Ottawa’s South Asian food scene is one of the city’s best-kept secrets — mostly because the best spots aren’t downtown. You have to know to drive out to Merivale, or to the plazas along Innes Road in Gloucester, or into Nepean. But when you do, you’ll find some of the most legitimately excellent South Asian cooking in Ontario.
Where the Best South Asian Restaurants Are
Merivale Road between Clyde and Viewmount is the heartland of Ottawa’s South Asian restaurant scene. Indian Bazaar is one of the most-visited spots on OttawaEats in the South Asian category. Turmeric South Indian Restaurant & Bar brings proper South Indian cooking — dosas, idli, sambar, coconut chutneys — that’s hard to find elsewhere in Ottawa.
Pakistani Food in Ottawa
Ottawa’s Pakistani restaurants — concentrated in Nepean and Gloucester — do incredible nihari, biryani, karahi dishes, and tandoor-grilled meats. Nihari Express in Orléans has built a following across the city for its weekend nihari, which is the kind of dish you drive across town for.
Sri Lankan and Other South Asian Cuisines
Sri Lankan food is woefully underrepresented in Ottawa’s restaurant scene, but the few spots doing it well are worth finding. Sri Lankan cooking is spicier and more coconut-forward than Indian food, with dishes like string hoppers, kottu roti, and devilled prawns that are unlike anything else in the city.
What to Order If You’re Exploring South Asian Food
At an Indian restaurant: start with samosas or pakora, order a butter chicken to calibrate, and try the dal. At a Pakistani spot: ask what the kitchen made fresh that day — nihari, haleem, or paya are weekend specials that sell out. For South Indian food: a masala dosa is the entry point, but the lunch thali is the best value.