Naatu Bar and Kitchen: Spreads native gourmet impressions, cooks a Telangana dream

Head to this newfound eatery to savour South Indian delectables like Yata Mamsam Guddu Chops, Ulavacharu Veg Pulao and more
Yata Mamsam Guddu Chops
Yata Mamsam Guddu Chops

As we entered the newly-opened Naatu Bar and Kitchen, we saw Cheriyal scroll paintings highlighting Puranas and epics through Nakashi art. Just like the name implies in Telugu, everything about this place epitomises an indigenous and rustic aura. Elaborating on the ambience, owner of the outlet, Vinay Dodda tells us, “The artist, N Yamini, who hails from Cheriyal in Siddipet, intermixes bright vermilion and tangerine tones to capture the local Telangana flavour in her artistic motifs.” It was no mystery that the food here also encapsulated the true essence of Telangana while our mouths hoarded tamarind, sesame seeds, red chillies and asafoetida.

<em>Punch Falaknuma</em>
Punch Falaknuma
<em>Jampandu Roi</em>
Jampandu Roi

We sniffed a dream of the tropics, from Jampandu Roi, a fresh guava mocktail, for which barman, Lalmohan Rao blended a pulp of guava with green chilli, hot tabasco sauce, black pepper and salt. Taking in the florals and subtle spices, we sampled another drink, Punch Falaknuma. The beverage was extracted from most of the watermelon pulp and strained into a watermelon rind instead of a fancy glass. It embodied hints of honey, basil and ginger juice. Lalmohan had also meticulously chopped the watermelon in half and diced the flesh. Then, Sous Chef Venkat Rao employed his culinary erudition and lent the food joint’s South Indian cuisine its novel trustworthiness. A non-Hyderabadi may slip into authentic Telangana cordon bleu with the regional soup Kalla Koora. Before serving in a porcelain ivory bowl, Venkat tossed mutton legs in cinnamon sticks, brown cardamom, peppercorns, mace, bay leaf and cumin seeds to uplift the speciality.

We looked at some appetisers and ate a few mouthfuls of the Yata Mamsam Guddu Chops. We whiffed a liquorice-like aroma and flavour, which was also warming and earthy. While fusing it with Karnataka-grown spices like Marathi moggu, the chef also retained the detectable’s bona fide Telugu roots. Like a balm, the indigenous star anise shaped as brown pods lured us to the delicacy’s mise en place. The spice overpowered our palette with more intrigue. But this was not all. The aroma of the spices diffused as we feasted on the mutton chops layered with a thick egg coating and longed for more and newer piquancy. Likewise, the Ulavacharu Veg Pulao, the perfect winter food was reimagined and cooked in Dum Biryani style. The paste from soaked horse gram lentils (Uluvacharu) and fragrant rice tossed in ghee savoured a nutty smell with a hint of citrus. The chef also symbolised a reminiscence of Pongal and Sankranti while cooking mashed channa daal with cardamom and jaggery to offer us the classic Bobbatlu served with hot milk. The sweet-stuffed flatbread spread bounds of local saccharinity and treacliness and we revisited the bygone festivities relishing the crispy dessert.

<em>Ulavacharu </em>Veg <em>Pulao</em>
Ulavacharu Veg Pulao

₹1,000 for two. At Jubilee Hills.

E-mail: chokita@newindianexpress.com

Twitter: @PaulChokita

Photos: Sahithi Sirikonda

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