Udupi Palace Artesia: A Fast Introduction to South Indian Food
- Dr. K.
- Nov 14, 2025
- 3 min read
Most Los Angeles diners understand Indian food through North Indian dishes—paneer, tomato-based gravies, naan, and the familiar “butter chicken” template that shapes most restaurant menus in the U.S.
But South Indian cuisine is distinct in ingredients, technique, and flavor. It relies on rice and lentils, coconut, curry leaves, mustard seeds, and vegetable-forward preparations that taste nothing like the North. Many people never encounter it unless someone takes them to a restaurant that specializes in it.
For us, that place was Udupi Palace in Artesia, a long-standing, fully vegetarian South Indian restaurant known for efficient service and consistently fresh food. Like many restaurants in the neighborhood, it is closed on Mondays. The rest of the week, it’s steady, accessible, and ideal for anyone trying South Indian dishes for the first time. We brought friends who had only ever eaten North Indian food, and Udupi Palace allowed us to introduce an entirely different side of Indian cuisine without overwhelming them.
The dosa was the starting point because it teaches the difference immediately. A dosa is made from a fermented batter of rice and lentils—thinner, tangier, and designed to crisp on the pan. The 'masala' dosa comes with a potato filling seasoned with flavors that are unmistakably South Indian, and nothing like the Punjabi-style potatoes most people know.
We also ordered the onion–rava dosa, which uses semolina instead of the standard rice–lentil batter. It cooks up thinner, more brittle, almost lacy at the edges, and the onions add a sharp, savory bite that’s completely different from the classic dosa.
From there, we moved to uttapam, a thicker, softer preparation made from a similar fermented base but cooked more like a pancake. The mixed-vegetable uttapam, dotted with onions, carrots, and green chilies, tastes closer to home-style cooking and has a gentle tang from the fermentation.
Idli came next. Even though the ingredients overlap with dosa, idli batter is not the same. Idli uses a higher proportion of urad dal (lentils) and is ground to a different consistency, producing those soft, steamed cakes that absorb chutneys well. They are mild, warm, and comforting—especially for people trying South Indian food for the first time. Every dish on the table was anchored by coconut chutney and sambar which are central to understanding the cuisine.
One dish we made sure everyone tried was avial, something rarely found in North Indian restaurants. It’s a mix of vegetables cooked gently with coconut and a touch of yogurt, resulting in a mild, clean flavor profile that immediately signals a different region of India. It’s also one of the dishes that shows how South Indian cooking emphasizes vegetables without making them feel secondary.
The drinks deserve mention because they complete the experience. Filter coffee is brewed strong and mixed with hot milk, producing a frothy, distinct flavor that has nothing to do with standard American coffee. The Indian tea here is also made the traditional way: tea leaves boiled directly with milk. It’s a drink with its own identity and a finish that pairs naturally with the food.
Udupi Palace is one of the most practical introductions to South Indian cuisine in Southern California. The menu is entirely vegetarian, the dishes come out quickly, and the restaurant is approachable for anyone—whether or not they’ve tried these flavors before. If a person’s understanding of Indian food comes only from North Indian restaurants, this is where that understanding expands in a meaningful, accessible way.
Udupi Palace is located at 18635 Pioneer Blvd, Artesia, CA 90701. Parking is straightforward in this part of Little India — you’ll find metered street parking along Pioneer and the surrounding side streets, and there’s also a public parking lot close by if curbside spots are full.
