Herald Sun food writer Kara Monssen reviews a delicious Indian restaurant in Fitzroy!

With Emilia Fuller away this week, Herald Sun food writer Kara Monssen stepped in to review a lovely Indian restaurant on Smith Street in Fitzroy!

Press PLAY to hear her full review

The Toddy Shop by Marthanden Hotel

Rear 191A Smith St

Fitzroy

Could Indian flatbread parotta give naan a run for its money?

At Fitzroy newcomer, Toddy Shop by Marthanden Hotel, it sure seems like it.

This golden flaky layered bread, slathered thick with ghee and sizzled in the pan until crisp, is one of the many “do or die” dishes at Mischa Tropp’s first permanent Smith St restaurant.

Melburnians may recognise the name. Tropp, the city’s unofficial pop-up king, has been kicking around restaurants since 2018.

He moonlighted at Fitzroy’s Rochester Hotel, then peddled his famed Elsie’s Butter Chicken throughout lockdown, before cooking his Keralan creations at the Mornington Peninsula’s Avani Wines over the summer.

Now he’s back in the city, opening his first venue alongside Kariton Sorbetes co-owner Michael Mabuti last December.

The 20-seater drinking den is hard to miss, with its pastel-pink brick facade, on Charles St off Smith St.

It’s an elbow’s in affair, cosy and at times rowdy, a ceiling fan whirring on overdrive keeping the brow sweating at bay, with Indian disco hits over the sound system and cold Kingfishers at the ready.

It’s walk-ins only, so get in early, or put your name on the list and grab a coldie or cocktail at the bar while you wait.

Tropp’s cooking is inspired by upbringing in Keralan, the south-west Indian state.

There are eight curries, all served on silver platters, highlighted on the board in the dining room, which rotate weekly, with beef, pork, goat, fish and prawn available this visit. Duck, chicken and calamari are on our radar for the next visit.

The great Mark “Scorcher” Davidson said if you see goat on the menu, you’ve got to order it. And that we did. The goat ishtu, is a light coconut-based stew perfectly balanced in spice and heat, the meat smoosh with a fork tender and gravy luscious.

Though my favourite was the pork fry, a dry dish where the meat’s roughened with spices and black pepper then fried in the pan until gnarly crisp on the outside and squishy tender within.

Prawn moilee, a milder turmeric-based curry sweet with coconut and tomatoes, is recommended for those with reserved palates.

No dessert, sadly, though the cocktails won’t disappoint.

The boozy darjeeling tea, available only by the jug, is perfect for groups. And while takeaway isn’t available, for now, I’m sure this’ll change very soon.

This is Melbourne dining at its best: affordable, unfussy, rightly delicious and filling, with a great set-up and urge to return quicker than you can say parotta.

Images: Ashley Ludkin and Hayden Dibb