Shanti's Curries | Awesome Curries on Main Street
On a typical Friday evening, Q and I were feeling pretty lazy and wanted to grab dinner somewhere close to home. Finding a place to eat on Main Street is usually our default when that happens, and if we don't manage to decide on a specific place we usually end up at Wholefoods (Q: our favourite there is the burrito bowl and having chocolate cake as dessert!) . While flipping through Yelp recommendations, we came upon a restaurant that neither of us remember seeing before - Shanti's Curries. It's a fairly new Indian restaurant that is nestled between a convenience store and an hair salon. Parking was a breeze (Q: a rarity on main street. We found parking on the inner street), and walking into Shanti's was incredibly refreshing! Gone are the tacky Indian paraphernalia one anticipates when going into an Indian restaurant - instead, we get a cozy and modern restaurant that fits right into the Main Street vibe. Long communal tables, plenty of natural lighting, tons of wooden tones; if I didn't know this was an Indian restaurant, I would have pegged Shanti's Curries as a coffee shop! [caption id="attachment_3292" align="aligncenter" width="522"] Inside Shanti's Curries[/caption] The space is by no means huge, but they've done a pretty good job at making it seem spacious (Q: it is welcoming and warm! Totally love the interior). Shanti's Curries' kitchen is pretty small, but they designed the place so that you can see Sonny, the co-owner, cooking away some delicious curry from wherever you're sitting. [caption id="attachment_3293" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Counter space and kitchen window[/caption] When taking a look at their menu, I was a bit taken aback by their prices (Q: it is a lot more pricey than what we are used to eating around Main and 49th or Main and 57th). We were committed though, and at the end of our meal we think it was worth it. [caption id="attachment_3285" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Main Menu[/caption] On the other side of the wall, Shanti's Curries also has a drinks menu that includes Chai and alcohol. I think having wine here would be pretty awesome, but I was unfortunately driving that day! (Q: when isn't C driving? ;p) [caption id="attachment_3287" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Drinks menu[/caption] It's nice to have something to go with the curry, so Q and I both got the Masala Chai. (Q: it was down pouring all a sudden, C and I were soaked when walking there. Hence C said it was "a refreshing walk". It was nice to have something warm) [caption id="attachment_3286" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Masala Chai ($2.50)[/caption] The Masala Chai is made in-house using organic milk and spices. It was a bit mild for me, as I generally prefer my chai to be really spicy. This would have made a lovely iced chai though! (Q: this isn't as good as the one from East is East. It is more watered down to me. Good for people who just started to drink chai?) [caption id="attachment_3288" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Chicken Curry and Samosa Chaat[/caption] Sonny and Danila suggested for the curry that we go with the Chicken, as it has been pretty popular. The other recommendation was the Samosa Chaat. [caption id="attachment_3289" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Samosa Chaat ($9)[/caption] The Samosa Chaat consists of two samosas, 2 chutneys, yogurt, onion and cilantro. Sonny described it as being like an Indian poutine, and I think he's quite right (except for it not having fries, gravy, or cheese)! I had never seen a samosa chaat before, but apparently chaats are very popular in India. According to Wikipedia, Chaats are -
The chaat variants are all based on fried dough, with various other ingredients. The original chaat is a mixture of potato pieces, crisp fried bread Dahi vada or Dahi Bhalla ("Bhalla" in Hindi), gram or chickpeas and tangy-salty spices, with sour home-made Indian chilli and Saunth (dried ginger and tamarind sauce), fresh green coriander leaves and yogurt for garnish.
I thought the samosa variant is brilliant, and this is a must-have dish at Shanti's Curries. (Q: C missed this epic description from Danila: It is like Indian poutine on crack! I love that!!) It's got the right combination of crunch, starch, sweetness, and spice flavour. The only downside was that the samosas were a bit cold on the inside, but certainly not a deal-breaker. (Q: It really would've made the dish THAT much better if it is more piping hot. It is definitely very addictive and good...just too much cilantro...) [caption id="attachment_3290" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Chicken Curry ($13)[/caption] The other dish we had was the Chicken Curry. It is a "classic spicy South Indian curry, made with local Organic free range chicken thighs, spices, tomatoes, onions, homemade chicken stock and finished with coconut milk and fresh cilantro". Looks pretty basic, but the curry was a mouthful of flavour. I was pleasantly surprised (Q less so) that the curry had a lot of heat to it. It's a fine curry, and I think any curry lover would do well to they it out. (Q: we've been told it is normal heat but man is it spicy! It was nice though they gave us extra rice for free as there was a lot more curry than rice. Usually most restaurants charge extra for rice.) [caption id="attachment_3441" align="aligncenter" width="625"] Chick Pea Curry ($12)[/caption] On a separate occasion, I came back with some friends and had their Chick Pea Curry. It looks a lot like the Chicken Curry, but this Chick Pea Curry is much milder and is loaded with organic chick peas. I prefer the Chicken Curry more, but if you're not too into spicy curries this a pretty good alternative. The Beef Chettinad (beef curry), is also milder than the Chicken Curry! Also, the rice that accompanies the curries are refillable! Beyond the great food and decor, I also really enjoyed the energy that the co-owners, Danila and Sonny, both bring to the restaurant. They seem really passionate about the food and customers - Danila popped by a few times to make sure that we were cool with everything and even offered to provide us with some yogurt sides in case the curry had too much heat. It's unfortunate that the space makes it hard to be noticed unless you specifically look for them, but I think their food and space will differentiate them from a lot of other Indian restaurants in Vancouver. [gmap width="400" address="shanti's curries"]
