What is the 1st thing that pops into your head when you hear “Chettinad?”
For me, it is the gorgeous huge houses, beautiful sarees with patterns unique to the region & of course the food.
Chettinad Cuisine belongs to the Chettinad [Karaikudi town] area in Tamil Nadu. The region was once filled with Tamil Brahmins, and therefore the food here was primarily vegetarian. The Chettiar community dominates the Chettinad region, which consists of 76 villages and two towns. The unique feature of Chettinad cuisine is they don’t use any premade spices or masalas but believe in freshly ground spices such as cumin, fenugreek, fennel, clove, bay leaf, turmeric, and tamarind along with garlic, coconut, red chillies,kalpasi (black stone flower) & others. The food is highly known for its flavour complexity. Today. the region is renowned as a non-veg-heavy region, but the vegetarian dishes are no less in flavour or taste.
Some of the popular dishes include ‘Idiyappam’, ‘Urlai Roast’, ‘Paal Payasam’, ‘Chicken Chettinad’, ‘Vellai Paniyaram’, ‘Kozhakattai’, “vazhappoo vadai”, ‘ Ennai Kathrikai Kozhambu’, ‘Karuppatti Paniyaram’, ‘Kuzhi Paniyaram’, ‘Vellai Kurma’, and many others…
Savya Rasa is a restaurant am quite familiar with, as their 1st outlet was launched in Chennai and I’ve been there quite a few times. infact a friend & I love their food. So, when I got invited to lunch at Savya Rasa in Pune for The Chettiar Table festival, I immediately confirmed my presence. Chef Giridharan Kalidasan has done a fabulous job in curating the dishes, and ensuring the flavours are true to the region. The spices are not overpowering and the vegetables were cooked perfectly.
The lunch was fabulous, the company of two women was fun and overall had a memorable experience. What did we have? Here goes…
1. Kandanthippili Rasam. [herb rasam]
2. Vazhappo vadai [banana flower vadai] with a tangy sweet chutney made with red chillies, ginger & jaggery.
3. Urulai Roast
4. Ennai Kathrikkai Kozhambu with Idiyappam Idli & Appam
From the non-veg side of things, the dishes that made their way to our table were:
1. Milagu Kozhi Chettinad
2. Crab Soup
3. Fish gravy [forgot the name but the gravy was super tangy & rich, almost like a kaara kozhambu base]
Desserts:
We tried their Kavuni Arisi Halwa [ Black wild rice pudding] which was divine- it had a hint of elaichi & coconut in it.
The meal was wrapped up with hot filter kaapi served the traditional way.
Price: Rs1000 per pax or around Rs2500 for 2
Address:
Gera Serenity Building [near Starbucks Cafe],
Koregaon Park, Pune
Disclaimer: The reviews posted on this blog are based on my personal experience. Also, remember these were just my views!! Remember, no two palates are the same. Bon Appétit ~!
