After Thali-gate last week I'm still recovering from my misadventure at the hand's of a masquerading charlatan, there was only one thing for it, to get back on the horse and give my tastebuds some reassurance.

A week to the day then you could find me parked in Dosa Park, with it's Eastern bloc connotations and questionable interior decoration.

A spartan white room, devoid of decoration or pictures, the plate glass window an obvious throwback to the chicken shop situated here before, it does little to welcome you in, situated as it is in the scruffy parade opposite the station.

But then the honesty of the food here says it all. They care little for outward appearances at Dosa Park, instead putting their considerable passion and attention to detail into the food rather than the trappings.

For those of you who like a more comfortable meal, this may not be the place for you, but for the more adventurous, Dosa Park is right up there on my favourite restaurant list, even if it is like eating in a doctor's waiting room.

The food is South Indian, so more like eating in a Bombay cafe than an Indian restaurant; much lighter and less curry based, and as it's open all day every day, always possible.

Marching straight up to the counter I ordered three thalis, one of each; lamb (£9.99), chicken (£8.99) and vegetarian (£6.99), to show last week's bewildered fellow diners how to do it properly.

And then I spied the rest of the menu and remembered how good the dosas and vadas were. A dosa is a long thin pancake made from rice batter and black lentils and served with two chutneys and a sambar (a lentil-based vegetable stew or chowder made with tamarind).

Vadas are a South Indian doughnut made with lentil, onion, chilli, curry leaves and herbs, and served with more sambar, so I ordered two of those as well, enough to feed a small army then, but we were hungry and on a mission.

The vadas arrived first on the formica table in a partitioned metal plate - the perfect way to begin a meal, more starchy than their sweeter counterparts, they soak up the sambar juices and leave a delicious heat hit after each bite. We were back in business.

The Masala Dosa (£6.75) comes stuffed with mashed potato which might sounds strange but because the potato is spiced and flavoured, its the perfect filling for a food you rip off in pieces and dunk in sauce. My teenage companions, who last week had despaired of the food, were utterly entranced. Yes, it was new and different, but tasted so good it disappeared immediately, despite much gulping of water and the odd sweat.

A platter of onion bhajis passed by en route to another table, its restaurant counterparts blushing in comparison as the twisted, piping hot swirls of spiced and battered onion strands wafted tantalisingly.

"A plate of those too please,". The lady behind the counter was obviously used to this kind of manic food envy induced ordering system and calmly shouted through to the back for another portion.

In the meantime our thalis arrived. A thali, if you remember is the name of the silver dish in which the rice is centre stage and around it a mixture of rice, sambar, dhal curry, veg curry, channa masala, rasam, yogurt and papadam are placed in the circular compartments around it. From the thin rasam to the thick dahl, the soft bite of the chickpea'd channa masala and the spice of the veg curry, each was homemade and individually flavoured, in stark contrast to each other, together a family, yet individual enough to stand out on their own.

If you order the meat version you get exactly the same thing, the chunks of lamb or chicken just served in a separate bowl, but beautifully made; soft, succulent and generous, slow cooked to perfection, as we supped, dipped, dunked and dined to our hearts content.

The arrival of the crispy, piping hot swirls of onion bhaji (£3.75) only served to enhance our feast.

What a difference a week makes then and what a relief that a proper thali is still ours for the taking if you know where to look.

Don't thank me now, thank me later when you've been, but if there's one lesson I've learned, it's never to judge a thali book by its cover.

Ruchi's Dosa Park is open from 11am-11pm

25, Park End Street,

01865 791197

dosapark.com