CHENNAI: ‘Your destination is on the right. Welcome to Kasi Vinayaga Mess’ voiced out my map, as I reach No 5, 58/2, Akbar Sahib Street in Triplicane. Parking your vehicle can be a task in the cramped bylanes of the locality. But this five-decade-old eatery has an allotted parking lot across the street. I park my scooter and quickly join the queue growing outside the mess. As customers closed their banana leaves, washed their hands, and stepped out, a batch of new customers walk into the 1,000-sq-ft hall. On the other hand, food delivery partners are rushed through the doors to collect the orders. This process repeats itself throughout the day as foodies make a beeline to this mess for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
The past few days have been nothing short of festive here. The mess is decorated with colourful ribbons, a board reading a special menu with sakara pongal written in bold, and everyone dressed in pattu veshti and pudavai. The food joint completed 51 years of service on September 9 and the celebrations were on.
Meal makers
A paati, with her kondai adorned with mallipoo, walks past me, and for a few seconds, the smell of the jasmine flowers takes over the air already filled with the aroma of the spices in the sambar, the tanginess of rasam, and the fiery pepper kuzhambu. Clatters of the cups as the waiters served kootu and poriyal, people slurping curd, and managers instructing workers to clear out the areas overlapped one another. These sensory activators only made my stomach grumble more ferociously. My eyes wander over to the board that read: ‘Collect tokens and wait on the first floor’. I pay `80 for the meals and followed the instructions.
After waiting for 15 minutes, I am seated in bandhi soru. The worker neatly lays down a banana leaf in front of the 40 individuals in the dining area. First comes the kootu, then poriyal, and the rest of the feast begins. “Rice kondu va (Bring the rice)” yells a server, and steaming hot rice is served topped with ghee. With each bite, I understand why this mess is one of the most sought-after ones in the city.
“I use Bombay dhania (coriander) in my sambar. It has a strong smell and tastes the best,” shares K Vasudevan, founder of Kasi Vinayaga Mess. Explaining his trade secret further, he adds, “I went to a Marwadi shop once in Parrys. When other dhania cost Rs 60 kg, Bombay dhania was Rs 300 kg. I was and am very particular about quality, so I bought a kilo initially, Now, moota mootaiya vangurom (we buy in sacks). That is the secret.”
Building recipes and relations
A native of Tiruchy, Vasudevan came to Chennai in 1968 to cater to the Presidency College’s canteen. This is where he developed his cooking skills with regular feedback from the students. Post that, in 1973, he started his own venture, Kasi Vinayaga Mess with 21 seats, with each meal priced at Rs 1.45 paise. His motive was, “not to serve the previous day’s leftovers and to fulfil not only people’s tummy but also their hearts.” The USP of the food joint was that it served rice, sambar, rasam, curd, and buttermilk even at night. “People grew bored of consuming idli and dosai in the nighttime, so we took this route to lure clients,” shares Vasudevan.
For the next 50 years, Vasudevan woke up at 3.30 am to take a trip to Kothaval Chavadi. “I used to see the unloading of fruits and vegetables, analyse the freshness based on the smell, and then buy. There have been times when I have been charged extra, I used to give in because the vegetables were really fresh,” adds Vasudevan.
He used to go around the market and make friends. “When the market was moved to Koyambedu, I frequented there and by this time my friends knew which vegetable I would get on which day,” he says. The same was the case with the customers, “The mess has a fixed menu, so they know which sambar, kootu, and poriyal will be cooked on which day. They would come in to savour the food and ask for four serving rounds.”
A long road ahead
This was also the time when the culture — food and lifestyle — was being upgraded and adapted. “People preferred pizza, burgers, and other fast food over homemade food. Even the mess, that stood the test of time — housed the US Consulate and family — was hit during the pandemic. Clients no longer wanted sambar, rasam, and kootu for dinner,” exclaims Vasudevan.
According to him, the reason for this change could be an increase in competition, tax rates and in his words, “Kuruku vali la ellarum munnera paakuranga, engala mathiri aalunga dhan ra-pagaluma olaichom. (These days, people choose shortcuts to success. Only old people like me work hard day and night).” For the mess to be in the competition, Vasudevan has handed over the space to his son. “These are the kids of today’s generation, they will know what and how to sustain. I am looking forward to it.”
As our chat comes to an end, I reach the end of my meal. I slurp on the delicious payasam and relish the dose of sugar rush, I congratulate Vasudevan for this success. “I am happy that the joint has completed so many years. I only wish for people from all countries to come and eat our sumptuous meal, once,” he concludes.