Mint Kitchen

Cloud kitchen with pick-up & delivery only, no dine-in space. The dosai here is the bestseller but as a fellow Tamil who manages my own dosai, I am here to endorse the mutton biryani. Mutton biryani is the G.O.A.T (pun intended) of South Asian biryanis and it’s my contention that Charlottesville had no mutton/lamb biryani worth speaking of outside of my home until Mint Kitchen. The meat is tender & yielding. Unlike other places in town, the biryani rice smells and tastes like it’s actually cooked in the mutton stock with a delicate layer of fat (& did I find little bits of marrow, hallelujah?!). It is made with basmati rice though (not the more traditional jeeragasamba rice — I’m not complaining!) in the Tamil style, which is not as rich as its Hyderabadi or Awadhi counterparts. It needs no raita or any other accompaniments and can be eaten as is — as God intended — because the rice and meat are moist & flavored perfectly with cardamom, saffron, & I think, kewra. The proportion of meat to rice is about 35:65, which I find perfect if the rice is also flavored with mutton stock as this one is. Minhaj told us he sources the goat locally and these are high-quality cuts of meat treated with respect and care. This is bone-in goat, so go at it with your hands if you really want to appreciate the meat. The biryani is mild by desi standards of spiciness, so feel free to ask for extra salna or khatta, the accompanying gravy, which has a good hit of spice. The raita and pineapple sambal are good but really not necessary, in my opinion. Dont snooze on the dosas, this is the only place in town you can get them & they insist on making it fresh & as close to time of pick-up as possible. Slight wait times should be expected and appreciated as the cooks are dedicated to making the best possible food. :) Instructions for pickup: the entrance is in Suite 1; the door is sometimes locked till 5 pm, so if you get there 4 pm on Saturdays, hover until Minhaj spots you & lets you in. Make Saturday your biryani night, it’s the best you’ll find in Charlottesville.

So glad that we don’t have to drive to Richmond for our dosa cravings. We ordered a couple of masala dosas and it was really tasty! Can’t wait to try more items on their menu. Location is pretty convenient, as well, with plenty of parking available. We also received great service from the owner. The photo was taken after we ate half of it. So good!

Mint Kitchen is a foodie’s dream: bursting with authentic and mouthwatering flavors! Don’t miss their incredible biryani rice, the irresistible butter chicken, and the celebrated kottu roti, crowned Charlottesville's Best Dish of the Year! If you love Indian cuisine, Mint Kitchen is an absolute must-visit—your taste buds will thank you!

We ate there a month ago for the first time and the dosas and vada were excellent. So much so, we recommended it to our friends. Sadly, the next experience was poor: the sambar, which was excellent the first time, was diluted with so much water that it was basically yellow water; and the paneer dosa had stuffing in only half the dosa (unlike the first time) and was not flavorful. Unfortunate that there is no consistency. Chutneys were good.

I’m so happy to have dosa in town!!! We got two masala mysore and one ghee dosa. They were absolutely delicious and a very filling, affordable meal. The owners of this spot are lovely, too!

Literally the best vadas I’ve had in my life, and I spent a good chunk of my early years in Chennai where they make the OG vadas. Dosas and biryani are excellent too and the unusual pineapple chutney is fun.

Finally a place with good South Indian cuisine options! I’ve been getting by with either Amma’s or heading to the DMV area. It’s so fast and tasty. I will return!

Great South Indian food! Hoping they will eventually open up a brick and mortar place! I ordered via door dash and the dasher forgot a large portion of my order. When I called the restaurant to figure out what happened, they were very apologetic (though it was not their fault), said the dosas were left behind and they were cold, so he offered to remake them fresh for me and have them ready in 10 minutes. Sure enough, right as I pulled up 10 mins later he called me to let me know they were ready, and threw in extra vadas! Excellent service!

food was excellent. ordered: daal, butter chicken, fermented rice buns and spicy donuts, plain dosa and dosa with potatoes. it came with 2 types of hot sauces and soup. everything was a mildly spicy and absolutely delicious. you could see they are using fresh herbs and spices. wish they served breakfast and chai masala! we'd be there more often then not.

This place is a gem! We got 2 dosas, and they were so good we ordered a 3rd! There's a room to sit and eat if you want to eat there. Owner is very friendly. 5 stars

We are big fans of kanak but tried the Mint Kitchen and totally love it! It operates out of a new communal facility and we did a pickup. Had the dosas that were good and a couple of the mains - the paneer butter masala was totally phenomenal. Very nice people. Place your order ahead of time and if you love good Indian food you will be pleasantly surprised

Southern Indian cuisine - excellent food, quick, friendly service. Take out food only (can eat Dosas on-site). Order your food by phone for later pick up - couple prepares food that combines Sri Lankan and Southern Indian flavors. Wonderful and very fresh prepared in space at commercial kitchen. Hope other excellent chefs take advantage. Food only served Friday, Saturday and Sunday - but worth the wait if you miss out this weekend. Just the best Indian food around.