March 11, 2010

The Chennai Chronicles VI- Juicy Chat

In my early days in Chennai, I was amused by people saying - Shall we go for chat? -pronouncing it as 'chat' !! Now the word is not as mispronounced and there are many eateries which offer you good chaat.

But true authentic bhel lovers will find the murmura ( puffed rice ) here too thick- it is more the jaalmurri kind.

Here are some of the outlets that we like:

Madras Bhel puri- in T nagar- a small little stall in the lane beside Naidu Hall and Raymonds- the guy makes a delightful bhel salad

Kailash Parbat- the most recent one to open in Chennai - helps relive my Bombay days- they even made me sukhi bhel or at least attempted to!

Ajnabee- In Egmore, with lots of Gujju farsaan as well

Shree Mithai- Best at Chetpet but available at other branches

Mansukhs- in T nagar and Alwarpet, more known for their Rajasthani thali

Street shop- Nungambakkam- Outside Karishma boutique

Makkhan chor- a taste of Mathura- Cenotaph road

Gangotree- multiple branches, we like the T nagar one a lot

Cream Centre- St Marys road and Nungambakkam- Fantastic stuff- you can even opt for a chat platter

Just revisited the OTBT series I had done long ago and my old write up on Chennai street food for Metro Mela (the pics that have been updated seem irrelevant though) .

As for juice, go here :

Gream's road Fruit shop

Haji Ali Juice Centre off Greams Road

Aavin stalls offer yummy buttermilk called "more"

The juice shops at Kovai Pazhamadir- all branches

Also try out these local juice shops:

- The juice shop opp Kirtilals in Alwarpet

- The juice counter at the Petrol bunk next to Pizza Hut Nungambakkam

- The roadside coconut water guy

- and the Neera that you get occasionally

Wow! I got this award from itchy. Flattered even more by what she had to say about me and the company I am in! Though each and every blogger I know is creative in one way or another , I would like to particularly pass the award on to:

Shruthi

Sheela

TPLover

Sugarcraft

Tulika

Keep the creative juices flowing! It is so energising !

12 comments:

Ron said...

Long time lurker, first time commenting...I love the Greams Road Fruit Shop. Every time Im in Chennai, I havvvveee to go visit. I wish they would expand their business to Bangalore.

starry eyed said...

Now you've made my mouth water...and here we are trying to avoid eating paani puri from the street guy near our building :)

Anonymous said...

i love ajnabee. what wouldn't i give for some hot samosa, followed by a pack of their ghatias. with chili pickle. yum!

Unknown said...

Wow!! hope u get to do such a post on bangalore very soon!! :)

n thanks for the awards.. its up here
http://mindfull-meanderings.blogspot.com/2009/07/awards.html

Choxbox said...

same as starry: mouth watering!

Trendsetters said...

thk u for all the lovely placces...its been a while since we ve been to chennai

Sheela said...

OMG, artnavy, this post brought back mouth-watering memories! My favorite chaat haunt was Canopy at Alwarpet jn., right by the Anjaneyar temple there - mainly 'coz it was walking distance from our house and near the bus stop where I got off every evening... not sure if it is still there... and the one in Luz corner - forget the name - was inside the little complex by Gani I think...

Thanks for the award, artnavy!

The Print Lover said...

My fave was Sangeetha's at Numgambakkam. And Sudha's for chaat, next to Dasaprakash. And the prasadham at Parathasarathy Kovil. Yummy. Esp their athirasam.

Thanks for the award Art! Will do a "creative" post soon.

Anonymous said...

Aey! I am like 1 week old to Chennai, and this is very helpful. How about listing shopping places for kids and women...appreciate it. tx

Artnavy said...

Do keep adding on your favourites to this list so I can check them out as well... :-)

dipali said...

I know I'm really late out here, but better late than never. I just loved this entire series of posts. Even though I was staying in the boondocks, (Gummidipoondi) I was close enough to Chennai to develop a lasting love for this beautiful city.
I hope you find your stay in Bengaluru as fruitful and enriching as your stay in Chennai has been. Knowing you, I'm sure it will be. When do you shift?

Arundhati said...

U were right, I did like this. Although it would have been awesome if I had some of that bhel while reading :) Joining the ranks of those who r looking fwd to ur B'lore version. If you do find some place for decent sukhi bhel, please please let me know ! I knew a marwari family in koramangala who were running a 'side business' in the evenings out of their garage with their maharaj dishing up chaat incl. sukhi bhel, but sadly they closed down long back :(