Indian Street Food Company

The story

Indian Street Food Company Toronto: Bib Gourmand Indian Street Food

The Original Indian Street Food Co.

Indian Street Food Company is a personal tribute to the old Indian Coffee Shops of Delhi and Mumbai—places where wicker chairs and bar stools sat beneath sepia Bollywood portraits, and the ceiling fans turned viciously. The owner recalls the Indian Coffee House in Delhi, opened in 1957, a generation before he was born. That restaurant, and the street hawkers who are “more innovative than five-star chefs,” inspired this Toronto spot. The result is a menu that channels the robust, welcoming flavours of India’s roadside stalls and vanishing dining rooms.

The restaurant has earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand for good quality, good value cooking—a recognition that reflects the care and authenticity behind every dish.

The Menu: Street Food and Beyond

The menu is divided into sections that mirror the energy of Indian street food. The Chaat Street section delivers classics like the Street Samosa Chaat, potato-peas samosas topped with chutney and sweet yogurt, and the Bazaar Style Aloo Tikki, crisp spiced potato patties with date chutney. The Bombay Pau Bhaji—a bowl of thick mashed veggies with buttered soft bread buns—is a world-famous Mumbai staple.

For those who want a full meal, the Thali is central. Available vegetarian or non-veg, it includes dal makhani, eggplant bhartha, aloo gobhi, rice, naan, and a gulab jamun. The non-veg version adds chicken or lamb curry.

The Tandoori Circle features the “ISF Platter,” a shareable selection of tandoori items. The Achari Chicken Tikka, inspired by street vendors in Old Delhi’s Thieves Market, is marinated in yogurt, coriander, and cumin. The Adraki Lamb Chops, three pieces charred in a Lucknawi marinade, are served with mint fenugreek sauce.

In the Curry Avenue section, the Braised Beef Short Ribs are described as the restaurant’s legendary dish—tender beef ribs with red wine and cumin curry sauce. The Old Delhi Butter Chicken is not your usual version; it’s a classic street-vendor recipe garnished with toasted melon seeds. Coastal Prawn Curry and Mango Prawn Curry bring South Indian influences, while the Banana Leaf Wrapped Trout is a Kerala delicacy.

A Space That Feels Like Home

The atmosphere evokes those old coffee houses: no air conditioning, but fans turning overhead. The space is warm and unpretentious, with a focus on the food and the stories behind it. Indian Street Food Company is a place where affluent entrepreneurs and rickshaw drivers alike could once sit together—and in Toronto, that spirit lives on.