“There's a new place in town for vegetarians,” shouts one of my strictly vegetarian friends over the phone, excitement ringing in his voice contrary to the common complaint that Madurai lacks options for people who don't eat meat! So, I walk into the engulfing aroma of crispy dosas at the newly-opened Cafe Udupi Ruchi, opposite Gandhi Museum. The well-lit ambience, welcoming staff and an enticing menu, make for a good first impression. The four-year-old food chain is known for its ready-to-cook recipes and has opened its third outlet in the State at Madurai. “The varieties of dosas and idlis may sound familiar, but our taste is entirely different,” vouches Abhishek N Murali, Director of Udupi Ruchi. “All the recipes are standardised in the factory so that the consistency in taste and quality is maintained. Our pre-mixed recipes come with the right and tested amounts of everything from salt and sugar to even the condiments such a mustard, cumin and fennel seeds needed for the tadka.We don't depend on skilled labour. There's no chef in our kitchen but we take in rural youth and train them for 45 days to cook with our ingredients.”
He suggests the combo-breakfast that packs in a good variety, quantity and taste. The idlis are ultra-soft and unbelievably fluffy, the upma and pongal with a liberal amount of ghee melt in the mouth while the mini masala-dosa is an absolute delight. What makes the dishes stand out is the unmistakable tinge of typical Udupi flavour, that's surely new to the Madurai palate. For instance, the sambar is thinner with the tang of tomato instead of the strong tamarind flavour that's common here. The coconut chutney has more of roasted Bengal gram in it and the Kesari is a cousin of the Karnataka Shira with a subtle Pineapple flavour. “Udupi cuisine involves some intricate cooking methods which we have simplified with our readymade mixes. We aim at being a fast food chain that offers traditional recipes,” says Abhishek.
The menu also offers some exclusive Udupi-Mangalorean fare such as Goli bajji, Malpe rolls, Neer dosa, Akki roti and Uppu puli dosa. I sign up for each of these and first comes the Uppu puli dosa – brick red in colour with discs of onions and a blob of butter on it. With a faint salt-sour flavour, the dosa tantalises the taste buds. Follows the Malpe rolls which are sliced crispy dosa rolls stuffed with a sweet filling of grated coconut and jaggery. The Akki roti is equally enticing with two pieces of rotis made of rice flour, finely chopped onions, green chilli and coriander and had with tomato and coconut chutneys. “There's no place that serves special Karnataka items in the city. I am sure these may emerge as our hot-sellers,” says Ramesh R, the franchisee of the restaurant in Madurai and partner of The Thangam Foods. “I did ground study for over three months and found that vegetarian joints in Madurai have been characterised by Kadala-mavu sambar and vatha kozhambu for a long time now. People find it boring and there's a need for something exciting. That's how, I zeroed in on Udupi Ruchi.”
Ready-to-cook mixes are the future of cooking, says Abhishek. “There's a general perception that any fast-food is unhealthy and not authentic. But, our mixes are dry-blended and entirely natural as we maintain less than three per cent of water content which in turn improves shelf life without the usage of chemical preservatives. Even our colouring agents in dishes like Kesari or tomato soup are vegetable extracts. We use turmeric extract for the kesari and beetroot extract for the soup. The fermenting agent for idli and dosa flour is a tapioca extract and nothing chemical. So, our products are absolutely healthy and harmless.”
Cafe Udupi Ruchi is open from 7 am to 11 pm.
HAVEN FOR VEGETARIANS
@ Near Poonga Murugan Temple, Opp. To Gandhi Museum
HIT: Special recipes of Udupi cuisine
MISS: The stuffing inside the masala-dosa was a bit insipid
TEL: 2520557