For quite a few people, South Indian food, though a favorite, often gets limited to dosa, idli and vada. But there is such diversity in the cuisine, that even categorizing the delicacies from the different regions in Southern India in one bucket is a travesty. Savya Rasa, after gaining popularity for taking people on a wonderful epicurean journey through Southern India at its outlets in Chennai and Pune, has recently opened up an outlet in Gurgaon. Savya Rasa celebrates the dishes from seven regions of Southern India- Mangaluru, Mysuru, Nellore, Kongunadu, Chettinad, Nasrani and Malabar, each with their distinct cultural identities. The people behind the brand have travelled extensively across these culinary regions and spent years learning from local cooks, chefs, grandmothers and housewives to make sure that every dish we serve is authentic.
The outlet at Gurgaon impresses from the get-go with its intricately carved wooden door, colorful glass windows that you would typically find in old houses, a beautiful Kalamkari painting hanging on one wall, and a soothing ambience made better with traditional music playing in the background, all of which add to the overall experience.
They have two flavored water options available, other than regular water- khus root water which is good to have on an empty stomach and cools the stomach down, and zeera water which is good for digestion. We started with the khus root water and kept the other one for later. There was a lovely, mild and refreshing khus flavor in the water. Then, we were served two types of papad- rice flour and sabudana with three types of pickles- raw mango, narangi and tamarind. While all three were lovely, our favorite was the spicy and sour tamarind pickle.
We had a seven course degustation menu that was specially curated for us, with items picked from all regions- with an extensive selection of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. Before starting with the degustation menu, we ordered for two drinks- Vasantha Neer and Neer Moru. Neer Moru was a spiced buttermilk, flavored with coriander and curry leaves, and Vasantha Neer was a lovely drink made with tender coconut water, lime juice and honey.
The first course consisted of rasam. The Thengai Paal Rasam was a coconut milk broth mixed with tomato puree and tempered with ghee. The consistency was a bit thick and creamy and the flavors were really robust. The Kozhi Rasam was a hearty and soothing chicken broth made with chicken stock cooked with hand pounded spices. The pepper flavor really shone through, and the chicken pieces were soft and juicy as well.
Next, we had a selection of vegetarian and non-vegetarian starters, starting with Siru Sola Varuval, a dish from the Kongunadu region, consisting of baby corn marinated with chili powder, lime juice and ginger-garlic paste, and deep fried till crispy, served along with some fried curry leaves. The batter on the baby corn was full of flavor, and the dish didn’t feel oily at all, despite being deep fried. A dish worth trying!
Next, we had the Kondakadalai Kozhukkattai, a very home-style dish again from Kongunadu. The dish had steamed rice flour dumplings tossed with chickpeas, trio of peppers and onions seasoned with hand-blended spices. The rice flour dumplings were shaped exactly like chickpeas and the resemblance was so close that only after tasting could we decipher which piece is a chickpea and which is the dumpling. This was a really light dish, with the prominent flavors being that of mustard seeds. The dish was served with some fried papad topped with a lovely spice mix.
Paneer Monica, a dish from Coimbatore, had batons of paneer marinated with kongunadu chili powder mix, deep fried to perfection and then pan tossed with curd and slit green chilies. The paneer was super soft and creamy, and the curd had given it a lovely sour flavor. This is a must-have dish!
Coming to the non-veg starters, we had Sainu Thatha’s Kozhi Kebab, a dish with Arab influences from the Malabari homemaker – Sainu Thatha. This was a really different dish consisting of griddled succulent skewered chicken delicately flavored with crushed pepper and coconut milk. The marinade was really creamy and had a slight sweetness to it from the coconut milk which was nicely counterbalanced with the pepper.
The Pacha Masala Meen Fry is another must-have dish here, consisting of a fillet of seer fish marinated with homemade spicy green masala which had a mix of curry leaves, coriander, green chilies. The fish was soft and flaky and the masala, very similar to cafreal was spicy and flavorsome.
The Venchina Mamsa Koora, a dish from Nellore, is another one that shouldn’t be missed. This was a super spicy dish consisting of tender morsels of mutton sautéed with browned onions, green chilies, ground coriander, hand-powdered spice masala and curry leaves. The mutton had imbibed the lovely flavors of the spices and chilies and was extremely delicious.
For the third course, we had two dishes paired with neer dosa and another two paired with bun parotta.
The Batata Pathanja Gassi was a gravy dish from Mangaluru, consisting of potato cubes and green gram sprouts stewed in a creamy coconut gravy with garlic, tomato, onions and curry leaves. The Kori Gassi was a rich and creamy chicken curry made from coconut milk, flavored with garlic and curry leaves and we enjoyed both of these dishes with neer dosa, a delicate crepe made with rice batter and coconut oil.
The Kalaan Thirattal from Kongunadu was a thick curry made with button mushrooms, groundnuts, shallots and red chilies, and had a creamy, velvety texture. The Pollachi Kari Kuzhambu had tender mutton pieces simmered with drumstick and aubergine, flavored with cinnamon, cardamom, fennel and black pepper. The mutton was soft and the gravy was delicate but full of flavor.
We enjoyed both these dishes with Bun Parotta, which was a star! It was a fluffy multi-layered bread made with refined wheat flour, egg and butter, and was much crispier and flakier than Malabar paranthas.
The fourth course had two amazing rice dishes- the Vetrilai Poondu Saadam was a stellar dish made with short grain rice flavored with digestive betel leaves and fried garlic – a secret recipe from the land of the Cheras, from Kongunadu. This has to be one of the best vegetarian biryanis we’ve had, and the combination of the fried garlic and the betel leaves imparted so much flavor to the dish. The dish was served with Thengai Thayir Pachadi, a coconut and yogurt raita. The Kozhi Chatti Biryani had tender pieces of chicken, pot-roasted and flavored with nutmeg, cinnamon and carom seeds, slow-cooked with short grain rice, from Chettinad. This spicy, flavorsome biryani was served with Thayir Pachadi or onion raita.
The fifth course had Thayir Saadham or curd rice, to cool our stomachs down after all the dishes we’d had so far. This delicacy from the region of Kongunadu had steamed ponni rice mixed with yogurt and tempered with mustard seeds, carrot and fried curry leaves. The curd rice was served with deep fried curd chilies, and if you’ve never tried these chilies, you’re really missing something.
The sixth course had desserts- Elaneer Payasam and Badam Halwa. The Elaneer Payasam was a light, delicate and mildly sweetened dish made with tender coconut water and tender coconut milk, and had some fresh coconut pieces in it as well, and was delightful. The Badam Halwa, a classic sweet made with badam paste and sweetened with sugar, was really rich and full of ghee.
Our seventh and last course consisted of Filter Kaapi and Sulaimani Tea, which were served with four types of sugar- plain sugar, brown sugar, palm sugar and coconut sugar. We especially loved the flavor of the palm sugar and coconut sugar. The filter coffee had a strong brew made with freshly roast and ground Arabica coffee beans. The Sulaimani Tea was a robust tea flavored with cardamom, cinnamon and bay leaf.
Since a lot of these dishes were new for us, our served Dinesh explained the origins, ingredients and preparation of each dish, which made the experience even better.
Overall, Savya Rasa provides amazing food and a view into the richness of the cuisines from Southern India in a lovely ambience, with exceptional service. This place is highly recommended!
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