Frankly, I feel that Tamil Cusine is one of the richest in India, but I have a slight aversion to it because of the liberal use of Rice which I feel is bit Fattening and today I broke the chair on which I was sitting, which made me realize that am Heavy

Today being Friday, we went out for our ’customary’ lunch, and I suggested Hotel Ponnusamy cos I had never visited the place before and wanted to write a review about it. It also broke my ’new’ resolution of not eating Rice for a week.

About the place & Other things
Ponnusamy Hotel as its lovingly called by the Chennaites, is quite popular with the middle-class who wants to have quality food with out shelling out too much money. There are three Ponnusamy Hotels (As far as I know). One is on the Ethiraj College Road, another one near Music Academy and the last one near Village Road, Nungambakkom. Don’t let the list confuse you, just ask the ’Auto-Wallah’ to take to to nearest Ponnusamy Hotel and you will be there in no-time.

The Place I went
I went to th Ponnusamy on College road, its next to the Milkey Way Ice-Cream parlour which is quite popular with yuppies.
Parking space is ample and you needn’t worry and the only drawback is that you have to park your vehicle in the hot Chennai sun.

Ambience is great! Polished Wood Carvings welcome you, starting with the massive wooden door. I felt that there sitting area is quite big and can accomodate around 100-150 people, and has 3 levels.

The place is quite clean, but strict vegetarians can face some problems if they have a hard-core aversion to ’fishy’ smell, the smell of fish was deteceted by my extremely sensite nose, but its not over-powering.

Food Fare
Ponnusamy is your typical Tamil Non-Veg hotel, you get Meals and Biriyani and popular meat and fish dishes, like Mutton Fry, Ponnusamy Chicken Fry (Boneless), Fish Fry etc etc

If you are going for meals, then you can have a choice of Veg curries like ’Sambhar’, ’Rasam’ or can opt for Chicken or Fish gravy, which is quite good.

I could see some very Xotic (That you don’t normally see on other menus) like Liver Fry and Brain Fry, I stay away from these stuff, but I have couple of collegues who eat that. So, if you like Brain & Liver, Ponnusamy is the place to be.:-)

The meals of-course is unlimited, and the service brisk even during peak time. I felt that the place was well manned.

Quality, Quantity & Price
These are the main attributes that I look for in any hotel, Ponnusamy didn’t disappoint me in any of these counts. The Food was superb, and tasty. The place was clean and neat. The quantity was just sufficient. Depending on the number of people with, order either a 1/4 or 1/2 plate of their dishes, I felt that 1/4 Plate was just enough for one guy but 1/2 Plate can be shared by 3)

After the meal, they give you the ’traditional’ Beeda and The Small bananas for all meals, (Unlike Amaravathi, who gives this treat only for Special Meals). I think, South Indians(Mallu’s and Tamil’s alike) believe in Ending the meal with a Banana.

Six of us went today, we had
5 - Meals
3 - Mutton Fry (1/4 Plate)
2 - Ponnusamy Chicken Fry (1/2 Plate)
2 - Omlette
1 - Veg Fried Rice (Don’t go for it please)
1 - Sweet Corn Veg Soup.
1 - Gobi Manchurian
6 - Thumbs Up

Yeah, there was one Vegge Guy with us, who had a tough time. The bill came to Rs. 729/- or around 125 bucks per head. I feel that its quite economical considering the amount of food we hogged.

What I feel
Overall, Hotel Ponnusamy didn’t dissappoint me, but I felt bad that the Vegge Guy in our group didn’t enjoy his lunch much. There is not much selection of veg food and I feel that Vegetarians can skip this place, but for a Non-Vegetarian food lover, this is a haven.

The food is quite different from the other Indian Non-Veg dishes I have eaten at other eateris in Chennai, probably becuase the different spices used and the varied cooking style. I feel that its one of the best Tamil Non-Veg Restaurant I have ever encountered.

Peace
Ranjith

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