For the love of dosa (and idli and uthapam
and…)
Apart from the terrific food, Carnatic Café is
inspiring for its commitment to its roots, eschewing fashionable frippery for
good, old fashioned substance. The café is a jewel tucked into a corner of
desperately dirty New Friends Colony market. Thankfully once you get inside the
cheerful little restaurant you can forget about the filth of NFC and focus on
the excellent, authentic south Indian food owner Pavan Jambogi is going to
serve you.
Looks Like
The space is bustling, bright and simply furnished
with a smattering of well taken photographs on the walls, the effect is very
pleasant and accurately reflects the ethos of the restaurant – cheerful,
efficient and focused on what they do best, the food.
TASTES LIKE
I can’t even begin to describe how happy I get when
see a restaurant with an owner who knows his strengths, keeps it simple and plays
to them. Elevating south Indian food above the homogenized idli-dosa routine
that most Delhi restaurants provide, Carnatic Café is authentic but still
exciting.
My favourite is their Rava Idli, pillowy soft, studded with lentils and curry leaves it’s
served with an exquisitely cinnamon-y, chunky curry. If you’ve made peace with the
calories tuck in to the dense, perfectly crisped Bambatt Dosa, rich with the warm, fragrant flavor of cinnamon and
spice. The skilled addition of gunpowder, cinnamon and other authentic flavours
makes familiar food like uthapams, dosas and idlis unexpected and delightful. The
superlative Mahabaleshwar 18th
Cross Dosa is more traditional and filling with a lovely, tangy layer of
gunpowder and white butter slathered on the inside.
The Raagi Dosa is another healthy option that won’t make you regret your diet – the millet adds a gratifying grainy texture to the preparation. Wash all this food down with the soothing, salty buttermilk or the fiery Rasam as per your preference but don’t forget the sublime filter coffee at the end of the meal.
FEELS LIKE
The quality of food being served up at Carnatic Café and
their prices seem entirely unrelated. You can have a very filling meal for
under INR 1,000 without any difficulty. People recognize value when they see it
though so the place tends to be very busy – the owner and staff do a pretty
good job of managing the hungry hordes. Their familiarity with their menu is
particularly notable and this is one of the few restaurants in Delhi where the
staff actually make helpful suggestions and menu recommendations.
This is going on my list of favourite places to eat in Delhi.
Should you go: If you love south Indian food you
should have been there already
Vegetarian Options: Only
Liquor License: No
Smoking Area: No
Address: Ground Floor, India Mall Community Centre,
New Friends Colony
Phone: 011 30146022 Extn: 925
3 comments:
Sounds like a lovely place. Somehow everytime we go to NFC, we just end up stuffing ourselves with shawarma,and it's not too often we to NFC in the first place. But I really do miss good South Indian, and this palce sounds perfect.
mahabaleshwar? are you sure it isn't malleshwaram?
I really like the place . I also like this devices of this restaurant.
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