Dakshin South Indian Bistro

Tried many dishes here and everything tastes great, definitely try the chai that is pretty good

I have been here a few times. From what I can tell, many of the food choices are not made to order, such as the butter chicken and chicken curry. They serve it up from a warming container at the front counter.
The other day I came in and got the chicken curry combo (chicken curry, rice and chapati bread and raita). The cost was 11.95 + tax. When my order came, the chicken curry was mostly sauce – the amount of meat was maybe ¼ of a thigh. The pieces of what appeared to be chicken, but were really cartilage and large thigh/​leg joint. The curry also tasted as though it had oversimmered and cooked down too much. This place is popular, but I won’t be back soon.

Our most favorite restaurant ! Excellent and delicious menu ! Awesome taste! We always visit this place. I believe this is THE best South Indian restaurant I have visited in Seattle area!
Space is a crunch but definitely not a show stopper !

Happened upon this place by chance and am glad I did. The food is fantastic and affordably priced. The restaurant is airy and bright and the owner friendly and willing to answer questions about the food (as someone who doesn’t really eat much Indian food, I had a bunch of them).
The food was delicious. I really recommend this place, even if you are an Indian food gringo (sorry for the Spanish, but couldn’t think of a better word to use).
Oh, and my wife and I had the dosas. Delicious!

Excellent find. Truly no frills, yummy Indian food right in the heart of Kirkland.

Very authentic Indian food at a great price. I will definitely be back, and next time ordering the dosas.

If you’re looking for South Indian food, you must visit Dakshin. We’ve been taking our family here for the past couple of years. The restaurant is very clean and tidy, the food is always delicious, and they even have a menu that caters to children. I appreciate the informality of the space, and their paratha is so delicious and buttery. My little ones always ask for the dollar dosas, as they can just pop them into their mouths and wash them down with some lassi. One of the best things about this place, is the owner. He is so friendly and accommodating – we love supporting a place with great ownership.

Dakshin, (which actually means South in Hindi) is a South Indian family owned business. I’ve been coming here for the past few years as its THE best south Indian food on the East side. You can tell this place is good as most of the patrons are Indian. I even asked an Indian customer her thoughts the first time I came and she said, she’s from South India and she said it’s the best. Done. I was sold.
Prices are great, portions are decent, great friendly service from JP the owner and free chai! My favorites are the curry chicken, masala dosa and the paratha. I’m drooling thinking about it now…

I stopped here for lunch on a whim. I was starving and there was plenty of people inside so I joined them. I had a bowl of butter chicken curry with rice and fried bread. Sooooo delicious. My new favorite Indian restaurant is right here. Yum!

First of all, I think we should all give JP a round of applause. This man is here every day taking people’s orders, communicating with his customers, and running the roof off this place day in and day out.
To be perfectly transparent, I have to say I’ve only ordered two things off this menu. But I’ve ordered them so many times that I’m probably paying for Dakshin’s electric bill. So when I say I’ve only ordered two items it’s not because nothing else seems good, it’s because these two things are so darn phenomenal it’s a legitimate struggle to convince myself anything else could be as good.
Butter chicken w/​paratha. My first love. This meal brought me to Dakshin and kept me there for good. You walk into Dakshin and you will 100% of the time see someone partying down on some butter chicken. Sometimes more than one person, and a sometimes the whole crowd is.
I FEEL BAD, you guys. JP and his crew work hard to deliver a large variety of delicious southern Indian dishes and yet, I bet JP has a good guess at what you will order when you walk through the doors and face him at the register. Butter Chicken. It’s just too good. Plain and simple.
Now after a wonderfully Butter Chicken filled year and a half of consistency, I got ballsy. I thought, I see this other dish floating around often and I like its style. It’s too big for its plate. It conceals its true self so modestly and yet it appears to have a difficult skill rating to take it down. So I’m gonna give this bad boy a shot. One missed day of Butter Chicken can’t hurt anyone.
Masala Dosa. Simple. Succulent. Satisfying. The surprise you find on the inside of this crazy food tube is such a treat, and paired with the two sauces offered makes for a modest beast of a meal. Looking at it you might think, as I first did, that can’t fill me up the way the combo meals can, but you’d be wrong my friend. This is a fantastic lunch choice that will have your tastebuds and your tummy satisfied by the end. And if you’re with some friends you might look a little more cultured than we both know you are because them and everyone else in the place will be eating the same butter chicken goodness we all love and you’ll be putting on a show with your crazy long Indian burrito thing that you knew about beforehand.
Thanks, Dakshin. You are a beautiful part of this world. Don’t ever go away.
Oh, and cucumber water goes down real nice.

Ordered Gobi Manchurian. It was a little bit too sweet and soggy. Definitely not the best I have had.

Very good southern Indian. Tried most of our favorites including pongal (I love that dish and sometimes it is hard to find), sambal, dosas. Everything is well priced and authentic southern. Sambal was excellent. This is one of the best places for southern Indian we’ve tried in the area. They have free chai tea and coffee, but it is very popular and may run out (the tea in particular).
It is tiny so be prepared that you may have to wait for a table or take the food to go. We had to sit at two separate (smaller) tables when we ate lunch here. It is a super casual, order at the counter place. Good for kids.

