Since its opening five years ago on the Plateau Mont-Royal, the India Rosa has been a huge success! How to explain this success which does not seem to be denied, when a second address has just opened in Griffintown?
“We put forward the authentic flavors of India, without changing the tastes, but by adding the bar side, the atmosphere. We wanted to show people that Indian cuisine can also be enjoyed in a modern restaurant and a contemporary setting, we wanted to develop Indian restaurants in Montreal,” replies Goppy Sandhu, co-owner.
The Sandhu family has been in the restaurant business since the 90s, when Ajmer Sandhu, patriarch, opened the Sandhu, an Italian restaurant, in Hochelaga. Established since 1993 on Papineau, it was not until 2011 that the restaurant expanded and began to offer an Indian menu to its customers.
For the family, the India Rosa was the next logical step, a way to introduce their vision of Indian cuisine. Here, everything is homemade, right down to the naan bread in traditional tandoor ovens. And the menu goes beyond the clichés: “People know a lot about North Indian cuisine, butter chicken and sauces… But Indian cuisine isn’t just that! Thanks to a larger kitchen, we will be able to work much more in Griffintown on seafood, whole fish as they are served in southern India,” explains the restaurateur. The India Rosa is also renowned for its extensive menu of fifty colorful and exotic cocktails, with its homemade syrups and spices: saffron, cardamom, masala chai…
At the new address, installed on the ground floor of the new MaryRobert residential tower project (which has 450 high-end condominiums), the India Rosa Griffintonw benefits from a spacious 150-seat space. Tania Perreault (Mélisse, Hidden Fish, aPero bar) signs the design of the place, contemporary, but with an exotic and vegetal touch which makes the place very warm. For now, the new space is closed on Mondays, but eventually it will be open every lunchtime and evening, with brunch as a bonus served on weekends.
1050 Wellington Street, Montreal