MYVILI - A HIGHWAY FOOD DESTINATION

You can always make big plans, plan ahead and plan all the details but when it comes to executing the plan, a million hurdles seem to spring up and foil the plan. That is exactly what happened to me when I planned to visit a local food destination by the name U M P Mess, close to Kunnathur(near Tirupur, Tamil Nadu). But if you are a true foodie and totally hungry, you come up with a new plan at that moment and execute it right away. And this is how I happened to eat lunch at MYVILI RESTAURANT, last weekend. And I did not leave the place disappointed.

MYVILI is a small shack-style restaurant on the highway that connects Perumanallur to Avinashi on NH47. It is about 1km from Perumanallur towards Avinashi. There are big colourful boards that scream out the name and presence of this place to the travelers on the highway.

It is run by a husband and wife duo who cook and serve the food themselves. On arrival, they seat the customers and explain how the system works in their restaurant. They announce very proudly that the all the food there is cooked home-style, by themselves and there are no preservatives or additives in the food. They are open only for lunch on all seven days of the week. Lunch per person costs Rs.230/- which includes limited servings of the starters, juice, banana, a bottle of mineral water, dessert and unlimited servings of white rice, curries, rasams.

First items to be served on the banana leaf are salt, banana and a Gulab Jamun. Followed by Mutton Biriyani accompanied with Raita, Mutton Varuval, Chicken Varuval, Egg Masal, Mutton bone Varuval and Goat's blood Poriyal. All the dishes tasted very good but a tad bit on the spicy side for me.

MUTTON BIRIYANI WITH EGG MASAL, MUTTON BONE VARUVAL AND BLOOD PORIYAL IN THE BACKGROUND

The Biriyani course is followed by white rice with the Chicken Sindhamani. This dish is made with country chicken, not broiler chicken. And the use of country chicken seems to add a special flavour to the dish. It was a dry and oily dish (no gravy) and was my favourite dish there. Followed by this, you get unlimited access to white rice and the different curries and rasams.

MUTTON VARUVAL AND CHICKEN VARUVAL

I couldn't eat beyond white rice and Chicken Sindhamani. The hosts insisted on us trying out the curries and rasams but we were quite stuffed and had absolutely no intention to do so. We were finally served a refreshing cup of lemon and pineapple juice with a hint of cardamom.

It was a very tasty and homely experience. It felt like you were eating in someone's home. I would definitely drive back to Myvili for a scrumptious lunch. A meaty spread on a banana leaf served home-style is something I can't resist for too long!

MYVILI RESTAURANT ON NH 47,
Contact - Mr. Sadhanandham - 97154 55015

KING'S CLIFF, OOTY

King's Cliff is an old colonial house that has been revamped into a charming little hotel with an old-world ambiance. The old trees along the driveway and well manicured garden add to the charm of the hotel. A leisurely lunch in the glass house or a relaxed evening by one of their fireplaces is an excellent option for a meal out in Ooty. Families with children will thoroughly enjoy this place as there is ample space and good service to go with it.



Earl's Secret, the restaurant at King's Cliff offers a wide range of dishes spanning Indian, continental and Asian cuisines. The During my first few visits to the King's Cliff I was hesitant to experiment with different cuisines and mainly ordered only Indian dishes. The kebabs are excellent especially the ones involving chicken. Rotis were soft and the gravies were mild and tasty (without oil floating on the surface). When I did try the continental dishes, I was not very satisfied and have refrained myself from ordering continental food from then on.



Over many visits to King's Cliff we have come to enjoy and relish a few dishes in particular like the Butter chicken masala, Vegetarian Thai red curry, Chicken Reshmi kebab and the simple Chicken hakka noodles. My son in particular is very fond of the Butter chicken masala and was talking about it even a day before we could visit King's cliff during our last trip to Ooty. I am sure he dreamt about it in sleep that night! And he thoroughly enjoyed it when we did order the dish the next day.

The management at King's Cliff is very friendly and efficient and would be happy to organise a bar-be-que for your family and friends in the evening. Lounging around the fireplace is also a fantastic option in the evenings. Since they do not take reservations for the seats around the fireplace it is better to get there early in the evenings. Over the weekends they have a one-man band playing music mostly from the 60's and 70's which seems to pair well with the setting and mood around the place.