What’s on the menu at My Roti Place, a new build-your-own roti restaurant on Queen West
Name: My Roti Place
Contact: 406 Queen St. W., 416-366-5554, myrotiplace.com, @myrotiplace
Neighbourhood: Queen West
Previously: The Saigon Hustle
Owners: Dhiraj Tiwari, Karthik Kumar, Vivek Deora
Chef: Karthik Kumar (Fifth Element, Indian Roti House)
The food
A menu of build-your-own roti where the choice starts with the flatbread. Diners choose between traditional white flour, multi-grain and turmeric roti breads, all of which are made in house. They then choose a protein (lamb, chicken, tofu, paneer, fish) and the sauce (korma, “mom’s curry,” vindaloo, mango, saag). Finally, customers choose a desired spice level, the hottest of which the menu refers to as “stupid.” The menu also includes some classic favourites (biryani, samosas), as well as some culinary mashups like butter chicken poutine.
Next month, Kumar will be launching his Agni Challenge. This fiery proposition (agni means fire in Hindi) will pit diners against some seriously spicy roti. Ingredients used in the special agni sauce include Thai red chilies, Jamaican scotch bonnet peppers, white and red chili powder, black pepper powder, Kashmiri mirch powder, habanero peppers, smoked chipotle peppers, Korean chili paste and paprika. If you manage to finish your Scoville-packed roti in one sitting, the meal’s on the house.
The drinks
The unlicensed joint sells pop, as well as tropical juice (mango and guava) and mango lassi.
The space
The 16-seat counter service joint has been done up in bold colours: black and yellow with pops of orange, red and green.
Caroline Aksich, a National Magazine Award recipient, is an ex-Montrealer who writes about Toronto’s ever-evolving food scene, real estate and culture for Toronto Life, Fodor’s, Designlines, Canadian Business, Glory Media and Post City. Her work ranges from features on octopus-hunting in the Adriatic to celebrity profiles.
