overdosa, fitzroy pop-up (+ other locations)

OverDosa pop-up in Fitzroy.

It doesn't get more Fitzroy than this. A pop up Indian shack selling vegan, gluten-free dosas and drinks, installed in an open-air-garage type space, next to a vintage bike store.

(P.S. Not all menu items are vegan - after all, I'm sure the rose lassi and the dill curd chutney had delicious dairy in them.)

The cutely named Overdosa (50 Rose St, Fitzroy + other locations) is such a place, and when I was hunting for an affordable dinner one night with Simon, it was what we found. I think I first heard about it via Cindy and Michael's post here, then I forgot about it, but stumbled upon it again during a hungry Googling session.

We were the only ones there at about 7 o' clock in the evening. They are currently open in this Fitzroy location on Saturdays and Sundays from 11am till sunset - and in summer, that usually happens around 8pm. (Check their Facebook page for up-to-date announcements of where they'll be, and when. Latest update is that they'll be doing weekends in Rose Street until March 2014.) The guys were playing foosball before they noticed us, and I momentarily wondered if I'd walked onto the hippie version of a Friends set. It's an incredibly laid-back place with such a relaxing vibe, I love it.

The OverDosa guys at work.

We plonked ourselves down on a colourful sofa, and started sipping away at our drinks. Simon chose a bottled mango drink labelled Maaza. It was sweet, like a nectar.

Maaza mango juice drink ($3).

I chose a rose lassi, which was delightfully creamy and tangy, though sadly the serving was a tad small. (Update: Tried cafe lassi on our second visit, still a petite serve but, as with last time, still delectable - coffee and yoghurt is an interesting combination.)

OverDosa rose lassi ($4).

The lentil poppers are crunchy on the outside, and fluffy inside. These were a little on the salty side for me so I just had a couple, but Simon loved the fragrant, savoury morsels, and he just kept dippin' them into the chutneys and poppin' them into his mouth. (Update: On our second visit, the lentil poppers were seasoned just to my liking - happy days!!)

OverDosa lentil poppers ($5).

The first dosa to arrive at our table was the spicy tamarind pumpkin. It was a perfect golden crisp, and pretty tasty, though not super spicy - if that's what you want, dig into the chilli chutney for more heat. We didn't feel like we really needed the chilli, though, because the dosa already had very warm flavours, which had us more inclined to pair it with the cooler chutneys, like the coconut one you see in this plate.

OverDosa spicy tamarind pumpkin dosa ($9), carrot salad, hot chilli chutney, and coconut chutney.

This dosa, the smoky eggplant with peas, quickly won our hearts. It was fabulously moreish; I'm a sucker for a good smokiness and this had it in spades. Again we felt this went better with the cooler chutneys, like the mint and coriander, and the curd and dill.

OverDosa smoky eggplant and pea dosa ($9), carrot salad, curd and dill, coriander and mint chutney.

I'm interested in coming by again for this smoky eggplant dosa, and I'd also like to try the classic potato masala which we didn't get the first time. (Update: Have now tried it, very nice too, but the eggplant one remains my favourite.) We didn't see any special menu items on that day, but a stalk of their Facebook page reveals that these in past have included flavours such as cauliflower, capsicum, coconut and cashew korma, or chai-cumin chickpea masala, both of which sound incredible, so bring 'em on!