/
1x
Advertisement
Proudly Canadian, obsessively Toronto. Subscribe to Toronto Life!
Food & Drink

Where O&B’s Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs

We’re going on the road with some of the city’s top chefs to explore their favourite suburban restaurants. Miheer Shete, chef de cuisine at O&B’s Café Grill, tells us what’s good in Mississauga

By Karon Liu
Copy link
Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

For Miheer Shete, great Indian food is hard to find in downtown Toronto. So when the Mumbai-born chef craves dishes from his childhood, he goes to Mississauga. After wrapping up work at Oliver and Bonacini Café Grill, Shete picked us up for a day of dosas, idlii and his favourite hangover food.

Guru Lukshmi

7070 Saint Barbara Blvd, Mississauga, 905-795-2299, gurulukshmi.com

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

“Five years ago, my wife and I came here on our second date. I told her that I hated Indian restaurants in Toronto because they weren’t authentic enough, but she told me this South Indian place was the real thing. I didn’t believe her, so we made a bet. I lost.”

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #1: Green chili masala dosa. $10.50. Tasting notes: “The crispiness is the most important thing about a good dosa—think of a great pizza crust. Even when you pour chutney on it, the dosa still stays crispy. That’s what you should look for.”

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #2: Idlii, served with coconut-ginger chutney and sambar. $5. Tasting notes: “These sponge-y cakes are made of lentils and rice that are soaked, puréed, fermented and steamed. A good idlii should be fluffy and bounce back when you poke it. Dip them in the chutney or the sambar, a spicy, tomatoey lentil soup . You can judge a dosa place based on how good their chutneys and sambars are. They should be in-your-face in terms of  flavourful spice—they shouldn’t just be hot.”

Advertisement
Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #3: Medhu vada, served with coconut-ginger chutney and sambar. $4.50. Tasting notes: “Cooks add ginger, onions and chilies to the same batter that the idlii are made with, and then deep fry it to make medhu vada, They’re like savoury, crunchy doughnuts.” $4.50.

Jalsa

2555 Erin Centre Blvd., Mississauga, 905-814-1919, jalsafastfood.com

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

“This place makes authentic Mumbai street food, so I have a real emotional connection to it.”

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu) Karon Liu

Go-to dish #1: Vada pav. $2.95. Tasting notes: “This is the staple street food in Mumbai. If you love burgers, you have to try this—it’s bread stuffed with potato fritters. As a kid, I’d eat it for breakfast. Can you imagine having this in the morning? It’s hot and spicy and it wakes you up.”

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #2: Dahi puri. $5.45. Tasting notes: “Street vendors sell dahi puri year-round at Mumbai’s beaches. They’re crispy flour shells stuffed with yogurt, potato, chickpeas and tamarind chutney. They’re awesome one-bite snacks.”

Advertisement
Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #3: Misal pav. $6.45. Tasting notes: “This dish is a mixture of everything: lentils, grains, potatoes, chickpeas and a beautiful spicy curry. You dip bread in it—like an Indian Sloppy Joe.” $6.45.

Eddie’s Wok ‘N’ Roll

6400 Millcreek Dr., Mississauga, 905-542-8613, eddieswoknroll.com

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

“Hakka Chinese food is really popular in India. It’s basically Indianized Chinese food, so, for example, noodles are mixed with garam masala. This is my kind of comfort food—it really brings me back to my childhood, because this was the first non-Indian food I tried. My in-laws get takeout from here all the time. I think it’s the best hangover food.”

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #1: Chicken chop suey. $11.95. Tasting notes: “It’s not very healthy, and I’m pretty sure there’s artificial colouring in this dish, but it tastes so good. It’s one of those things that’s so wrong but so right at the same time.”

Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #2: Chili chicken. $11.75. Tasting notes: “This is fried chicken tossed in a gravy of chilies, ginger, onion and soy sauce. It’s delicious with rice.”

Advertisement
Where O&B's Miheer Shete eats Indian food in the burbs
(Image: Karon Liu)

Go-to dish #3: Chicken chow mein. $11.95. Tasting notes: This has a lot of Indian ingredients in it including onion, ginger, garlic and green chilies. It has that charred taste you get from the wok—that smoky flavour that can’t be replicated at home.”

NEVER MISS A TORONTO LIFE STORY

Sign up for Table Talk, our free newsletter with essential food and drink stories.

By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.
You may unsubscribe at any time.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Advertisement
Advertisement

The Latest

"He's the only adult in the room": How Toronto–St. Paul's voters feel about Mark Carney's red wave
City News

“He’s the only adult in the room”: How Toronto–St. Paul’s voters feel about Mark Carney’s red wave

Inside the Latest Issue

The May issue of Toronto Life features the artists, professors, scientists and other luminaries moving north to avoid the carnage of Trump. Plus, our obsessive coverage of everything that matters now in the city.