Dine: Surati Farsan Mart

About a year or so ago, my fellow foodie friend Diane recommended an Indian restaurant in Artesia called Surati Farsan Mart. She gushed about the Pani Puri, among other dishes, and since then I have tried to plan a trip to Little India.


I did, in fact, make it to Artesia about six months ago, however at that time I had forgotten the name of the restaurant and Diane was unreachable so I had to rely on Chow and Yelp for some dining suggestions.


I ended up at Udupi Palace (which happens to be a stones throw from SFM) which was okay but I still hankered to try Diane's spot. So, I finallllly made it to SFM last weekend on the way to check out the OC Fair and was pleasantly surprised by the small cafe. Located just off Pioneer Blvd, Surati is more of a Indian confection store with tons of Indian desserts and snacks...made with dried milk, nuts, saffron...Obviously I had to try the desserts, but my boyfriend and I also ordered about 200% more than we should have off the cheapo savory menu.


Frankly the menu is quite large especially for the small cafe and when my request for naan was dismissed, I let my waiter take over the ordering for the most part. We did try one of their many varieties of pani puri, though I do believe that what we tried was not what Diane had recommended.


The one we had was too sweet for me (even though it was supposed to be savory).


Unfortunately I can't tell you exactly what we had, but I do suggest trying it for yourself!


Overall the food was quite tasty, if on the hot side, and after growing up eating tons of Indian on the East Coast, it was an extremely welcome change from subpar Indian restaurants that inhabit LA.


Surati Farsan Mart
11814 186th St., Artesia
(562) 860-2310