Utter the words “Kalle kudipake poka?” (Let’s get a drink?) and the Coorgs in the city will nod whole heartedly. And with Cheers Coorg, a labour of love of a couple from the hilly region, it’s also about the eating while drinking, as is the case with the traditional hunters in the Kodava hinterland!
The new restaurant’s owners Appaiah and Kajal decided to bring ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking to the restaurant business — brandishing the ‘tipple-happy, odikathi-wielding, warrior’s cuisine.’ The couple sent a few eager beaver cooks to Coorg, to learn the intricacies of Kachampulli and pandi.
They roped in Kajal’s mom’s traditional recipes and her National Institute of Design expertise with Appaiah’s foodie-cum-business acumen and came out all guns blaring! Odikathi, peethekathi and all, quite like its logo implies.
In most cases, the restaurant precedes the home delivery, but here it was the other way around and they are only wiser because of it.
Though right now, there is ‘apparently’ nothing to say cheers about (the liquor license is still being processed), we found the ‘pandi’ and experience heartening. So while many spirited Coorgs might abstain from going there till the tipple flows, others can go gorge on the Pandi perperations.
Enter this ‘old estate home-like’ atmosphere resplendent with peeks into history on the walls which is spacious and tastefully rendered. If you’d like to Pandi around the papputtu, with some hearty Coorgs as company, this is where will get a meal straight from Appaiah’s mom-in-law’s estate kitchen.
“She is the key architect and though our cooks are not from Coorg, they were trained in our very own ‘offsite’!” says the owner who is still ‘soul searching’ for more authentic old tradition and family photographs from Kodava history. About the lack of alcohol, Appaiah shrugs stoically, “Well, I’ve been walking on a minefield thanks to that but we will get it soon.”
A lot of heart has gone into the venture — It’s visible in the attention to detail — be it the glass partition made up of Appaiah’s shining wedding kummerband, the snippets of Coorg history and it’s obsession with ‘which family you belong to’ or the small niches on various levels reminiscent of a coffee plantation home with some spectacular Mark Swaroop wedding collection photographs. The manager, Rakesh Gurung is on top of it while the waiters stand expectantly, with tablet in hand!
Let the ‘meating’ begin We started with fresh juice— the passion fruit was sweet and the bitter orange or kaipuli was refreshing.
There’s gooseberry too. Next came the Chilkana pandi, a meaty blend of onion, green chillies with Kachampulli which was tender, tangy with spicy overtones.
The Kachampulli Fish Fry came next which was sour, with flakey pieces of bassa that had imbibed the tang of the vinegar so well. Four pieces marinated and panfried with pepper — Absolutely delectable.
“The popular dishes are of course Pandi curry and koli curry though Chuttada is my favourite, a burnt charcoal pork that is traditionally a hunting recipe. These starters are good with alcohol, as should be the case,” Appaiah says.
We of course did justice to the spicy, gravyful, perfectly cooked pandi curry with akki roti and sannas.
Freshness, with just the right balance of kachampulli and spice with fluffy akki as the perfect accompaniment. The chicken curry came next, in a coconut gravy, it was light, flavourful and great with sannas.
The mango curry, bayembale or bamboo shoot, chekke fry or raw jack fruit and the immensely popular mushroom curry will keep the vegetarians a happy lot too.
The yerchi pulav is another great option, mutton pulav served with mango paji and of course the Wanku Yerchi, a family recipe of smoked slices of dried pork cooked in chillies. You can also gorge on staples like kadamputtu, paaputtu and noolputtu.
“We source local ingredients from the Mahila Samaj which helps local ladies of the region. I am a foodie and love my meat … A lot of thought has gone into everything. Our desserts — Coconut soufflé and caramel custard are made by my mother-in-law and we also do pickles and apricot brandy,” he adds.
The ambience is spot on, in terms of comfort, design sensibility and placing of tables with a sense of ease and openness. The waiters know their menu, thankfully. Prices are on the higher side but the taste will surely make you go back again, and again.
There are plans to open a terrace lounge once the liquor license is in place which Appaiah hopes will be a platform for college bands to perform. Till then though, the pandi is surely enough.
source: http://www.DeccanChronicle.com / Home> Channels> Lifestyle> Dine o Mite / by Suruchi Kapur-Gomes, DC, Bengaluru / October 06th, 2012
