A monsoonish, rainy day. This didn't deter us from lunching out. We have been to this Kathiawadi restaurant on an earlier occasion, but I have no regrets on making it there again. On neither of these occasions, did we have to wait for a table for six. The restaurant is bang on the highway connecting our township with Surat, located on the outskirts of Vyara town, headquarters of Tapi district. The restaurant is named after a goddess, Khodiyar, renowned in the Kathiawadi region especially, who is believed to remove human weaknesses. The menu presents a delectable array of kathiawadi dishes. The hospitable bearers of the restaurant, cheerfully help you in selecting the dishes while explaining their contents. Most of these dishes are made with the help of simple ingredients and with a blend of flavors ranging from the sweet, sour and high on spice. There are many varieties of pickles ranging from sweet (like chhundos and morabbas) to spicy garlic. The food is characteristically spicy, with a liberal use of garlic, onions and green chillies resulting in fiery dishes. We ordered for distinct vegetable dishes to supplement say, Bajra, jowar, makkai no Rotlo (flatbread made with different kinds of millet flour), which is best had hot with a drizzle of ghee. Rotlis, are also available, straight from the hot tava, including bakkris or coarser bread made of bajra. Some dishes that you can sample, are, Sev tameta nu shaak, Turiya patra, Kobi vatana tameta, kanda nu shaak to name a few. Another standard item that you can round off with is hot khichdi and kadhi.Chhaas can help in quenching your thirst or in washing down the spicy tang of the main kathiawadi course meal. If you have a sweet tooth, there are also some typical dessert items that you can pamper your tastebuds with. Vedmi or Puran Poli, which is a jaggery lentils stuffed flatbread, is an excellent option to round off your meal with. It should be had piping hot with lots of ghee. Other items available maybe special kathiawadi ladu churmo, hot sizzling gulab jambu, to name a few. The cuisine thus can be colorful and vibrant like the people themselves from this region. So I would definitely advice people to try out this cuisine. It helps in being adventurous sometimes!
