Linda Falkenstein
The dosa at Kutty Leaf.
The dosa cannot be contained on one tray.
The number of restaurants starring south Indian cuisine is growing in Madison — there are at least three: Rajni, near Woodman’s-West; Thalaivas in Middleton; and most recently Kutty Leaf, in the far-east area near American Family headquarters off Highway 151 outside of Sun Prairie.
Obey your map program’s directions for this one, because Kutty Leaf is almost hidden in a tiny, hard-to-see strip mall between Erin’s Snug Irish Pub and a Kwik Trip. The restaurant is plain — there’s a bit of a flourish with wooden doors, but the interior lacks any kind of atmosphere or decor. There are enough tables to make it seem like you’re welcome to sit down, and despite its lunchroom vibe I do, actually, recommend eating in. Because Kutty Leaf’s best dishes are those you don’t want getting soggy or cold on the drive home. I mean in particular the restaurant’s hot, crispy-around-the-edges dosa. The crepelike wrap is arguably the heart of south Indian food, and should be eaten right out of the kitchen. Plus, there usually are a number of dishes hand-written onto the whiteboard menu in the entry foyer not available through the online ordering platform.
Appetizers include the familiar samosa and pakora, but branch out to street food snacks. There are, for instance, both plantain and mirchi bajji — fried fritters of plantain and green chilis, respectively. I enjoyed the Paneer 65, cubes of the mild Indian cheese tossed in Indian spices and fried like a cheese curd — spicy but bland at the same time. Cauliflower 65 — yes, it’s the same dish, except with cauliflower — might be my pick if choosing one or the other, as the treatment brings out the sweet notes of the vegetable.
I’d forego both, though, in favor of the terrific Indo-Chinese dish cauliflower manchurian, battered cauliflower florets fried crunchy and served with red onions and a sweetish-soyish sauce. This is one not to let go mushy in a takeout order. It’s not something I would ordinarily order, but a recent Isthmus feature praising the similar dish gobi lasooni prompted me to change my appetizer ways. Turns out, cauliflower manchurian has single-handedly converted me to Indo-Chinese combos.
Medu vada, cute, plump fried lentil-flour doughnuts that come with a tray of four chutneys, are less successful, in part because the dough is somewhat bitter, and there’s a lot of it. If you’re going to be eating something bready that comes with four chutneys, make it one of many dosas on the menu.
Linda Falkenstein
The kottu parotha at Kutty Leaf.
Kottu parotha is for the savory stuffing lover.
Dosa! If you have eaten dosa only from a warming tray at an Indian restaurant’s noon buffet, do yourself a favor and order one off the menu so it arrives hot off the griddle. Here, the dosas most resemble — well, some of them are so large they resemble kites. The fermented rice and lentil batter is fried crispy — the crispier, the better — and the dish is really about the tangy pancake picking up the flavors of the chutneys: tomato onion, cilantro, coconut and sambar. The southern-style tomato onion chutney is much thinner than what’s normally served at Madison’s northern Indian restaurants — there are few visible chunks of either tomato or onion. My favorite is the sambar, technically not a chutney but a brothy lentil stew, spicy and tart. Dosas come in a few variations — topped with egg, or onion, or ghee — but it’s the masala dosa, with a scoop of potato masala, that won me over. The spicy mashed potato mix is similar to the stuffing of a potato samosa and Kutty Leaf’s is beautifully heavy on the cilantro and dotted with lentils.
Kutty Leaf also serves set dosa, a thicker pancake where the fermented taste comes through more; it reminded me of African injera right down to the bubbly, spongy texture. The set dosa comes with a chicken curry that’s garam masala-forward, heavy on the cloves, spicy hot, and on that level quite satisfying; it is, however, mostly without chicken.
Another discovery: kottu parotha, more or less an Indian savory bread pudding, or a stuffing with toppings, or a bread hash. The familiar Indian bread parotha is shredded and mixed with korma curry and other add-ons — paneer, egg, chicken or vegetables. A whole bowl of it can be a little monotonous, but it’s delicious, so I’m not sure that’s a huge problem. Do you shrug at turkey but load up with a plate of dressing on Thanksgiving? You are going to love kottu parotha.
Kutty Leaf also serves more Indo-Chinese dishes, south Indian breads, curries, and biryani. There are many vegetarian and vegan options and vegan dishes are clearly marked. Note, the restaurant is open for lunch and then closes at 2:30 p.m. before reopening for dinner.
Kutty Leaf
5538 Eastpark Blvd.
608-608-3094; kuttyleaf.com
$5-$18
