A pocket-friendly traditional banana leaf thali at a new eatery fills the void for hearty South Indian fare in Mulund and is a welcome discovery for foodies in the suburb
Special banana leaf lunch
As an alumnus of Matunga’s Ruia College, indulging in the most wholesome South Indian fare in the city at pocket-friendly prices was a boon for students like us. Those early culinary exploits spoiled us and set a benchmark when it came to food and hospitality, especially with this fare. Since the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, we have missed our Mysore dosas from Ram Ashraya, onion uttapam at Sharda Bhavan and the banana leaf meal at Udipi Shri Krishna Boarding. So, the news of a new South Indian cafe offering banana leaf lunches near our home in Mulund was welcome news, right in time for Onam.
Appam Kadalai
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We have good expectations from Ratna Cafe, which is located next to Ratna Supermarket, our go-to for everything in between Arborio rice and athimathuram (liquorice root in Tamil, for the uninitiated). While the cafe is open all day, the banana leaf lunch is available only at lunchtime, and so we visit on a rainy afternoon. Pandemic apprehensions aside, we are happy to see a decent footfall at the cafe. We skip the usual idli and dosa options, and call for an appam kadalai (Rs 90) and a banana leaf lunch (Rs 260). The service is prompt and friendly; our light-as-air appams are served with a delicious coconut-based chana curry. As the leaf is placed on our table, and each portion carefully spooned at the right spot, we remember the valuable lesson on Onasadhya by the late KS Narayanaswamy of Mani’s Lunch Home. “The meal is to be strictly served on a banana leaf with the end of the leaf on the left-hand side,” he had told us during our visit.
Our lunch includes a yummy pickle, sweet tomato pachadi, rasam, sambhar (which we are pleased to find isn’t the typical restaurant variety which is usually too sweet), spicy buttermilk, tempered boondi raita, sago payasam, papad, three different bhajis, rice and chapati. We start with the lightest bhaji, a pumpkin and dal gravy, which is light on the tummy and high on taste. The banana gravy is richer and the spices lend a mild smoky taste to the curry. The third bhaji, which is usually a sukka bhaji, is a papdi and desiccated coconut preparation that completes the tasty trio. We end our meal with a perfectly sweet and earthy payasam, just as we like it.
Sated, the whiff of filter coffee tempts us to call for two cups (Rs 45). It’s the perfect ending to our meal in this leafy part of the suburb. Our lone complaint is that the staffers don’t take masking-up seriously, and wear their masks below the nose.
Time: 11 am onwards
At: Michael Enclave, MM Road, Mulund West.
Call: 7506899899
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