Udipe Cafe***

Comforting, enticing Indian finds a home in Sunrise.

Udipe Restaurant a vegetiarian South Indian Restaurant.Owner Santosh Shetty, holds a lentil and rice crepe (Madhuri Masala Dosai). Photo: Joe Rimkus Jr.

By Rochelle Koff

Owner Santosh Shetty oversees a bustling Sunrise outpost named after his Southern Indian birthplace. Shetty, who has operated restaurants in such disparate spots as Nairobi and Kansas City, and his staff transform humble ingredients like rice, lentils, chickpeas and nuts into wonderful stews, fritters, curries and crepes. Udipe doesn't serve alcohol or meat, but even carnivores will find much to like: heavenly breads, deeply flavored sauces and aromatic spices.
The extensive menu covers a lot of territory with Indian-style Chinese and Indian-American “pizza,” but these are not your nonna's tomato pies. The thick pancakes or uthappam are topped with chiles and tofu plus sambar ... a lentil vegetable soup ... and chutney on the side. To feast, and try more of the menu, get the lunch buffet, with about 20 dishes on weekdays and more than 40 on weekends for under $10. With inexpensive prices, you can afford to be daring.

Ambiance
Udipe is easily missed in a typical strip plaza on University Drive, a modest storefront decorated with Indian pictures and lined with lots of large, comfy booths. Servers are accommodating and genuinely pleased when you like their recommendations.

What Worked

“Mumbai Ka Street Food'' ... bhel puri, a delicious jumble of puffed rice, onions and tomatoes enhanced by a sweet-spicy chutney
A starter of plump steamed rice and lentil patties served with sambar and chutney
Udipe's soul-satisfying paneer tikka masala. The Indian curry melds onions, bell peppers and chunks of homemade cheese in a tomatoey gravy flavored with a blend of seasonings that make your tongue tingle.
Rasam: ginger, garlic, tomato, cumin and coriander seeds with tamarind sauce
Dal: stewed lentils sambar
Sweet, milky payasum with tapioca, vermicelli and lentils

Desserts
Soothe your palate with a cool mango lassi, India's famed yogurt mango drink, or masala hot tea. Before you leave, savor treats like gulab jamun, deep-fried, cheese balls with rosewater and soaked in syrup, or falooda, with condensed milk and vermicelli finished off with raspberry syrup and rose ice cream. Like Udipe, they're addictive.

Udipe Café: 2100 N. University Dr., Sunrise; 954-748-5660; Hours: 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5:30-10 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. Prices: Buffet $8.48 weekdays, $9.95 weekends; appetizers $4.25-$9.95, dosais $5.75-$7.50, entrees $8.95-$13.50, breads $2.50-$3.95, desserts $2.95-$3.75.

FYI: Free parking lot. MS, VS.