We began our visit to Gourmet Pulp with a mocha latte and a long chat with S Ramanathan, the co-founder of Havasu Brewing Co., under which Gourmet Pulp operates as a unit. The café’s name, Gourmet Pulp, comes from a surprisingly tactile place. “This is a beverage-front restaurant,” Ram explains. “All the beverages we deal with start with pulping as a process.” A self-confessed coffee addict and former consulting brewer, he says the name came naturally. “We were talking about gourmet coffee and pulping and since we’re also Tarantino fans, it just clicked.”
“We didn’t want to erase the home,” says Ram, who has turned a villa into an eatery. “Every wall here is retained. The original grills, the tiles, even the window frames—they all stayed. It had to feel like someone’s memory, gently modernised.”
We try the Barrel-aged caprese next, an espresso martini lookalike made with whiskey-barrel-aged espresso that has spent six months developing depth. There’s no hint of alcohol, but its complexity lingers. The café also experiments with cold brews and fermentation-based beverages, a reflection of Ram’s background in brewing.
Among his brewed bests is Booch magnum, a kombucha served like beer. “When you first sip it, it tastes like beer, but the finish reminds you of black tea. It’s a zero-alcohol drink that looks hip and Instagrammable but is good for you too,” Ram smiles.
The Caramelised carrot soup arrives next, with oil pooling at the surface and crushed coriander seeds streaked across. It’s creamy, viscous and ginger-forward, letting the caramelised sweetness of the carrots stay mellow.
The Red rice and broccoli salad with grilled fish add-on is truly a standout, and our favourite without doubt. The fish is perfectly seared, dusted with Cajun spices, and served over a mix of red rice, lettuce and almond slivers that give it a pleasing crunch and finished with a red wine vinaigrette.
Then came the heat, Fiery wings four ways, and we tried all four variants. It’s usually doled out as per the customer’s choice, but we went all in, with Garlic ranch, Schezwan, Korean gochujang, and Naga jholokia. The spice levels rise exactly in that order, so order to your liking. If you feel adventurous enough for the last two, maybe have a glass of milk ready… just in case.
Another standout from the lot was the Crispy prawn nest with honey gochujang. The prawns were cooked to absolute perfection (we’re convinced they weren’t in the frying oil a second longer than necessary), seasoned with scallions, garlic, and chilli, and accompanied by honey gochujang mayo.
For mains, we tried the Hunter’s chicken, a dish that dates back to the Renaissance. Known as Pollo alla cacciatora in Italian and Poulet chasseur in French, it began as a rustic meal cooked by hunters using whatever game, vegetables, and herbs they found during a hunt. Gourmet Pulp’s version captures that spirit beautifully, serving oven-roasted chicken with mashed potato, sautéed greens and a generous pour of mushroom jus.
We end with a Choco lava cake, served hot with vanilla gelato. Wait a moment before diving in; let the gelato melt slightly, and when your spoon breaks through, it’s pure theatre: molten chocolate and melting vanilla tumbling down together in a small, sweet avalanche.
Price for two: ₹1,000. From 12 noon to 11 pm. At Gourmet Pulp, Anna Nagar.
Email: shivani@newindianexpress.com
X: @ShivaniIllakiya
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