Non-vegetarian Indian dishes — the essential order list
Butter chicken (murgh makhani) — the dish most associated with Indian cuisine internationally, and for reasonable cause: it is genuinely excellent when made properly. Tandoor-cooked chicken in a slow-reduced tomato and butter sauce. The common failure mode is a sauce that is too sweet and too thin — a properly made butter chicken has depth from reduction, not cream volume. The chicken should have char from the tandoor before going into the sauce.
Chicken tikka masala — distinct from butter chicken despite the similar appearance. The sauce is spicier and more aromatic, with a higher proportion of whole spices in the base. The chicken is marinated in yoghurt and spices before tandoor cooking. One of the most ordered Indian dishes in Toronto and worth ordering at a fine-dining Indian restaurant where the technique is applied more carefully than at a casual venue.
Rogan josh — a Kashmiri lamb curry with a distinctive deep-red colour from Kashmiri chillies (which provide colour more than heat) and a complex spice profile including fennel seed, dried ginger, and whole cardamom. One of the most technically demanding North Indian curry dishes. The lamb is typically bone-in, which contributes to the depth of the sauce. Order this when you want to evaluate a kitchen's classical technique.
Seekh kebab — minced lamb or beef mixed with onion, herbs, and spices, formed around a skewer, and cooked in the Tandoor. The texture of a well-made seekh kebab is distinct from anything in a European culinary tradition: the exterior has char and crust from the clay oven while the interior remains moist and loosely packed. Best eaten immediately — seekh kebab does not hold well.
Chicken tikka — boneless chicken marinated overnight in yoghurt and spice paste, cooked in the Tandoor. Deceptively simple; the quality difference between an overnight marination and a same-day preparation is significant in both texture and flavour depth. The benchmark for Tandoor technique at any Indian restaurant.
Biryani (chicken or lamb) — long-grain basmati rice layered with marinated meat, saffron, caramelised onions, and spices, then slow-cooked sealed (the dum method). The rice and meat cook simultaneously in their own steam, which produces a texture and flavour integration impossible to achieve by cooking them separately and combining. A kitchen that serves genuine dum biryani — rather than mixed rice and curry — is demonstrating real technique. Ask the server how the biryani is prepared.
Goan fish curry — coconut and tamarind-based fish curry from the coastal state of Goa. Completely different in character from North Indian fish preparations: sharper, sourer, and more aromatic. If it appears on a Toronto Indian restaurant menu, it indicates a kitchen covering regional range beyond the North Indian standard.
Vegan Indian dishes — what to order and what to avoid
Indian cuisine appears vegan-friendly at first glance — there are many vegetable-based dishes and no meat. The complication is dairy: ghee (clarified butter), cream, and yoghurt appear in a significant proportion of Indian dishes, including many that are vegetarian. Truly vegan Indian eating requires knowing which dishes are dairy-free by default and which require modification.
Naturally vegan dishes (no dairy in standard preparation):
Chana masala — the tomato and onion base contains no dairy. One of the most reliably vegan dishes on a North Indian menu.
Dal tadka (yellow dal) — yellow lentils tempered with oil, cumin, mustard seed, and dried chilli. Unlike dal makhani (which contains butter and cream), dal tadka is typically finished with oil rather than ghee, making it vegan-friendly at most restaurants. Confirm with the kitchen.
Aloo gobi — the dry potato and cauliflower preparation is typically cooked in oil rather than ghee. Confirm at the restaurant, as some kitchens add a ghee finishing touch.
Baingan bharta — roasted aubergine dish that is oil-based in most preparations. Confirm ghee is not used in the tempering.
Rajma — kidney bean curry in a tomato and onion sauce. A North Indian home staple that is often absent from restaurant menus but worth asking about. Naturally vegan, high in protein, and deeply flavoured.
Dishes that appear vegan but typically contain dairy:
Dal makhani — contains butter and cream. Not vegan without significant modification.
