Temple Canteen, Queens NY

This is one of the best hidden gems for Indian food. They serve South Indian vegetarian food that's on point. It s a no frills basement spot under the Temple. The seats are folding chairs. The food is exactly as you would get if you visited South India, namely the state of Tamil Nadu.

The sweets are great and the entrée as well. The prices are very reasonable. If you go on weekends expect a big crowd. Best to go on a weekday.
My favorite is their butter masala dosa, the puri with potato masala and the jangree for dessert.

I personally found the texture of the dosa to be perfect-chewy on the inside and crispy on the outside. Idlis had a nice lactic tang and smooth consistency as well. Prices are low.

Best best south Indian food. Loved it. Crispy Dosa. Yummy Chutney. Spicy Masala. Visit them Sunday for expanded Sunday special menu.

Bad food! Saw this on t.v a few times surprised how bad to mediocre the food was I was underwhelmed by everything and i bought many dishes the best dish I had was only okay in taste not worth the money go somewhere else unless you like bland mediocre food

Let's just their service in itself is worth 2nd and 3rd and many more visits. They messed up my veggie uttapaam but apologized and was very quick to replace it to my liking. I was very satisfied. Their sambar is very very tasty.almost like my mother in laws. Very impressed with quality. Not to mention is friendly on ur wallet as well.

Update: this has become our weekly spot on the weekends. Hydrabadi masala dosa hands down on my favs.cant go wrong with ghee roast dosa.

Love this place. Amazing flavors, super delicate dosas. Vada are tasty too, especially when you can get them swimming in sambar. The chole was fantastic and a symphony of Indian spices. Legitimate heat with the masala dosa filling. Love the food, love the atmosphere. I could eat nothing but bowls of their sambar and be happy as a clam.

I went to the canteen with family on 08/12/22 around 7pm after years and ordered paper dosa, vada, coffee etc. The paper dosa was ok but the chutney and sambar was. No taste. Coffee was horrible. Not worth it. I am a south
Indian foodie.

Refused service b/c of our emotional support animal who has been trained for our sick 11 year old son on July 11,2022. Ganesh statue witnessed the whole thing - so sad so ungodly so in-humane. NYC dept of health and discrimination against those with disabilities will be our next step - White haired male cashier discriminates even with proper documentation, so please be careful before making the trip. 5 stars to Dosa Hutt just around the corner on Bow e street, who also asked for documentation and honored our sons disability and emotional support animal card delcaring such!

Incredible South Indian food. We had the pondicherry dosa (star of the show) and masala vada, which were amazing! You get such a delicious meal, great portions, and such a decent price. The workers were very friendly and service was quick. Would definitely recommend making the effort to come visit.

Not a fancy display of food but quality top notch. Kind people, clean environment.
Best dosa with sambar oh what a great test. Love it.

Really fast service. We ordered a large quantity of food. Mom and I had the onion uttapam and it was really tasty. I didn't care for the rice dishes especially the yogurt rice which seemed like an after thought by the chef. The tamarind rice was okay really just standard not too flavorful. If you are in the mood for dosa and uttapam this is the place.

This is my latest one time snack/breakfast/lunch/dinner stop.

Everything means anything served here is delicious and fresh and healthy southern Indian cuisine.

Don’t missed it if you’re in New York.

Can't beat the Temple Canteen when it comes to dosas in New York City. The taste of these delectable crepes from South Indian heaven alone is worthy of 5 stars but coupled with the mind bogglingly low prices its a no brainer. I would argue that temple canteen actually has the best dosas in New York. I've had every dosa on their menu and they are all par excellence. The amount I pay I feel like I'm robbing them blind. The chutneys are flavorful and the sambar is delicious. I wish this was located somewhere more easily accessible than a far flung corner of Flushing but I'm happy that at least it exists. For anyone who loves or wants to discover dosas, do yourself a favor and go here.

It can be a bit confusing to find since its located in the basement of the big Ganesha temple on Bowne street. Its not the one on street level which is a different restaurant. You have to walk around the corner from the Bowne street entrance and look for the staircase leading down into the basement. There are signs in the courtyard of the temple pointing to the canteen and gift shop.

Just amazing. One of the best place to get Dosa at a very cheap price. Been coming here for more than 3 years and never disappointed with the service or the food quality. Recommended to all.

Nope…used to be a great place…. Now has sloppy service. Ordered Masala dosa, tasteless, only coconut chutney with tasteless sambhar, dosa was under cooked. Tried to talk to the manager, gave a stare.
Try somewhere else with less volume of customers, they will pay attention to quality and service.

The sauces was amazing, best that i have yet to try anywhere. It has the authentic indian taste. The dosa, idli, chole battura, and pancake looking was was also really good. Definitely a place to check out and try. Lots of place to sit and eat and service is pretty fast. Highly recommended

Food is good. But the attitude of the management is the worst. Very arrogant and disrespectful. Would think twice to return.

Absolutely delicious. The dosas are crispy and thin yet a little chewy, the potato masala is perfectly spiced, don’t even get me started on the coconut chutney. I eat it by the spoonful! Don’t you dare waste leftover chutney or masala, make them into new meals! The uttapams are also so good, like a savory pancake open faced omelette! I loved everything I got at this place and my family and I have been a few times. Very reasonable prices as well! I could eat here everyday!