I haven’t been too interested in food these days, as the taste has bothered me less; but still I have my favourite places for every food item, both the vegetarian and the non-vegetarian, as well as the drinks. This list is based on the restaurants around Aluva and Perumbavoor, on the north eastern side of the city of Cochin, and are part of the Greater Cochin Area or the extended Kochi Metropolitan Area, within fifty kilometres from the centre of the city, and not more than an hour and half journey from the city unless there is the worst traffic problem.
Masala Dosa is the best at Anna Gowri Restaurant, Aluva – I have found the right combination of both the masala and dosa with the quantity being exact, rather than having too much masala or just those huge potatoes which make it only a potato dosa. But if you want some special varities of the same, you might want to try the Saravana Bhavan at Perumbavoor which has Paneer Masala Dosa and a good number of special ones available after twelve PM, and the menu changes every day. The Idli there is nice too.
Navya Bakers brings the need to travel to Aluva and watch movie there.
For the Ghee Dosa, the Dosa Corner at Perumbavoor is a very nice choice, followed by the Annapoorna Restaurant at the same place. For Vegetable Biriyani, I have always tried the Kammath’s Inn at Aluva, while for Poori Masala I have preferred the Shenoy’s Restaurant at theh same town. For all kinds of Oothappam, whether it is of onion or tomato, I have always preferred Anna Lakshmi restaurant at Aluva, located at Desom to be exact – it was my best find during my times at the Union Christian College.
The best Biriyani Rice or Ghee Rice and the best Beef Biriyani is from Orma Restaurant, Perumbavoor, followed by the Honeywell Restaurant at the same town. The favourite in the case of Chicken Biriyani goes back to Aluva, at the Grand Restaurant while the best for all kinds of beef curry, especially Chill Beef goes to the Surya Restaurant at Aluva. The best curries of chicken was from Taal, a restaurant at Aluva which no longer exists, much to my disappointment.
The best tea is from Indian Coffee House, and as far as I know, they have the best coffee too. They are also the best when it comes to the cutlets, and they are close to the railway station and the bus stand at Aluva, which makes them an easy place to visit. Then there is the hope to have shake, and it should be the Navya Bakers at Aluva which can also boast about having the best Vegetable, Meat, Egg and Chicken Puffs – and they are like my all-time favourite bakery along with Ceecee which has its existence at Perumbavoor, followed by Kumars.
Ceecee Bakery has had a long “cutlet” relationship with my childhood.
From Aryaas at Aluva and Perumbavoor, there is also that nice combination of Fried Rice and Paneer Butter Masala. The new restaurants just keep coming, especially at Aluva, where there are so many more than those which had seen a few months ago. It just adds to the confusion about where to eat from, and even having tea has become more the confusion. We have often stood on the side of the road worried, as there were just too many options to choose from.
The doubts about food; we can never really move out of it. Indian Coffee House has been one entity – that chain of awesome restaurants which solved that problem up-to an extent. But the chain no longer works in Perumbavoor and Muvattupuzha which has left a big void on the MC Road, as it never existed at the next towns Koothattukulam, Kuravilangad and Ettumanoor either. Let’s hope that we can make a good list about the restaurants which are around the major towns. Who knows when we need to have that tea and some food? 😀
TeNy
The Tea Cerebrations 