Mint Padmanabhan at The Music Academy

I have this gang of friends, one morning one of them began this thread on "Shall we go try Music academy lunch one of these days" and soon there was a buzz and we zeroed in on a  date and plan was in place.. 

We headed to Music Academy around 12.30, a friend had already reached and picked up lunch coupons. The line was long, it snaked around and we stood in it for nearly 20mins before we found empty spots. 

There was a small area where round tables and chairs were placed, people were having snacks and mini meals. And for the main lunch, there were tables and chairs laid out like in a wedding. The five of us sat down and eagerly looked forward to the food. We had seen the menu earlier in the morning and it had a few interesting dishes. 

Priced at Rs220, this was good value for money and quite umm as well.. Loved the Pavakkai Pitlai and Motichoor laddoo :)

What was amazing was we noticed the line was still long and people waited patiently for their turn.. !

Mountbatten Mani Iyer canteen at Vidya Bharati Kalyana Mandapam

It was Saturday, the day after Christmas.. I had decided to give Sabha Lunch a shot. Waited for the clock to chime 9:30 [cos that is when puliyogare travels would share the menu ] to decide where to head. Each sabha [hall] has a different caterer and there are meals from Breakfast, lunch, evening tiffin and dinner as well. So, it was such a treat for people here to go explore the treats across the sabhas during the one month. This is a trend that has picked up over the last few years, earlier the sabhas were renowned just for their evening snacks. Now, there are people who go to a sabha not for the concert but for the food.. ;o) 

Coming back, I saw the menu shared [ the toss was between Music Academy and Vidya Bharati Mandapam], asked a friend if she wanted to join in for Mountbatten Mani Iyer canteen's sappaad at Vidya Bharati Kalyana Mandayam and she agreed.Mount Sreenivasan of the famous Mountbatten Mani Iyer canteen is the man behind this company.. Few minutes later mom called asking about something, and I mentioned this plan and instantly she said she too shall join us! So, the plan was made and excitement was building. 

We landed at Vidya Bharathi Kalyana Mandayam close to 1pm, it is tucked away in a narrow lane and was quite an adventure getting there. While I waited for the friend, mom went and checked out the menu. I then went ahead and picked up three lunch coupons and made a beeline for the empty chairs. 

The menu for the day was [right side column],

The food was piping hot, and though it was weird eating on a banana leaf somewhere outside of a wedding/function, it was a good experience. I bumped into a few familiar faces, also saw how people came in groups and alone to enjoy this meal. Food was served at a good pace, there was repeat requests and servings. The meal was quite filling and for the 1st time in my life the leaf was clean when I got up . We also grabbed a cup of coffee to finish off the meal.

Priced at Rs275 it was total Value for money...