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I had to put my New York posts on hold due to the pandemic and I was waiting for the right time to write this review. The pandemic had us in quarantine and socially distancing, but now as we slowly reopen I am glad this legendary street vendor has opened up again so more people (and the usuals) get to taste his food again! Read below to learn more about this legendary vendor and what I thought of his food.
Background
This was the video I saw to find out Dosa Man, and ever since I saw that video I knew I had to go and try his food. If I am being honest, the main reason why I wanted to go to New York on this trip was to try out his food, because I know he wasn’t going to have his cart for much longer, and thank God I did. I highly recommend, watching the full video above to learn why he is so beloved and what makes people from all over the world visit his cart!
Location
His iconic street food kart (under the name NY Dosas) is located in the vibrant Washington Square Park. The exact location is 50 Washington Square S, New York, NY 10012, United States. It’s definitely a cool place to check out and spacious enough because there is pretty much a line up (moves quickly) guaranteed for the Dosa Man.
IMPORTANT: Make sure you do check his Instagram or Twitter because there are days where he is not at the park so definitely do that before you head down to the park.
Service
Usually when I talk about service in my reviews its about the staff at a restaurant but with Dosa Man it’s usually just a two-man operation. Mr. Thiru Kumar handling the cooking with someone else assisting him when needed. Nonetheless, the service was amazing because despite the long line he was really efficient yet friendly. He had two different lines and had different payment options as well. It was awesome to see that he actually knows his returning customers and their preferences.
What made this an outstanding highlight on my trip was that he was actually much more awesome in person. When going through the menu I asked him about the kottu roti (popular Sri Lankan Tamil dish) and it just sparked an incredible conversation about Sri Lanka, our villages, and more. He said talking to my family and I really made him so happy, and it certainly did the same for us.
Taste
So I know this is probably the part of this review you are most keen on reading, and rightfully so. If I am being honest, I am confused about how his food was healthy yet delicious, and vegan at the same time. In my experiences, having all three of those things being great is hard to come by. I am not being biased at all, you can ask any of the other customers and they’ll agree. These are common South Asian meals that he makes with efficiency and skill by having the perfect balance of ingredients and flavours resulting in something that is not excessively oily, fatty, or spicy which is commonly seen with these dishes.
We tried a couple of different things off the menu, obviously some of the items were not available but we are satisfied that we were able to try these items that you would probably want to try as well. The items were the Masala Dosa, Special Pondicherry, Jaffna Lunch, Hand Grilled Veggie Rotis, and a Samosa.
First things first, that was the best samosa I ever had in my life. It tasted phenomenal, had a great balance of spice, flavour, and texture. When it comes to food I do appreciate authenticity, uniqueness, and delicious balance of flavour and texture. Although it was pretty consistent throughout the dosas, my favorite meal has to be the Pondicherry. I truly didn’t expect to like his food as much as I did, it was definitely a pleasant surprise. I really like the different veggies, and texture of the dosa (it had the right amount of flakiness that made it easy to eat). It was easy to eat and tasted great. I would say the Jaffna special is not for everyone, especially those who are not accustomed to spicy food, like Ben from Never Have I Ever. Remember, this is dried chutney so it is different from the others. The masala dosa was solid and the chutney does add more flavour to it so I would recommend it but if you really don’t want to, it will still taste good either way. I would definitely recommend trying it out for yourself, and I would love to go again and try the other items but the items I will for sure order again would be the Pondicherry dosa along with some samosas and veggie rotis.
Price
I do believe the price is affordable, and you definitely get your money’s worth. One thing I hate about trying popular places is that often it is not filling, especially for the price you pay. Thankfully, Dosa Man is known for his affordable pricing which is why so many college students actually buy from him. If you were to compare it to prices in Markham or Scarborough, who have quite a few restaurants that sell similar items for only a few dollars less but does not nearly taste as good.
Would I go again?
The answer is absolutely yes! Not only was the food great, it really filled us all up and was affordable. On top of that, Mr. Thiru Kumar aka Dosa Man was awesome not just to us but everyone. Although it is just him and his cart, he provides such a positive atmosphere along with delicious food which is why people constantly come back and come from far just to eat his food. I hope once everything gets better I would be able to eat his food again, and I hope so do you wherever you are reading this. Nonetheless, I am happy he’s back in the park and still making this awesome food and memories for more people to enjoy!