Paneer dishes — paneer is dairy. All paneer dishes are vegetarian but not vegan.
Most curry sauces described as "creamy" — cream or yoghurt is the thickening and finishing agent. Not vegan without modification.
Naan bread — contains yoghurt and sometimes butter. Roti or plain paratha made with oil rather than ghee is the vegan bread alternative. Confirm the preparation.
What to ask the server or caterer: "Does this dish contain cream, butter, or yoghurt?" and "Is the bread made with ghee?" are the two most useful questions for vegan guests at an Indian restaurant. Most fine-dining Indian kitchens can modify dishes on request — removing cream, substituting coconut milk in some preparations, or using oil instead of ghee — with advance notice.
Chaat and street food — the dishes that don't fit neatly into categories
Chaat is a category of Indian street food that operates differently from curry-based restaurant dishes. It is typically vegetarian (some preparations include meat-based fillings), assembled to order, and built on a combination of textures and contrasting flavours — sour, sweet, spicy, crunchy, and cooling simultaneously.
Pani puri (golgappa) — small hollow fried pastry shells filled with spiced water, chickpeas, and potato. Eaten whole in a single bite. The most interactive Indian food experience available — the shells must be eaten immediately after filling or the shell softens. One of the most widely eaten street foods in India and the dish most likely to be unfamiliar to first-time Indian food diners in Toronto.
Papdi chaat — crisp fried wafers (papdi) topped with yoghurt, tamarind chutney, mint chutney, chickpeas, potato, and sev (thin fried noodles). The complete version of Chaat: every component is present, the flavour contrast between sweet tamarind, cooling yoghurt, and spicy mint chutney is the defining experience of the dish. The best introduction to Chaat for first-time diners.
Bhel puri — puffed rice mixed with vegetables, tamarind chutney, and sev. Lighter than papdi chaat; more of a snack than a course. Best eaten immediately as the puffed rice softens quickly.
Dahi vada — lentil dumplings soaked in yoghurt with sweet and spicy chutneys. Softer and cooler than the other Chaat preparations; works well as a counterpoint to spicier dishes at the same meal.
Note for vegans: most Chaat preparations contain yoghurt. Confirm with the kitchen which preparations can be made without.
Best Indian Dishes to Order in Toronto — Vegetarian, Non-Vegetarian & Vegan Options
Walking into an Indian restaurant in Toronto with a 40-item menu and no frame of reference is genuinely overwhelming. The dishes span multiple regional traditions, cooking techniques, and spice profiles — and the menu descriptions rarely give you enough information to know what you're actually ordering.
This guide cuts through that by organising the best Indian dishes to order in Toronto by dietary preference. Whether you eat vegetarian, non-vegetarian, or vegan — or you're ordering for a mixed group — this list tells you what each dish actually is, why it's worth ordering, and what to expect when it arrives.
Bread and rice — completing the meal
Indian meals are built around a carbohydrate base, and the choice of bread versus rice (or both) affects the experience of the whole meal more than most diners realise.
Naan — leavened flatbread cooked in the Tandoor. The most familiar Indian bread internationally. Best eaten immediately — naan degrades in texture faster than most breads. Contains yoghurt in the dough (not vegan without modification).
Roti / chapati — unleavened whole wheat flatbread cooked on a flat griddle. Lighter than naan, lower in calories, and better suited to saucy dishes where a neutral carrier is preferable to a rich one. The everyday bread of North Indian cooking.
Laccha paratha — layered whole wheat flatbread with a flaky, multi-layered texture from repeated folding and rolling. More labour-intensive than roti; the layering creates a texture that holds together better when used to scoop a curry.
Garlic naan — naan topped with butter and garlic. The most popular bread order at Toronto Indian restaurants; worth ordering at least once to understand the baseline, then exploring the plainer roti or laccha paratha on subsequent visits.
Basmati rice — long-grain rice with a distinctive aroma, served plain as the base for curry dishes. The neutral flavour makes it a better pairing for intensely spiced sauces than naan.
