A chef once told me that I had to be drunk to enjoy his 'Potlam Rice,' that was created for the Saturday Night market! While I've never understood the why and what behind that, I was surprised to see the Toddy Curry festival at Ente Keralam. A cuisine dedicated for the 'Post Alcohol' times? My friend, a seasoned drinker was excited and so went!!!
And he explained the 'science' to me. When I mentioned this quote by a chef, he immediately related to it. He said that the senses are enhanced and at the same time there is a higher tolerance for spice. The waiter who overheard us said that the food during this festival was higher in spice and the chef, who went around the tables asking people if everything was okay, joined in. Having a Kerala link, my friend was eager to get the cuisine of the Toddy shops! The waiter and my friend became buddies and were exchanging notes on how the toddy is so good and how the real ones are now scarce to find and how the food in those shops are excellent. I was listening. And waiting for the food to come!!!
So we started with the cutlets. Just two pieces, loaded with chicken and crisp and spicy. Went down in no time. And the dry beef fry. Simple and nice. Toddy or no toddy, when in Ente Keralam, I will make sure I have their appams and Kerala parottas. So, we got one each and went with the curry from the festival, a super nice spicy chicken gravy. My friend wanted fish and me not being a fish-fan, ended up quite liking it. Two gravies is a little too much for two people, but the drinker was adamant. The appams and parottas were fabulous as they always are. Mr. Drinker was having a moment with the fish gravy. And then he wanted Tapioca biriyani. Glad he ordered that because it was quite yum, though I found it difficult to accept as biriyani in anyway. We finished with a little dessert, I don't know the name of and it wasn't outstanding in anyway......
I thought the food was nice. Mr. Drinker thought the food was fantastic. He was having orgasms.
While I will never understand the post alcohol cuisine, at least I understood my friend's version of the 'science' behind it, and ended up enjoying the food. Meal for two will cost about Rs. 1000 here. This festival is on till the 20th of this month, but the appams and parottas are available throughout the year!!!
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