CHENNAI: The temple city of Madurai is also known as the hub of non-vegetarian food. Annapoorna Mithai stands as an exception. It offers sumptuous vegetarian options.
Two engineering graduates, GK Arul Sujanesh and his friend C Gunasekaran came together to set up the hotel at Ram Nagar in Bypass Road. Started in July 2016, the restaurant came to the fore in just a matter of few months.
Arul Sujenesh says, “Be it the small roadside shops or the big food outlets, there are plenty of non-vegetarian options available for foodies in the city. We wanted to create something exclusive and elite for vegetarian food lovers. My father owns a restaurant called Annapoorna in Karaikudi, we took up the idea of creating a similar one in Madurai.”
Located in a large space, the ambience of the restaurant is welcoming and pleasant. Its menu is a miscellany of north Indian, south Indian, Continental, Chinese and Tandoori dishes. “The challenge was not just to serve vegetarian food, but to provide authentic food from several cuisines. We have individual chefs who cater to a particular cuisine. They ensure that the dishes don’t lose their originality and uniqueness. Have a bite of our chaat menu and some of the mouth-watering Bengali sweets, you wouldn’t disagree,” Gunasekaran says.
As the name suggests, the outlet is home to a plethora of confectionaries. From kaju bites to badam tarts to gulab jamuns, one can find a mixture of well-known and lesser-known sweet treats here. Arul adds that they wanted a food joint that would ace varieties in cuisines other than south Indian. The bakery and sweet stalls are also completely vegetarian. There are no eggs added in the delicacies. On customers’ request, they also prepare Jain food.
The restaurant’s focus has now moved to exploring hot and spicy vegetarian sizzlers. Gunasekaran explains that the Chinese sizzler and the paneer tsunami are the signature sizzlers apart from the regular chocolate brownie sizzling available at the restaurant. They also serve flavoursome sandwiches, pizzas and a lot Tandoori varieties.
Annapoorna Mithai also caters food for various events. “We have been supplying sweets to customers across the state. We take in buffet or food orders ranging from `150 to `900 depending on the menu,” says Arul. The restaurant is open from 11 am to 11 pm, except for weekends when it is open from 7 am onwards.
Season special
The beverages and desserts sections are also exciting. You can taste the season special, ‘Kya re setting ah?’ ice cream which is topped with plenty of fresh fruits. Peanut butter milkshake and Oreo milkshake are some of the favourites. Fresh juices like watermelon and mango are also available.