Dolan – Handmade Uyghur Cuisine

Family owned restaurant looks nice and friendly. The food tastes as same as what I used to eat. The big plate spicy chicken is strongly recommended. Also, the lamb here is cooked nice too.

This place is the real deal. I’ve eaten lots of Uyghur food in China and this is the best you are going to get in North America. The lamb Kabobs are off the hook. The rice/​lamb/​carrot dish is great, as is are the noodles. Can’t wait to go back!

Enjoyed my meal, but agree with others. It’s a very family run restaurant, food took a bit of time. The meat pie was reheated (but tasty!). The noodles were very good, but for me the highlight was the lamb kabobs. They were marinated to perfection and talk about tender! Kabobs were a little on the small side, so I’d just order more! I would go back for those on their own.

I will say that I did enjoy my experience at Dolan. I always love trying new foods.
This is a family owned restaurant and they are very genuine and friendly.
If you go, please note, the service is extremely slow. Extremely slow.
For dinner, we had Lagman — This is a mixture of hand pulled noodles, lamb, peppers, onions, and various spices. This dish tasted just like my Italian sausage, peppers and onion recipe. The taste was good, but I did not expect it to taste like Italian.
We also had lamb and chicken kabobs. Predominantly, cumin flavor. They probably would have been good, although they were extremely overcooked and dry.
Next, we had the lamb soup. This was very good.
After all this food, my son was still hungry, so I ordered the stir-​fried noodles for him.
Instead, they bring out another Lagman. O.K. Not a big deal. Good for us — They only charged us for the noodle stir fry
What this restaurant needs on their menu is drinks, appetizers and desserts. This is where a restaurant really makes its money.
I read an article, where they want to show the hand-​pulled-​noodles. Unfortunately, the city said that it had to be in the kitchen, only. So, I say, why not show the noodle pulling but behind glass ?
Was it worth a 70 mile (110 Km) round trip, $ 10 in bridge fares, and a $ 53 meal bill. Sorry to say, No.
I really believe that this restaurant has great potential.
When it reaches its potential, I will be more than happy to return.

The hand pulled noodles are great and if I am correct, no other restaurants in Windsor offer hand pulled noodles. The rice is also nice, called Polov. It is Uyghur people’s banquet food, They serve Polov in weddings and festival celebrations. I am a bit disappointed with their Kabobs, they are kind of bland compare to those from Lebanese and Iraqi restaurants

Ok so I went in there with a friend and upon entering we were politely greeted by, I’m assuming, the owner. The place felt and looked really clean. After sitting we were given menus and asked what we would like to drink.
Now for the menu, there’s no appetizers or dessert. I think about 12 different items, ranging from some noodle/​rice dishes and kabobs. But that’s about it. No salad? No soups? No dessert? No traditional beverages or drinks? Kind of disappointing. Ill give it to them, that the menu has pictures… which is nice when ur ordering food that one is not familiar with. Anyways, we decided to order the Dolan Special Lagman. It’s the dish with their famous handmade noodles, some lamb kabobs and chicken kabobs.
While waiting the owner brought us some bread (that was cold and it was half cut) and this slaw. It was pretty good though, so I can’t complain. She also brought out my tea, but it was in a glass cup… umm it was kind of awkward to drink cuz it was too hot and not an appropriate cup for tea. It was the same kind of cup they used for the water. No mug or coffee cup? Also, she brought out 2 mini plate, 2 forks and 1 butter knife… and then politely told us that one knife should be enough.
The main dish and the kabobs came out, which didn’t take very long. The food was hot when it arrived, but the plates were ice cold and so the food got cold quick. The noodle dish was good and spicy, but a little greasy though. The noodle dish is actually one whole noodle… I forget how many feet the gentlemen said the noodles were. You will definitely need a knife to cut it up. The kabobs were pretty delicious, flavorful, juicy and spicy.
The owners seems like genuinely nice people, but I don’t think they understand the etiquettes of dining out… like checking up on the customer a few minutes after you bring out their meal, or providing each person with their own utensils and not telling them that it’s ok they can share a butter knife… especially when their dish requires a knife each. There are small things they need to work on, like not putting food on ice cold plates, or serving hot tea in a glass cup.
Would I go back? Yes, but not anytime soon. Maybe in 6 months or so.
I hope the owners read this!

I understand why my friends highly recommended this place.
The food was, in a word, fabulous! A type of cuisine that simply MUST be experienced.
The décor is warm, inviting, and the service was down-​to-​earth. I felt welcome, comfortable and ‘at home’ as soon as I stepped in the door.
I will definitely be back!

What do we know about Uyghur people and their food? All I know is that they are a Turkic ethnic group that comes from Eastern and Central Asia, but most of us know very little about them.
As described by the proud owner of Dolan, Uyghur cuisine and culture dates back before the days of Genghis Khan, and this gentleman educated me on historical facts about their food and culture, and what it’s like to be a Uyghur in Windsor Ontario Canada.
The community in Windsor is but five small families — most are spread out throughout Canada, perhaps as many as 3000 people or less.
The food can be best described as a mix of Chinese, Turkish and Arabic; a must try are the hand pulled Langman Noodles which have a nice chew. It is evident that much love goes into the food that they prepare — the flavors of cumin, chili, and pepper are found in many of the dishes that they prepare.
I had a lovely Polov, which is a type of rice dish with lamb — and although the portion was a bit stingy, I have to say that it made up in the flavor category.
It’s tucked away in an office building, but if you find this place you will be very happy with the experience.
FYI — they have a Facebook page with prices and interesting facts.