Jeera rice — basmati rice tempered with cumin seeds and ghee. Slightly more flavoured than plain basmati; pairs particularly well with dal-based dishes.
How to order for a mixed dietary group
The most common ordering mistake at an Indian restaurant with a mixed group is trying to order one dish per person. Indian meals are built for sharing, and a table that orders shared dishes almost always eats better than a table where everyone orders individually.
For a mixed group of vegetarians and non-vegetarians: anchor the order around shared vegetarian dishes that everyone can eat, then add one or two non-vegetarian dishes for those who want them. A table of six ordering two vegetarian mains, one non-vegetarian main, one bread each, and a shared rice and dal produces a complete, balanced, and inclusive meal.
For a group that includes a vegan: identify the naturally vegan dishes (chana masala, dal tadka, rajma if available, oil-based dry vegetables), order those as shared table dishes, and ensure the bread order specifies roti rather than naan. A vegan guest at a well-considered table order has a full meal available without any awkwardness.
For a group where some people are unfamiliar with Indian food: start with something broadly accessible (butter chicken for non-vegetarians, paneer makhani for vegetarians) before adding more complex dishes. Ordering the most unfamiliar things on the menu for a first-time Indian food guest occasionally works but more often creates an uncomfortable experience.
Explore the Khazana menu
View the full menu across Toronto, Brampton, and Milton locations — covering North Indian fine dining, Chaat, Tandoor specialities, and regional dishes from Chef Sanjeev Kapoor's culinary portfolio. Reserve a table or order online.
Vegetarian Indian dishes — the essential order list
Indian cuisine has one of the most developed vegetarian canons of any culinary tradition in the world. These are not adapted meat dishes or afterthought sides — they are complete, technically demanding dishes that have been refined over centuries. The following are the most important vegetarian dishes to know when ordering at an Indian restaurant in Toronto.
Dal makhani — slow-cooked black lentils in a butter and cream reduction. The benchmark for this dish is an overnight cook; a kitchen that makes dal makhani properly will have started the process the previous evening. Rich, deeply savoury, and warming. Order this at any Indian restaurant in Toronto as a quality test — the difference between a well-made dal makhani and a rushed one is immediately obvious.
Paneer makhani (paneer butter masala) — Indian cottage cheese in a slow-reduced tomato and cream sauce. The same sauce base as butter chicken, making this the most accessible vegetarian dish for guests who are new to Indian food. Mild heat, rich texture, pairs naturally with naan.
Palak paneer — paneer in a spiced spinach sauce. A more complex flavour profile than paneer makhani: the spinach base is cooked down and blended, then finished with cream and spices. Slightly more bitter and aromatic than the tomato-cream dishes. Pairs best with plain roti or missi roti rather than naan.
Chana masala — chickpeas in a tangy tomato and onion sauce. One of the most widely eaten vegetarian dishes in India and among the most misrepresented in North American Indian restaurants, where it is often sweetened and made milder than it should be. A properly made chana masala has a pronounced tartness from amchur (dried mango powder) and a dark, almost caramelised sauce.
Malai kofta — soft paneer and potato dumplings in a cream and nut sauce. More elaborate than most curry dishes: the dumplings are fried before being added to the sauce, and the sauce typically includes cashew paste for richness. A special-occasion dish in most Indian homes; on a restaurant menu, it signals a kitchen willing to do more involved preparation.
Aloo gobi — potato and cauliflower cooked dry with cumin, turmeric, and coriander. A contrast to the sauce-based dishes: this is a dry preparation (sabzi) that works as a side alongside wetter curries rather than as a standalone main. Worth ordering as part of a multi-dish table.
Baingan bharta — roasted aubergine mashed and cooked with tomatoes, onions, and spices. The aubergine is charred directly over flame before being peeled and cooked — the smokiness from the char is a defining element of the dish. For guests who are open to a more rustic, complex vegetarian flavour, this is the most interesting dish on most menus.