Masala-less-Dosa

Tuesday evenings are known for a local Indian restaurants Masala dosa specials for $1.99. Known by the name of a commonly used hot Indian chilli, the restaurant flaunts its “All-India” menu with local delicacies from all parts of India – whether it is a Mughlai dish, the idli-sambar, Hyderabadi biryani or the “Indian Chinese” food – all packed into a ledger sized menu that has a newbie to Indian food totally clueless. But nobody seems to be looking at the menu tonight. By 6:00 pm the place starts to pack up with Indians from all parts of India commonly united by the Masala-dosa. Everyone seems to know what it is – even the newbies. You really need to come early for this special, for the very first dosa you order probably has the ‘most’ masala (potato based vegetable filling) visible outside the dosa. You asked for it and you got it – now you stuff it! This is ridiculous – a masala dosa is supposed to be already made with filling in it – for those who know what it is. But we are not so lucky here. At least the sambar (stew like dish) and two chutneys that come with it supplement the lack of ‘masala’. By the time you start to eat your dosa it is cold. But the taste is not so bad – the best we can get in this town. You better be ready to order your second one the next time you see the server – for it might be the last time you see him/her. They get so busy that they don’t really care if you want any more dosas. They feel like they have done their duty after serving the first dosa. Now if you ask for one more, then they get stingy on the masala. Gosh it almost seems like the server eats half of it by the time it reaches your table – or it is probably being saved for the rest of the crowd. After your second one, you realize that it is not only you but everyone else around you is getting plates of the ‘new and improved’ almost masala-less-dosa! They say “you snooze, you loose” – for whatever reason this restaurant has carved out their own adaptation of this phrase on their walls on this auspicious Masala-less-Dosa day! Just be sure to get there early!