Karavalli Celebrations at Clubhouse, Taj Club House

Taj Clubhouse is celebrating 25 years of Karavalli, the award-winning iconic restaurant at The Gateway Hotel Residency Road Bangalore with a special menu from the coastal regions of South West India.  Chef Ganesh Sheregar from Karavalli had been flown down for the festival and we got the opportunity to meet him as well.

[Image courtesy: Taj]

The menu is quite large and is served Buffet & A la carte style.  Some interesting dishes on the menu include the Oggaraneda Aritha Pundi (Steamed rice dumplings, flavored with coconut and cumin); Koli Barthad (Succulent pieces of chicken, pan- fried in a blend of roasted spices and the tart flavours of Coorg vinegar); Allapuzha Meen Curry (Cubes of Seer Fish, simmered in a moderately spiced gravy of freshly ground coconut, ginger and raw mangoes); Kori Dosa that is ideally eaten with Kori Gassi (Tender pieces of chicken, cooked with finely ground fresh coconut, byadgi chillies, coriander and tamarind) or Kadala Curry [Kerala style black channa cooked in a gravy format] and/or Pachakkari Stew (Seasonal vegetables gently simmered in creamy coconut milk).

The evening opened with the in house Chef Siddique telling us a bit about the dishes in store, and how there was bound to be a lot of similarities with Kerala & Goan cuisine- coconut, curry leaves, mild spices and so on. We were then served the starters on the table- veggies got Coconut coriander pakoras of sort while the non veggies got Crab & Fish. It was served with a range of chutneys and dips, that included Chammandis [red chilli and green chilli version], and all kinds of pachadis- carrot, tomato, cucumber and many others…

We also got a portion of Oggarraneda Aritha Pundi (Steamed rice dumplings, flavored with coconut and cumin) – loved it, it was almost like ammini kozhukattais.

Apart from this, the buffet also held in store a variety of vadams [ bitter guard, mor milagai, nendram pazham, and few others] along with some pickles as well [ loved the garlic pickle and gonghura chutney among the lot]

Ok, enough digressing. After the starters, we wandered about the buffet and sampled quite a few dishes. There was neer dosa that went well with kadala curry. And then there was tamarind rice, red unpolished rice along with sambar, not to forget the veggie sides- Cauliflower Therattal (cauliflower cooked with onion tomato masala), Bhende Bardez (Goan specialty okra cooked tempered with coconut), Matti Gulla Gujju (udipi brinjal cooked with onion tomato and fresh coconut), Mirapakkai Pacha Pattani Igguru (Chili & green peas cooked with coconut & aromatic spices) to name a few.   Oh and special mention to the Pineapple Rasam that was sweet yet spicy and added a zing to the evening…

And for the grand finale there was the trio of desserts- Tender coconut ice cream, Dodol and Bibinca.. These were quite different from what we had earlier at another restaurant. The Dodol was warm, different texture and I loved this one. Similarly, the Bibinca too was close to what I had in Goa…

This festival is on till the 27^th.. So for those of you who love coastal flavours, make a plan!

Where: Clubhouse restaurant at Taj Club House off Anna Salai, Chennai.

When: Till Sep 27.
Lunch: A la carte average rate for a couple around Rs.2,200 tax included
Dinner: Buffet Rs.1,700 per person tax included

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 :-)