Khau Gully — Restaurant in Toronto

My wife, sister and I were in Toronto doing touristy things. We just finished our walk through the Toronto Zoo and Ripley's aquarium. We were tired and we were hungry. Very hungry. Craving for Indian food we decided to get away from all the restaurants at Union Station, get on the subway and off at Davisville.

Best Decision Ever!

Atmosphere (4/5): The place looks trendy, upon entrance we were greeted immediately, and seated in another few minutes. The place and the furniture looked new with ample ambient lighting. I didn't give it a 5/5 on decor simply because my rear would have been better on a cushion seat rather than on a steel chair after 3 days of walking around the city.

Food: (5/5) - 5 stars doesn't do justice. Starters: Mutton seekh kabab (5/5): As I said, we were hungry. HUNGRY. This is the first item that we got. devoured in minutes. Not only the dish was authentic, it could give a run for their money to most restaurants in New Delhi. The kabab just melts in your mouth. It comes with the green chutney (mint). Fresh. I grew up in Delhi, munching on the variety of food there. I have spent 5 years in US. I think I can tell if the ingredients were fresh or not. Not only was the quality amazing, the quantity was good too. Worth the money.

Main Course Awadhi Sabzi (5/5): Mixed vegetables cooked perfectly. Severed in a cute little handi. The dish had texture and you could tell the distinct spices.

Lagan Ka Murg (4/5): I went with this dish over butter chicken, because everyone makes butter chicken. I wanted something new. The chicken was very tender, melts in your mouth. The spices were flavorful. The onion and cashew base in the gravy is a winning combination. I couldn't taste the saffron though. Must be because I was so hungry, I preferred gulping down food rather than chewing.

Dawat-e-Murg (5/5): This dish was a masterpiece. Words cannot describe it and 5 stars or points cannot do justice. This dish probes your senses, it's aromatic, it has a unique texture, it's flavorful and it's how Indian food is supposed to be. I would go out on a limb and say this touches your soul. There has been a total of 5 restaurants in India, Lithuania, US, and now Canada where I have left a separate tip as a token of appreciation to the chef. This was the 5th one. This dish doesn't only gives Indian restaurants in India / US / Canada a run for their money, but it puts Khau Gully firmly in front and in a class of it's own.

Desert Kesar Malai Firni (4/5): I am a Bengali, cannot go without ending my Indian food with Indian sweet dish. This is served in a near authentic clay pot (kullardh).

Sides Sweet Lassi (5/5): Again masterful, and not watered down to increase profits like many Indian restaurants do.

Onion Salad (4/5): While having Indian food, especially mutton/chicken it's common practice in India to order sliced red onions, lime, green chilies and dried mango powder (amchur) depending on your region. The waiter said that they don't have red onions but white onions. I am glad that the white onion had the fizz that go up your nostril and make you cry a little.

Service (5/5): The restaurant did an excellent job in service. The waiters were courteous, and from the same area in New Delhi where I used to live. The owner - Abhishek comes around to every table and engages Khau Gully's guests in meaningful conversation. It's always good to see that the owner not only knows his or her stuff, but also takes a keen interest in getting feedback from customers.

One negative (if you could call it that), was that I was charged $2.50 for slices of onion. Now I paid over $100 for the dinner bill, 20% as a tip for service, and an additional $20 for the chef, but that $2.50 charge for onions - I believe shouldn't be there, and the onions should be free. As it is customary in India.

Overall, this restaurant is a force to reckon with. Forget Brampton, Mississauga, Scarborough, even New Delhi restaurants. Take the trip to Khau Gully, you will remember it. We will be back again in 2 weeks to try some of the other dishes...

Khau Gully- or Eating street has become my new go to Indian restaurant. Located a mere 5 minute walk from Davisville station, the resto-bar has an extensive menu that keeps you coming back to try something new. Upon entering you're entranced by the colourful and detailed mural by Valdengrave Okumu depicting the street food culture in India. As soon as we were seated (we specifically asked to be seated in front of the mural for the perfect instagram shot), our server gave us our menu and even took the time to explain THE ENTIRE menu to us. While we were overwhelmed with the variety of choices , we skipped the appetizers and went for 1 item under the Koyale Ke Kaan Se portion where the dishes are made in the clay pot, 1 vegetarian item from the mains and of course a vegetarian dum biryani that was slow cooked and covered by a naan to retain the flavour.

We started our meal with the"Murg Siya Mirch" and we were not disappointed. The chicken dish was well marinated, soft and juicy. The accompanying tamarind and mint chutney added to the flavour if you're craving something spicier.

Paneer-E-Khaas is a paneer and spinach gravy dish, however the spin is that the paneer is cut into squares and stuffed with carrot and red pepper- a dish ideal for those who want a low calorie cheat day treat minus the butter naan of course.

The dum biryani was the highlight our meal. As soon as it was served, the server opened it up for us and gave us the warning that the naan is not edible. The biryani was flavoured well with the right amount spices, leaving us hungry for more.

Overall, I had a wonderful experience and will definitely be coming back to try the tofu bhurjee, mutton seekh kebab, bharwaan paneer and the gulab jamun cheescake.

My ratings for 'Khau Gully' On Ambiance- 5/5 I loved the mood set by the acoustic Bollywood tunes playing in the back as well as the On Aesthetics- 5/5 If you want 'gram worthy shots that show off your Desi pride, this would be the right place to go. On Appetite - 5/5 The flavourful meal left me...

Food is good but customer service is average at it's highs and terrible at it's lows. Having just left 5 minutes ago, the experience is still fresh in my mind. I ended up paying the majority of the bill for the table in order to help with a complex bill splitting situation. After my payment had already been accepted and processed, and the rest of the table had paid their individual portions of the bill, they stopped our group on the way out because apparently they don't know how to read the results of a debit machine, subletly suggesting that my payment didn't go through when the debit machine clearly stated otherwise. It was not a good feeling

I ended up bringing up my bank statement in order to prove to them the payment had completely successfully because I felt like I had no other choice. How dare they try to tell me I'm not free to leave after paying my bill. What kind of restaurant goes to check their internal system after the debit machine successfully accepts your payment, and states so on the machine?? It completely soured the whole experience

Not only that, they were slow to take our orders, brought out the curries 5 minutes before the rice, and were very slow to getting us cashed out. Probably would come back again if friends wanted to, but would not recommend personally

Edit: I'd like to respond to the owner's comment below. Maybe if you guys were actually paying attention while we were paying our bills instead of disappearing for 5 minutes between each person's payment, you wouldn't have had to go check your internal systems to verify anything. From first bill payment, the whole process took almost 20 minutes for you guys to cash us out. Being well intentioned doesn't change the outcome of your actions, or how it affects the overall experience....