Little India

The latest census shows that South Asian immigrants have outpaced Asian immigrants as the most numerous "minority" group in Toronto. I put minority in quotes because it seems an increasingly silly name for anyone who doesn't fall into the group of People Who Have White Skin. No one group comprises a majority of our city's population anymore.

Anyway, blah blah blah... I didn't intend to start going on about politics. I wanted to show off some photos I took of Little India, or, as the city has officially named it, the Gerrard India Bazaar.



Ken and I went for lunch at Bar-Be-Que Hut, known to us as The Restaurant Where The White People Go. This is because the curries are tame, and suited to those of us who weren't raised from childhood to tolerate blazing heat.

Ken occasionally gets it into his head to go to one of the other restaurants on the strip, but if there's not a high proportion of white diners, he won't convince me to eat there. This isn't because of any racism on my part, but because I learned my lesson the hard way at the Lahore Tikka House a few years ago.



The Lahore Tikka House is hardcore. We were the only non-East-Indian people there. And clearly it was unusual for outsiders to venture in. We were surrounded by families in traditional Indian garb, and people were openly staring at us.

Of the food, what I remember most was the dahl (curried lentils) that was served still sizzling in a cast-iron frying pan. There was so much hot pepper in the curry that within a few mouthfuls, my lips actually went numb. This only foreshadowed the pain that was in store for me later, as the burning hotness worked its way through every inch of my tender digestive tract.

Bar-Be-Que Hut is much more enjoyable on every level. They even keep a TV constantly running DVD's of upbeat Bollywood dance routines. This is the best example of Bollywood that I could find on YouTube. Bar-Be-Que Hut's discs are even better.



Some other businesses in Little India:







These guys were in the window of the video store. I figure they kind of balance out the photos from my Trashy Girl Fashions post.



There you go, ladies! Feast your eyes.