CHENNAI: It’s a memory etched in every Chennaiite’s brain — foaming waves, coastal breeze running through the hair, toes losing themselves in sand, as the spice of a piping hot bajji plays on the palate.
The serenity of a beach visit is best complemented by the colourful flavours of the city’s street food. Unfortunately, kaalan, bajji, and sundal are often overlooked in the presence of pani puri, pav bhaji and bhel.
This certainly was Anirudh Rao’s experience when he left Chennai for college in Delhi and later, for work in Mumbai and Bengaluru.
“I am a foodie and grew up trying to explore delicacies around me. It’s something I did in all four cities. But I came across a gap here. While chaat is great, people tend to look at South Indian street food as only idli and dosa. But there is a huge variety of food here that is not typically spoken of in Delhi or in Chennai,” he shares, as he doles out a plate of thattu vadai settu at his eatery Teru.
In a quaint corner of Cenotaph road, Teru has been bringing back the spotlight to street food of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh/Telangana for the past four months.
The petite dine-in spot is washed with bright yellow and white, giving it a homely ambience with knitted wire high chairs and soft lights.
The menu is a collection of foods across state borders and aims to give every region its moment and equal representation.
In fact, over the first two-three months, the owner also took suggestions to improve the authenticity, even travelling and sourcing from different cities to ensure the same.
“We haven’t done any social media marketing yet because we wanted to understand how customers are responding; if there are any tweaks to be made. Someone from Salem tried our thattu vadai settu and though she loved the flavour, she mentioned that the thattai are too big. We had been sourcing the pans from Chennai but after this, we travelled to Karur (near Salem) and began getting it from there instead. So now, the thattai are much smaller and to be eaten in one bite,” he explains.
On the plate
Well, one must rely on first-hand knowledge and so it was time to dig into the food awaiting to be eaten. For research, of course.
As Anirudh had mentioned, the thattu vadai settu were like colourful hors d’œuvres, with ribbons of purple cabbage and dollops of sauce spilling from the sides. The savoury vadai prepared you well for the sour, tangy filling that lingered on your palate for a while. The burst of flavours was followed by Akki Roti — one of Anirudh’s favourites; his mother’s recipe — that was a super mild yet addictive bite. The flavour somehow lingered at the back of our throat, giving the mouthfeel an interesting dimension. To wash these down, we had an array of the classics — goli soda in various flavours, rose milk, buttermilk and filter coffee.
They also offer a cold filter coffee that is an elevated cold coffee of sorts.
The drinks cleansed our palates for the next dish, one that I would frequently crave — and even more frequently speak of — in the coming few days.
The Andhra-style Mirapakaya mirchi bajji offers an unforgettable eating experience. While the chilli used was local, the taste seemed authentic despite a thin layer of batter. The lightly fried batter (which I would dare not call better than the traditional, but certainly elude to it), the filling of onions, tamarind and coriander, and the kick from the chilli was a delightful confluence of sour, savoury, spicy and tangy; perfectly paired with an earthy coconut chutney.
Punugulu, a fluffy, fried rice fritter, followed next and though the savoury treat was earthy and well paired with coconut chutney, it did not match up to its predecessor.
Prices and packaging
While the food manages to impress the customer, it is, at the end of the day, street food and pricing is an important factor for the preference of the same. Anirudh, however, has taken this into account, ensuring affordability with service. “We were very conscious of reaching out to everyone, not just one set of income groups. But at the same time we have to factor in the costs of the space (cleanliness and other aspects) we are offering. While Swiggy and Zomato add their charges, no item on the dine-in menu crosses `100,” he says.
The eatery also provides packaged foods like tomato oorgaai, lemon oorgaai, parappu poondu podi and kargapillai podi that has been created in partnership with a homechef. These items are homemade with authentic family recipes passed down through generations from the chef’s family, who are originally from Guntur, Andhra Pradesh.
Caffeine lovers can also try the filter coffee powder manufactured in Chikmagalur. Perhaps with a piping hot cup of their coffee, you can get the best of both worlds at the beach.
Eco-friendly eatery
Teru serves and packages all their foods in eco-friendly packaging made from sugarcane pulp. The same is manufactured in Delhi. “We were conscious in terms of sticking to eco-friendly packaging. There is no use of single-use plastic here. Even with storage in the kitchen, we have tried limiting the amount of plastic boxes. However, we do have some plastic due to the nature of some foods,” Anirudh says.
The food joint also avoids cello tape and so, their packaging is made with grooves that keeps the food airtight. Extra products sold are also in biodegradable containers.
Visit Teru at 5, 1st Street, Cenotaph Rd, Alwarpet or contact 9150422232.
Available for Zomato, Swiggy, WhatsApp orders.