This dosa is too big for its tray. But tastes of all these condiments fit on it. Photo by Darragh Doiron
My
sister has been talking about Frisco for years, because of her husband’s ties
to the development, construction and opening of a temple there.
I
made it to Karya Siddhi Hanuman Temple and got a quick tour. After shelving my
shoes in the outer room we padded over carpet to the end with several areas
with ornate carvings, oil lamps, flowers and colors. We left with bananas and a
flower.
Of
course I was craving Indian food after that. My sister suggested Taj, a grocery
store with a restaurant, in nearby Plano. It was a big, clean market with
exotic vegetables, fragrant spices and an array of steel containers for food
storage. I got two round ones for packing lunch.
The
restaurant featured dosas, those big flat pancakes that spill over the sides of
the plate. Once I guaranteed that one could help oneself to the condiment bar,
I was in. Now, to choose which dosa.
I
wanted to know if there was goat
or chicken, but did not want to ask. The menu boards spanned the wall. So as to
appear more continental, I asked if this was a vegetarian restaurant. I
understood the man to say “meat is over there” and he gestured with his
hand.
I
thought that meant on the far side of the menu, so I backed up, moved over and
continued to read. There were onion and paneer concoctions, but I didn’t see
any meat options and I went back to the man and told him so.
“This
is a vegetarian restaurant,” he said.
I
thought that was what I had been asking. Later my sister and I surmised
together that he could have been gesturing toward the rest of the market. Taj
online offers mixes for dishes such as chicken chettinad and butter chicken.
So
my dosa arrived crunchy and ready to dip into pickled lime, peanut chutney and
paneer. It was just what I wanted.
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