New restaurant in Pune is serving South Indian food without a fuss

Idlis

There is something deeply reassuring about walking into a restaurant that knows exactly what it wants to be. On a mid-week afternoon, when we visited &Chutney in Balewadi, Pune, we found no kitschy interiors, no hour-long queues fuelled by PR hype, or towering dosas engineered for reels. Instead, there were clean tables, a neat open kitchen, the aroma of fresh chutney, and the comforting sound of batter hitting a hot cast-iron tawa.

Food for thought

Masala Dosa

The first thing that strikes you as you enter is a board that says ‘No Sambar. Only Chutney.' Inspired by Bengaluru's iconic darshinis, the restaurant serves its dosas and idlis with chutney alone, trusting the flavours to stand on their own. "Many of my relatives live in Bengaluru. Several eateries there don't serve sambar, only chutney. Diners in Pune find this concept strange. When they realise we won't serve sambar, they order fewer dishes. Then, they try the chutney, like it, and order more. This has happened multiple times," 26-year-old founder Yash Agarwal reveals.

Founders Sayee Karmarkar (extreme left) and Yash Agarwal (extreme right) with the team. PICS COURTESY/&Chutney; SUPRITA MITTER

The menu is intentionally small. There are crisp dosas (Rs 65) that crackle delicately before revealing a soft inside. The idlis (Rs 40) are delightfully light where portions disappear almost as soon as you've popped them into your mouth as is their delicious home-style Upma. Our favourite part? Nothing feels excessive - not too much butter, or ghee.

Puliyogare

A rotating menu of rice preparations changes through the week, giving regulars something new to look out for. We tried the Puliyogare (Rs 95), but what caught our attention on the menu board was a ‘Mushroom Fried Rice' (Rs 95) that's served on Fridays. "This is an Andhra-style preparation. The rice is a bit sticky, and is seasoned with Byadgi Mirchi. It's a different flavour unlike Chinese-style Fried Rice," Agarwal explains. We ended the meal with Pineapple Sheera (Rs 50) which had no food colouring and had just the right amount of sweetness.

Kitchen backstory

Idli Vada

&Chutney isn't just another South Indian eatery in Pune. There's an inspiring back story to boot. At a time when students are speaking up for better access to education and protesting policies they believe threaten their future, conversations around classrooms have become louder than ever. While discussions on education in terms of jobs, salaries, enrolments, examinations and policy reforms, are common, rarely do they look at the quieter ways where education changes lives.

Agarwal's culinary journey began when he started cooking for his classmates. "I started cooking when I was in Grade 6," he recalls. "My classmates and I lived in the same neighbourhood (Karve Nagar, Pune). We'd contribute money, buy a packet of milk on the way home, and I'd make Cold Coffee and Pav Bhaji for everyone." Those after-school experiments planted a seed. It wasn't part of a school assignment or a business plan. It was simply something he loved doing. The difference was that someone noticed.

As a student at a Teach For India school, Agarwal found teachers who encouraged his interests instead of dismissing them as hobbies. "The exposure that you get in a Teach For India classroom is immense. It's difficult to get such a platform if you are not going to an expensive school only meant for the privileged." That encouragement eventually led him to pursue vocational studies in Hotel Management, followed by a degree in Hospitality. Alongside college, he worked part-time at Starbucks, co-founded a vegan smoothie brand, and ran a cloud kitchen for three years. He finally opened & Chutney with co-founder Sayee Karmarkar this year. It's a reminder that education is rarely only about textbooks.

Dosa democracy

There is another philosophy quietly running through the restaurant, one that perhaps deserves even more attention. South Indian food has undergone a curious transformation in India's biggest cities over the past few years. New restaurants launch every month promising Benne Dosas dripping with butter, Podi Dosas layered with spice mixes, elaborate Ghee Roasts and inventive regional variations. The food is often good, but the prices tell another story. Spending Rs 250 or Rs 300 on a single dosa has become surprisingly normal.

"The younger crowd is taken by the Benne Dosa. Students from a coaching class nearby often come in asking for it because they've seen it on social media. They want to take pictures, and post them, and they're willing to pay more for that experience. When they don't find it on our menu, many walk away. But when they return with their families, they usually eat here because their parents love the food," he laughs.

Slow and steady

Rather than approaching affordability as a marketing hook, Agarwal treats it as good hospitality. "We wanted people to think of us when they needed a quick filter coffee before work, an idli or dosa after dropping children to school or a rice plate during lunch. Our repeat rate at the moment is around 40 per cent, which is rare in the food industry."

There were no paid promotions, and no carefully orchestrated influencer launches. The founders chose to let people discover the restaurant organically, believing genuine recommendations would matter more than sponsored enthusiasm. The crowds came anyway. "We know that social media is important, but we wanted to focus on food and hoped the rest would fall into place."

In a world where restaurants increasingly feel designed for the camera, this one thrives on the simple idea of an affordable, honest neighbourhood restaurant that is a part of everyday life.

AT Shop no 18 and 19, Elite Premio, Laxmi Nagar, Balewadi Gaon, Balewadi, Pune.
CALL 7666100789
LOG ON TO @andchutney