writing this review; you looked like you were having a blast. It’s odd enough for you to say you are confused of seeing indian crepes and omeletes, along with spagetti (ever heard of contemporary cuisine? Like I said, you’re still a freshie in the world of food). I suggest you to go around tasting food for around 15- 20 years like I have and gain a bit of experience, and keeping your comments to yourself before you post a such a strong misleading review. Maybe after those 15-20 years will you have confidence in your words to post something that will be accurate.
Don’t take this reply personally, it is only natural for die-hard Dhaba fans to retort to something that must be corrected.
Hope you take this positively Ms. Connie Tsang.
I totally agree with you Tyson; Connie Tsang seems WAY out of line, because Dhaba is one of my favourite places to chow, as it is for thousands of others!
Cmon Connie you’re tastebuds are gettin’ dry! And by the way, those aren’t “grape” leaves, they’re WINE LEAVES. It’s sad you didn’t even know something like that. Take Tyson’s advice and get some experience! You’re review is obsurd!
this thread is entertaining. gotta say i went there recently and the food was just okay, and i eat a lot of indian food. better stuff at the cheap spots where local indian people actually live. the guys above are obvious they had a good time. maybe it’s good generally but restaurants have their good days and their bad days. the reviewers’ bad, mine was so-so….. but then again i don’t even like hanging out in this area becaus its’ pretty lame and not the real toronto……
ah, let’s the whole world get along, huh?
Tyson, with a comment like that it is hard not to suspect your connection to the reviewed establishment to be personal as it is clearly you who are taking the criticism “personally”. And to suggest that someone “…who travels the world tasting food, owning 3 cookbook stores in toronto, being a doctor by profession, and being a critic for food for a VERY long time.” instantly validates her/him to have taste is a little elitist, wouldn’t you say? And come on, spaghetti and muffins at an Indian buffet is indicative of “contemporary cuisine”? What’s next? Sushi at a Greek restaurant?
i’m with sally on this one. tyson’s review seems a little suspect. and, if i’m wrong and it isn’t, it felt like listening to the kid at school who used to brag at recess about all the toys he had and why he was better, faster and stronger than everyone else.
lighten up, guy.
ha! well, indeed. thanks, tyson, for creating a little bru-ha-ha on the comment thread.
first of all, we have to look at the whole point of the site, which is TIMING and DELIVERY. in these aspects, i stick to my guns: our table took a while to be cleaned, we didn’t even get napkins, the buffet was a bit strange, with the continental breakfast and different cuisines. really, now?! timing and delivery? hmm.
to dhaba’s credit, their a la carte menu and service and delivery may be prompt and fantastic, but we had a sub-par experience.
now, i don’t want to play the game of “look-at-me, look-at-what-i’ve-done-with-my-life, hey!” but i’ll mention this one tidbit: if having a family that was born and raised in india and eating indian food for my entire life — homemade, catered, fine dining, weddings — doesn’t account for just an opinion on the matter, then so be it.
anyone can be a food critic — anyone. not just doctors.
Haha, a very interesting conversation this has struck up.
Any who, connection or not with the establishment, I do agree with Tyson on this one. I did recently frequent the place for lunch (I’ve gone once for dinner) and thought it was one of the best buffets in town!
When I had gone during dinner time, I got the jist that the food seemed to be contemporary and perhaps a bit of a fusion? And personally, I thought it was a great touch of what they had done with the buffet. Catering to a wider variety of clients? Is that a bad thing? I don’t think so.
Now, I’m no experienced food critic or anything, but I do know that I really enjoyed my dining experience at Dhaba – both dinner and lunch!
Sure, it seems a bit odd to me that your dining experience was as you had said but like Jeremy pointed out, restaurants have their good days and bad. So, who really knows.