Please feel free to comment on what you think of his food or share your stories below, and please follow the blog via email and if you liked this post then share it with your friends and family. Your support is appreciated!
NY’s Dosa Man -Reigns The Hearts Of Dosa Lovers’ World Over
www.kethuwa.com
It certainly takes a lot to make men and women wait long ques, just to pick a meal. One might say, its Vegan and vegans are not left with much choice, well, you are most certainly mistaken. This que is not only because of the vegan appetite, but simply because of an immigrant and his cart and his famous dosas and samosas.
The New York’s “Dosa Man”, from a motorcycle racer in the ‘pearl of the Indian ocean’, Sri Lanka, here he is feeding New Yorkers, in a Dosa cart. Not only New Yorkers, but folks from around the world, even tourists can be found fidgeting with their fingers with a plate or box from the Dosa cart. Hardly any without licking their finger that are covered with the Sambar (gravy).
For the past two decades, he had been churning dosas to please long ques of men and women, white, black, tan and from all parts of the world.
Leaving his motherland after winning the US green card, he settles in New York to work as a cook trying to make ends meet, and here he is now, people waiting in endless ques to taste the crispy tasty unique Dosas.
It is admirable, that even after years of visiting his cart, he would still ask your “your usual’ before you even think of placing an order. Thirukumar Kandasamy greets all his customers with a hospitable smile, and anyone would return to that smile and a mouth-watering Indian meal. Hailing from Jaffna, he has started small but grown big, with truly little changes around him, like his cart. Thirukumar gained the nick name ‘Dosa Man’, not only because he runs a vegan street food stall that serves Dosa but because he greets his customers with a friendly smile and because his food is delicious.
Thiru learned to cook from his grandmother. After moving to New York, he worked multiple jobs, including at a restaurant, which helped improve his cooking skills. “Slowly, slowly you learn,” he was quoted saying to ‘The News Minute”.
Since 2001, this smile and his cordial gestures has added to his growing popularity. His small unmistakable cart in in New York has become a crowd puller and there are stories of people who have walked up to him even after years, and some right after hoping down from their flight back to the; ‘big apple’.
In 2007, he won the coveted Vendy Award (Vendy awards are considered the Oscars for street vendors), New York’s annual competition for the Best Street Food Vendor. Not only that, Thirukumar proudly boasts that he is listed in 42 travel guides of the world. Isn’t that great? Which again explains why people holding either a financial times newspaper, or a travel guide idling around the part in search of Dosa man and instead finds a people lined up next to a cart, not the cart alone and that would be none other than Thirukumar Kandasamy, the man with the mustache selling South Indian Dosa’s.
Out of the many “weird” food item sold at this cart, the Pondicherry Dosa is the item that brought luck to Thirukumar. He admits that most of the food in his cart are ‘weird”.
His signature dish, the one he won his award for, is the Pondicherry Dosa, whose stuffing of spiced potatoes and salad greens may be an odd combination for the Indian palate but remains the cart’s best seller.
He recalls the times when things were tough for him at the beginning of sales in 2001. He had to go on explaining to every customer what a Dosa is, what it is made of, so on and so forth., but as he recalls again, it was worth the effort. His efforts have made him a feature vendor of the Washington square as he has appeared in many magazines and even TV shows. Just type Dosa man, and you would see a pleasant man and long lines of men and women waiting to devour a tasty crepe from the south Asian region.
Thriukumar is indeed a great racer as he had been during his life in the Northern peninsula of Sri Lanka, he has raced his way into the hearts and tastebuds of the international community with his street cart and has made his way into travel magazines for the world to know the taste of these South Indian dishes made by him.
Commonly known Thiru, he comes to the Washington square without fail, as he knows there would be many waiting for their Dosa dose. Even during this pandemic, Thiru has not failed to take necessary safety measure to set foot and wheels into the park to treat his clients. With updates of whether he is in or out of the square, Thiru continues his legacy as the NY Dosa man, with his famous and award-winning Pondicherry Dosa, this dish, has now entered several cookbooks too, but I wonder whether it’s good as what Thiru serves.
However, do not miss to spot the cart that sells tasty and weird dosas next time you are in the square, and if you ever wish to visit New York, try this delicacy made by the delicate hands of Kandaswamy Thirukumar.