ASHA (INDIA) ★★★★

3490 Ave du Parc, Montreal QC H2X 2H5

514-884-3178

www.restoasha.com

Library and Archives Canada shows that Indian people began immigrating to Canada in the 1800's and have been doing so ever since. Asha seems like a very traditional place that serves amazing authentic foods. What I've learned through doing these blog posts so far, is that some of the best foods can be found in the smaller, unknown restaurants.

MENU

Asha's menu is completely halal and it has a huge range of dishes to choose from. Their appetizers range from soups to meats, to samosas and onion bahji. They also offer a mixed appetizer plate for 8.99$ which provides the opportunity to taste a little bit of everything. Their main meals menu is separated by meats (chicken, beef, lamb, fish/shrimp) and vegetables. Lastly, there is the tandoori section which you can skip right to if you want tandoori anything! They then offer combination dishes for 1 and 2 people. Finally, they have side dishes and desserts for 2.99$!

PAPPADUM

Pappadum was a hard, crunchy chip that simply used only fennel as its seasoning. It had a very strong flavor and I felt that it was a great way to start off a meal without getting too full ( as you would if you were presented bread buns before a meal)

APPETIZER

As our appetizer, we ordered onion bahji, which had a crispy outside and very soft inside. The inside almost seemed as soft as mashed potatoes although it was made of onions. It had a strong onion flavor and was slightly sweet. The onion Bahji was paired with a sauce that was cold and sweet. I feel the fact that the sauce was cold made the warm onion bahji flavor stand out even more. The whole experience kind of reminded me of eating Italian rice balls, which are also breaded and have a soft inside.

ONION BAHJI

MEAL #1 LAMB TIKKA

We order to Lamb Tikka as one of our four main dishes. The lamb itself was very soft and tender. It was easily chewed and the flavor immediately ​​ poured into your mouth. I would say that the overall it was really good and even though lamb isn't my favorite meat, I was able to enjoy it very easily.

RICE

The yellow rice came with every meal. It was served underneath the meat as one of the side dishes alongside the salad. The rice was served with peas that were very soft. I don't particularly like peas but I really enjoyed them in this dish, as the seasoning in the rice was able to mask a strong pea flavor. Once again, pepper seems to be used in the seasoning of the rice as well as other spices. Altogether it made a really good dish to pair with all the meats that we were served and added a little bit more flavor to the entire plate.

SALAD

The salads that I am getting all these restaurants seem to be used as a way to balance out the other flavors of the meal. What I mean by this is that they're all very clean with the light dressing so that they don't overpower the rest of the meal. This one, in particular, had lettuce, cucumbers and carrot shreds. It had a very light dressing that, at first, I didn't even notice it. But I felt it was a great way to balance out the spiciness of the rest of the meal.

MEAL #2 CHICKEN TIKKA

As well as the lamb Tikka, we also got the Chicken Tikka. They both seem to have the same kind of flavor, and the chicken tikka had the same tenderness as the lamb. It was sweet, kind of hot and spicy but also a little dry, though it didn't leave your mouth feeling pasty. I don't think that was too much of a problem. Along with the rice and salad, it all paired very well together and balanced out the slight dryness of the chicken.

MEAL #3 BUTTER CHICKEN

Butter chicken has got to be one of my favorite Indian dishes although I've heard from my dad after he had traveled to India that it isn't actually as popular as it is in the western world. As the name implies the dish was very buttery and the chicken itself was super tender and melted in your mouth. The meal paired very well with the Nann bread. The bread seemed to be homemade, it was warm and not too oily. I used it with every meal. As well as being buttery, the chicken was also sweet which provided a little bit of a different flavor from all the spiciness of the other dishes. It was kind of a break from the spiciness. Don't get me wrong though, the spicy dishes were also amazing.

MEAL #4 TANDOORI CHICKEN

Last but definitely not least we ordered the Tandoori chicken. This seemed to be a simple chicken that had been marinated and either grilled or left in the oven. It was very well marinated as it was very easily pulled apart. It just disappeared in your mouth, so amazing and so juicy that your mouth filled with the flavor that had been infused into it. Though it was somehow not overpowering. Overall out of all the meats that I had tasted I definitely recommend this one the most as it wasn't too overpowering in spiciness that it definitely seemed that you got the most for your money with the dish. If I'm correct I think you get a half chicken but definitely more than chicken breast.

OVERALL

Overall, this restaurant had loads of different meat and vegetarian options to choose from therefore I believe that its a place you can take family and friends. From the bit I was able to taste, each dish has its own set of unique spices which gives each plate its own distinct flavor. I highly highly recommend Asha!