Karunaas Veg

What to eat: Idly, Dosa and Parotta

Where: Karunaas Vegetarian Restaurant, Arunachalam Road, Saligramam

Verdict: Despite the fact of being a hardcore non-vegetarian, sometimes I had to give up my principles because of friends and family. Tonight my friends were keen on vegetarian meal for dinner due to Purattasi Saturday. Though it caused immense sadness to me, I had to suggest them "thirunelveli saivaal" hotel in Saligramam.

As the thirunelveli hotel was closed bit early, we had to go to a nearby eatery. Few weeks back we had lunch at the non veg restaurant of Karunas in upstairs. Tonight we opted for the vegetarian restaurant in the ground floor.

Literally there are no limits on the amount of sambar, 3 types of chutney (coconut / mint / tomato) and Vattha kulambu. Even the aviyal and kuruma were served till we say stop.

Here is the list of dishes what we had for dinner.

Idly(10₹) - It was a regular idly when eaten with sambar or chutney. But vatta kulambu enhanced the taste to a higher level.

Garlic Dosai(60₹) - A spicy dosa made of dosa batter mixed with ground garlic. Gunpowder was sprinkled at the center with some onion as stuffing. All of us appreciated the taste.

Baby corn Dosai(60₹) - Regular plain dosa with baby corn masala stuffing. Felt like masala was over spiced. But my friends liked it.

Veg Kottu Parotta(60₹) - Never had such a good veg Kottu earlier. Loved the aroma and the fillings like potato and carrot. It was served with veg kuruma. But I prefer to have it alone.

Adai Aviyal(50₹) - Almost tasted like a home-made. We asked for little aviyal and had it with chutney.

Thooduvalai (Solanum Trilobatum) Dosai (40₹) - Though it is not a tasty one, I wanted to have it as I was suffering from cold. Thooduvalai is a creeper which is used as a remedy for cold in villages in Tamil Nadu. Thooduvalai leaves were ground and added to the dosa batter before cooking the dosa. They also have vallarai(generally given to kids for brain development) and mudakattan (balloon vine plant leaves used to treat joint pain) dosai.

Filter coffee (20₹) - A big let down. Tasted almost like an instant coffee.

Dinner for four of us costs 400₹. Parking is a big problem if you come in a four-wheeler as this eatery is located on one of the busiest roads in Vadapalani area. But two-wheelers can be parked in front of the restaurant. Not sure if they accept plastic, generally cash is the king in such smaller eateries.