Good food but the place looks like a take out place. A little deceptive with reviews … Went for a good ambience but a little disappointed

We live 4 minutes away by car and today we FINALLY went for brunch. SO YUMMY! Normally we do Indian buffet on the weekends, but then we’re so full. Dakshin’s food is so flavorful and the shop is very tidy and clean.
The dosa were really delicious and the chai was divine. It was on the counter (with coffee) at no extra charge. Lovely!
Our only complaint would be all the wasteful paper plates and plastic cutlery.

So, complimentary tea and coffee, both of good quality instantly earns it a minimum 3 stars.
Coming to food, I have had their thali as well as dosas. Thali is good, great parrota (Kerala style Paratha), average chicken curries and decent portion size (try the mangalorian chicken curry if you are feeling like having spicy food).
Moving on to their speciality, Dosas, while their sambar and chutney’s are great, I was left disappointed with Dosas. I like my Dosas a little on the crispier side and I found that crispiness missing from Dosas at Dakshin. Even then, I think they have one of the best that east side has to offer in terms of Dosas.

What a gem this place is! It may be small, it may be cramped, and it may seem humble but let me tell you, these boys are huge on flavor and freshness and quality. And they are super nice, even when they’re toiling away to get hot and steamy food to everyone as quickly as possible. Brownie points for not using Styrofoam!
We dine here often and do not plan to change that any time soon!

I just drove all the way to Kirkland just to get a dosa.
Considering everytime I ask for one at an Indian restaurant in Seattle, they look at me with a puzzled face, this was well worth it.
Mostly seems to be a simple takeout /​no waiter /​bus your own table place for local workers, but simple is great when the food is this good.
Completely worth the drive and I will go back again — when in Kirkland (which is like never for me)

I’m not Indian, at all… Chinese in fact, but when I wanted some quick eats, this Indian place was on the top of the list. So I’m just going to go with what I think it tasted like, as opposed to if I believe it was authentic, or otherwise.
So this place is tasty, so tasty, that if one was looking at the clientele to determine if it was something the local Indians appreciate; well I was the only non-​indian in the place, beside my girlfriend, so admittedly, I have no idea what would be good. The person manning the counter allowed us to sample a few of the flavors, and after a quick huddle, we both picked the chicken, mine was bone-​in and a little spicier. Both with Dosas in hand also, we headed to our tables, and started to munch down.
Okay, I can’t tell if it was authentic, but it was DARN good eats. Delicious flavors, and the meat was cooked perfectly, never-​mind it was probably sitting it the warming tray for whatever length of time, but who cares, it tasted yummy. Also, because it’s not down the main strip of Kirkland, you can actually find parking, because they have a parking lot. That already makes this place wonderful, add that it’s good tasting, and filling, that’s another plus.
Yes there are great places like DERU, which is good italian/​café/​deli… but if you are in the east side, and want solid, good Indian food, this place is where you want to be.

Oh the fun of all things curry-​related!
Seattle lacks in great indian restaurant. Even worst when it comes to South Indian restaurants. There are a total of less than 5 in all of Seattle I believe. One happened to be my favorite in the university area.
When I heard about this new-​ish spots from all my indian friends in east side, I hesitated. Partly because I couldn’t make it out to Kirkland and also because I still very much love my other fav spot. (loyal customer for a few years!)
But one fine day, I walked into this little place. And that was it! I’m in love. Yumm yumm. My pet peeves about some places– they use the same curry base for every single protein! Seriously annoying. But this place? Every single curry is different.
Chicken curry — nice and tomatoey.
Goat curry — a little more on spicy and heavy side.
Fish curry — super tangy. But I’ve had it a few times. Not my favorite.
Egg curry– nice and creamy! I love.
Vegetable — perfectly spiced.
Pros: free chai!
Con: super tiny cups for that free chai :) Might be a good thing. You get to pick your side for curries. Rice, roti or pratha. I’ve had it with half rice and half pratha. At times, rice was super al dente and hard. But other times, it’s good. I think lunch times on weekends are the busiest. Go for dinner. Much more low key. Their dosas are pretty tasty as well.
Overall, this is a great spot! I love their curries. Have yet to try other things they have — indo Chinese items but so far, I’m a fan. It’s also a plus that some of my favorite friends come here for lunch every weekend. Good food with great company? What else could you want! Oh yea. Stop by at Lady Yum after for a macaron or two since they are pretty close to each other. Or that coffee shop round the corner! You will need to walk off that food coma somehow. Might as well walk it off for some sweet stuffs :)

What a cool find for dosa! Very reasonable prices for dosa although the menu is confusing! You have to order a curry and then you can order it with a variety of sides like idli, vada or iddiyappam. Interesting!
I have tried everything on the menu here and I love the masala dosa and the vada. You can order a chicken or shrimp filled dosa too which is very different. They all taste great. The idli is great too fluffy and soft but the vada takes the cake. It’s a perfect balance of hot crispness with a spicy and soft inside — a triumph!
And before I forget, the Gobhi Manchurian (batter fried spicy cauliflower) is out of this world. Much better than their Chilli chicken which is not bad either. I kept trying to figure out how they make it so yummy with the garlic and sauce seasoning and gave up and just enjoyed it.
They also have butter chicken and chicken curry with a choice of sides for those who don’t want the dosa.
As a nice touch they have free chai tea and free cucumber and mint water that you dispense yourself in teeny tiny cups.
A great place for a casual meeting as it can be crowded and since it’s pretty tiny there is not much seating. However, all their food is best eaten fresh so I don’t like to do a take-​out here but many do.
Tip:Idli and Vadas are piping hot between 5:30 — 7:00 pm. Earlier is better as the food tastes fresher.