When a restaurant calls itself Madras Kitchen and you pride yourself on being connoisseurs of Tamil food, you know you’re in for a memorable meal. But before we dive in, a small clarification: the ‘Madras’ in question isn’t just the city formerly known as Madras, now Chennai. It’s a nod to the old Madras Presidency, which once stretched across what is today Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
A generous culinary canvas indeed. History lesson done, we were instantly struck by the ambience — a space that fits right into the chic UB City piazza and effortlessly matches the luxury vibe of the newly launched Marriott Executive Apartments Bengaluru UB City. With barely a moment wasted, we plunged into a curated tasting menu that promised both nostalgia and novelty.
We kicked things off with the Alembe Karibevu Toast paired with Mushroom Tea and a Chromepet Kozhi 65 accompanied by a Karuvepillai Sour Cream. The mushrooms were cooked to utter perfection and the ‘tea’ was a delightful twist on the usual rasam routine. As for the Chicken 65, it hit every note we hoped for — crunchy, spicy, addictive. Up next came Mokkajona Garelu with Falli Chutney, followed by Pothirachi Varattiyathu served with a soft, flaky Malabar Parota. The corn fritters were unexpectedly fun, reminding us that South Indian cuisine doesn’t celebrate corn nearly enough. And the buff-and-parota pairing? A combination that would make any Malayali beam with pride.
Then came the Cauliflower Kurma with Appams and the Prawn Saalna with Idiyappams — essentially a love letter to Kerala. The gravies were so good we abandoned any pretense of elegance and wiped our plates clean with the appams and idiyappams. Our final savoury stop was a Vegetable Dindigul Biryani served with Dalcha, alongside Kozhi Kaima Sadam. A vegetarian Dindigul biryani may sound blasphemous, but this one held its own, while the kozhi sadam delivered the comforting, carby hug we were craving. We wrapped up with Caramel Ethakka Appam — pazham pori for the purists — served with a soothing Coconut Ice Cream.
Meal for two: INR 2,800 onwards. At UB City.
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