THIRUVANATHAPUARM: Will payasam replace alcohol in the State famous for its tipplers? For once, tipplers have lost out to ‘payasamholics’ in the State with the sales of payasam mowing down alcohol sales by lakhs of rupees. So says KTDC chairman Cherian Philip.
Chaitram Hotel in the city came up first in payasam sales during this Onam with a humongous sale. While the tipplers guzzled alcohol worth just Rs 2 lakh at the hotel, the payasam sales soared to a high of Rs 9 lakh. In fact, in all the outlets in the city, the good old payasam trampled over alcohol.
This was not a phenomenon limited to Ananthapuri. The Tamarind Hotel, Thrissur, and the Malabar Mansion Hotel, Kozhikode, registered sales of Rs 7 lakh and Rs 6.5 lakh respectively. The Aramam hotels bagged the top spot in payasam sales among wayside eateries with a sale of Rs 2 lakh.
The favourite among payasam lovers has been the navarasa payasam which had a record sales. The other payasams that were available included ada, palada, semiya, palpayasam, karikku payasam, chakka payasam, manga payasam, pineapple payasam, vazhappazham payasam, nellikka payasam, carrot payasam, parippu payasam, kadala payasam, gothambu payasam and avil payasam.
The KTDC hotels in various districts and tourist centres sold as much as half-a-crore worth payasams. The KTDC hotels also stood first for the number of people who came to have ‘Thiruvonam’ lunch.
trivandrum@expressbuzz.com