Kerala Kitchen

Critic´s Review

• Food: 3 / 5
• Service: 3.5 / 5
• Decor: 3 / 5

-By Swati Sucharita

Intro: Positioning itself as a fine-dining speciality restaurant, Kerala Kitchen is a welcome addition to the small clutch of restaurants in Hyderabad offering cuisine from God's Own Country.

Decor: 3

There is the mandatory brass lamp at the entrance lobby, besides a carved wooden boat, and a retail counter offering packaged snacks, like banana chips and artifacts. Otherwise, the feel is pretty ordinary.

Food: 3

For a taste of everything Kerala, you could begin with the vegetarian thali, which offers you red (or white) rice, avial, thoran, sambar (subtly tempered with hing and pepper), rasam, pappadam, pachamoru (spiced buttermilk kadhi, delicious), mulakuvaruthatu, vegetable stew (to be paired with a choice of appam, Kerala Parotta or chapati), payasam, besides pickle and 'pachadi' (chutney) of the day. There are also Fish and Chicken Curry Meal options. On the menu is the coconut and rice steamed delight Puttu, served from the container hot and banana-wrapped, which you could team with Kadala Curry, the black chana spicy curry, loaded with onions and coconut pieces. Fish lovers could try the Karimeen Pollichathu, which is the famed pearl spot fish fried and then wrapped in a banana leaf, to be burnt in an oven. I liked the spice quotient of the dish, as well as the freshness of the fish, but didn't quite agree with the cashew garnish, would have preferred curry leaves instead. The more popular Meen Moilee, fish curry simmered in coconut milk, was however bland, and didn't have the nice creamy punch that the gravy usually has, and the fish tasted like paper.

Plus and Minus

There are two separate kitchens for vegetarian and non-veg food, for those who are finicky. Service is friendly and eager to please. However, Kerala Kitchen doesn't still add up to a satisfactory authentic culinary experience from Kerala, even though some parts, (like the side dishes on the veg thali) are quite good. But its early days, so lets hope things get better.

Summing Up:

Decent Kerala Sadya, served with a smile.