Sustainability and ingredients take centre stage at Indian restaurant Lila

Do I have a history of cooking Indian food, the experience or deeper community knowledge, and can I speak to the cultural importance and differences of certain dishes? No.

As a food writer, approaching writing about a cuisine as diverse as India, where I have less knowledge, is a challenge. I often ask, can I offer something valuable to readers, and more importantly, properly judge and critique a restaurant like that? When does it veer from observer to interloper? 

There is no right answer. I don’t believe in shying away from reviewing diverse cuisines. Rather, it’s what to focus on that matters — the taste, the feeling of a restaurant, and comparing it to other similar food I’ve tried, rather than critiquing the techniques or cultural part of the dishes. 

All of this rolled around in my head as I visited Lila, Chef Meeru Dhalwala’s almost two-year-old modern Indian restaurant for the second time in as many months. 

For many reasons, it’s hard not to compare Lila to Vij’s, Vancouver’s Indian food institution. Both are bringing elegance to a type of cuisine that many, wrongfully, don’t associate with upscale dining. Chef Dhalwala was also Vikram Vij’s partner in life and in the kitchen, as they created the Vancouver institution known as Vij’s, with his energy and her recipes.

Now, 30 years later, she’s co-founded her own restaurant with Shira Blustein, founder of the iconic vegetarian restaurant The Acorn.

I also can’t help but compare the two restaurants, given my visit last summer to Vij’s. The meal was a highlight when I first moved to Vancouver over five years ago. Who can forget the first time trying their iconic lamb popsicles?

Yet, my most recent meal was generally a let-down. The service remained top-notch, especially with my large group, but the dishes fell flat, missing that pop of flavour and exuberance. It was a disappointing visit. Maybe the novelty of it all had worn off.

Set amongst the hanging plants, vibrant pictures and chatting guests, Lila is a classy yet approachable place, exuding well-thought-out elegance. Where Vij’s is sharp corners, glitz and glamour, dark hallways and gregariousness, Lila feels far more natural, with abstract plant art and subtle chandelier lighting, a tasteful and welcoming design that says you’re here for the people and the food. 

Chef Dhalwala explained over email that Lila’s focus is on farm-to-table dining, a desire to return to her roots when she started Vij’s. She included an extensive list of well-known local farms and producers, emphasizing sustainability, including Hazelmere Organic Farms and Rockweld Farms.

The quality of the ingredients is clear. The black chickpea and zucchini cakes showed how even subtle zucchini can shine, both on its own and paired with a magical coconut curry. 

A highlight dish was the Pacific prawns, sourced from Organic Oceans, one of the most sustainable seafood companies in Canada. As Chef Dhalwala noted over email, “I do not want to be a chef who participates in pillaging from our waters anywhere in the world — this is my first concern with my menu planning.”

If sustainability is her first concern, then quality is a close second. The prawns were fresh and not overcooked in the slightest, with a taste that shows the product is well-selected. But it was the pairing of the green onion, tomato and ginger curry, along with the delicately cooked bits of rice pilaf, that elevated the dish to one of the better ones I’ve had all year. After two visits, it still remains my favourite.

Not all was perfect. The ricotta, fenugreek, and garlic samosa fell flat, too subtle by half. The house-made naan arrived barely warm, each bite entirely generic. While some may like the simplicity, my preferred naan varies between crispy and soft, with more visible bubbling and char.  

Besides the food, the front-of-house staff are exceptional, offering recommendations and suggestions and maintaining an open, inviting demeanour. I found myself chatting with them on both visits. While food lovers won’t be disappointed, the staff elevated the meal to a special experience. 

As more and more restaurants embrace seasonality, the quality of ingredients differs as well, such as their use of their back garden to grow herbs and edible flowers in the summer months. 

Lila feels like an evolution of Indian cuisine in Vancouver. Even with a few misses, it gets the big things right. While Vij’s set the stage for upscale Indian cuisine, Lila is the polite upstart, confident and ready to challenge. Chef Dhalwala has returned to her roots, and Vancouver’s dining scene is better for it.