To be honest, I wasn’t very enthusiastic about attending a thattukada festival. I mean, what do they serve at such roadside eateries except pazham pori, parippu vada, omelette, tea, coffee... An ongoing thattukada fete at Cafe Jade, Hotel Hycinth, changed my perception about the range of dishes available at such stalls, however. There were more on the platters than the ubiquitous dosas and porottas.
“Different regions of Kerala serve different eats at such eateries. For instance, chicken kurma, Thalassery meen curry and neichoru are served at the thattukadas in Malabar, while in Kottayam, varathu arachu curries, theeyal, kappa... are popular. In Thiruvananthapuram, thattu dosa, omelette and puttu are some that feature on the menu,” says a chef of the restaurant.
The restaurant has tried to recreate the feel of a roadside eatery by organising live kitchens on mock push carts. Rustic woven coconut fronds, film posters and a board with the day’s menu written in chalk…, all that was missing were long benches and tables, kerosene lamps and old Malayalam melodies.
“Most people enjoy eating at thattukadas once in a while. Thattu dosa, puttu-kadala, kappa-fish curry... everyone has a favourite dish. The monsoon is currently playing spoilsport and many cannot grab a bite at their favourite stall. At this fete, we hope to serve customers not just a feel of eating at a thattukada but the flavours as well,” says the chef.
The kitchen is busy as the chefs prepare puttu, appam and dosas as per the guest’s requests. A waiter dressed in a white t-shirt, a colourful lungi and a thorthu wrapped around his neck takes my order. I ask for a thattu dosa and an omelette.
My dosa comes piping hot with a side of coconut chutney. The aroma from the dosa holds promise and I am not disappointed. The soft dosa goes well with the delectable chutney. The omelette, however, is passé. My friend, who has ordered a plate of puttu is served steaming hot puttu with banana.
The thattukada festival is part of the restaurant’s regular dinner buffet. So, one can start with soups and work their way down to desserts. My friend tries the Kozhi rasam soup. I take a sip. Although I get the flavours of rasam, I don’t get any from the chicken.
I give the salads a go too although there is an interesting array prettily arranged on the platters. My friend tries a bit of the Papdi chaat and the Chutta kappa salad. She gives both a thumbs up. I ask for an appam and team it with the Thalassery meen curry. Unlike the fish curries I have tried before, this one is different. “We use tomato and tamarind as a base; there’s no coconut used in this dish,” says the chef.
I ask for another appam. This time I dip the appam in Malabar chicken korma. A rich gravy (it has cashew nuts, poppy seeds and fresh coconut paste), the korma is creamy and one gets the predominant essence of coriander in the curry.
The neichoru goes well with the varutharacha mutton curry and urulakizhangu varuthathu. The curry is nice and spicy with Chettinad undertones. The pieces of meat are tender and cooked to perfection, the meat falling off the bones. Urulakizhangu varuthathu is thin, fried potato wedges seasoned with chilli powder and salt.
Although there are Chocolate chip tarts, Coconut burfi, Besan ladoo, Black current mousse and more on the dessert menu, I help myself to just chocolate pudding. I don’t regret my decision although my friend says the Pineapple and mango cake, she is having is rather scrumptious. The pudding is perfect for a monsoon evening – warm, gooey and rich of chocolaty goodness. A perfect end to a good meal. The fete is on until July 27.
