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Eating
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Thiruvananthapuram offers menus for all tastes and budgets, although smart
restaurants
specializing in Keralan cuisine are thin on the ground. Most of the mid- to top-range hotels include a few local dishes in their pretty uniform multi-cuisine menus, and the
Pankaj
and
Horizon
both have pleasant rooftop restaurants. If you want to experience full-flavoured Keralan "meals" or need a cheap
dosa
-type snack, just head for one of the dozens of crowded, formica-tabled "meals" houses at lunchtime.
Amma , Central Station Road. Blissful a/c and conveniently near the stations, offering the usual south Indian snacks menu and no less than seven different types of uttappam (rice pancake). Anand Bhawan , opposite Secretariat, MG Road. Cheap, simple restaurant near the Pankaj , offering hot, fresh regional veg "meals". Arya Nivaas , Aristo Junction, Thumpanoor. Spotless vegetarian restaurant in a new hotel where you can get "meals" for less than Rs30 and an assortment of dishes such as biriyani. Hot Breads , Anna's Arcade, Spencer Junction, MG Road. Yummy fresh and hot savoury and sweet breads, pastries and snacks, including pizzas, cheese rolls and croissants. Indian Coffee House (I) , LMS Junction. Opposite the entrance to the Public Gardens, this is a clean and efficient place to down a refreshing cold coffee after sightseeing: omelettes, south Indian snacks and meals are available all day. Indian Coffee House (II) , Spencer Junction, MG Road. Small, colonial-style building, set back from the road and a sociable place to meet local students. Serves good-value snacks, meals and real filter coffee. Indian Coffee House (III) , Central Station Road. Next to the bus station and unbeatable for breakfast or a quick snack. Turbaned waiters serve dosas, wadas , omelettes and hot drinks in a bizarre spiral building designed by an eccentric British architect. Obligatory pit stop. Kalavara , Press Road (lane opposite the GPO). Past several bookshops, an upstairs restaurant above a fast-food counter, which features a mixed menu plus local cuisine including pork and beef dishes. Expect to pay around Rs70. Kerala House , next to DC Books, Statue Road. Full of atmosphere, popular and highly recommended by locals as the place to get Kerala cuisine "as mamma makes it". Lunch is "meals" and dinner is A la carte - the fish curry and steamed tapioca is particularly good. KTDC Chaithram , Central Station Road. Two restaurants: one pure veg and the other north Indian Mughlai-style. The former, a tastefully decorated air-cooled place, is the best, offering a few good-value Keralan specialities. Recommended.
Sandha
,
Pankaj Hotel
, opposite Secretariat, MG Road. Fifth-floor restaurant with a mixed menu and good-value lunch buffet and spiced-down Keralan cuisine; the ground-floor restaurant opens for breakfast. Other useful information
for tourists (each section contains more specific sub-sections): |
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India,
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