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| - We were cautiously optimistic as we tried out Godavari's new location in Mississauga. We had been delighted by the quality of the food when it first opened in Brampton. Then we watched sadly as the food and execution deteriorated slowly over the next year each time we made our monthly visit. A few weeks before the Brampton location closed, we had decided not to go back again.
I'm happy to report that the food at Godavari 2.0 is back to that first standard - with the chef's delicate hand evident in the dishes we tried. The new premises are an improvement on the Brampton location. Godavari is now located in a house, with smaller rooms and decor (table cloths, for example) that provide a comfortable ambiance, rather than the banquet hall feel of the the Brampton site.
I'm worried a bit about the execution and logistics. As the old location declined, the menu became spotty, with thalis, in particular, not available. So we laughed on Day 2 in Mississauga when we ordered a thali and were told it was not available. If not everything was available, I might have created a smaller printed menu of what was (rather than the tired menus from the old restaurant with white tape over items no longer prepared). Or I would have informed each new table that thalis were not available yet, to avoid disappointing customers in a new venue. Instead we heard each new table order a thali to be told that they weren't on the menu that day.
All that being said, the food is very good. We had some of our faves - the Aloo Bonda had a crispy outer layer and spicy filling, the Onion Rava Masala Dosa was perfect, and the Sambhar Veda was fresh and tasty. Even the coffee (which had been disastrous towards the end at Brampton) was very good.
This location has what could be a very nice patio area. I hope they use it. The old location also had a patio but they never opened it and eventually just piled all the patio furniture up in a corner to ultimately become a big pile of ruined junk.
We'll go back again - we want a thali! I hope the issues that plagued the old location do not resurface.
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