Monthly Archives: April 2023

Totally biased product review by me — Roti Palace of India

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The portion was actually 30% bigger than this but we started to eat before we remembered to take a photo

We did a search back in the Brits in Toronto archives and can’t believe there isn’t a review of Roti Palace of India (3321 Bloor Street West = Islington/Bloor) as it’s been a west end neighbourhood staple for years. So let’s rectify that.

We’ve tried quite a few dishes from there previously, namely the Eggplant & Potato, Chicken Tikka Masala and Lamb Chettinad — all very good — but the one we love (and shown in the photo) is the ubiquitous Chicken Vindaloo … so got that again.

This is definitely a fave as it’s one of the hottest vindaloos we can find in the area, very similar to the heat levels of the one at Tadka Sizzling Indian Spices.

One of the aspects that make it so tasty is that the curry sauce is really nice and thick. You can just spoon it like a rich soup as part of the experience. Yum!

The chicken is not dry at all and — to us, anyway — the recipe seems very simple and unfussy. It’s just nice, hefty chunks of chicken in a really flavourful and spicy sauce, perfect for spring-cleaning those sinuses.

For bonus points the Raita is very creamy too with good onion slices in there to give your palate a break if needed.

Always reliable and tasty, we give Roti Palace of India a solid Brits in Toronto 4/5 stars.

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Totally biased product review by me — Panera Bread Chicken Tikka Masala Soup

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The bowl was big so the portion looks small

It’s kind of rare to find a curry-flavoured soup around Toronto so our hearts skipped a beat as we stumbled across a NEW offering on the Panera Bread (various locations) menu: Chicken Tikka Masala Soup. We had to have it. Just had to.

First impressions were that it was a generous portion size for the price. Some soups on sandwich chains’ menus are often an afterthought and smallish, but this one makes a good lunch option.

We dug in. It was nice and thick, almost like a curry sauce in itself, with quite a bit of rice too … although that seemed a little crunchy and al dente. Lentils was the other main ingredient it seemed, which balanced out the texture, and think we spotted some pepper too, but couldn’t be sure.

Taste? It was OK and filled a gap. Definitely not British spicy so add a few drops of your own hot sauce if so inclined, but we wanted to sample it as it came.

It’s not really a Chicken Tikka Masala vibe, more like a general curry flavour. The closest we could compare this soup to is Heinz Mulligatawny, so if you’re craving and missing that, this might suffice in a pinch.

So, all in all, we give this soup a Brits in Toronto 2/5 stars.