We've all been curious about Thevar, which promises to serve up mod-Indian cuisine. As part of the man's birthday celebrations, the bunch of us trooped down to the restaurant to check out its food. I was really quite suspicious because my conservative tastebuds don't like food to be too experimental. BUT, I was quite wowed by the flavors. They meshed well together. I love it!
The spices are subtle. While there's nothing chilli-fiery about the dishes, there's so much texture and depth of flavor. The fairly interesting current menu is created by Penang-born 29-year-old Chef Manogren Thevar. Rasam as granita on Pacific oysters sounds really strange, but it worked. I'm not such a big fan of oysters that I would take it all the time, but I wanted to try how rasam would go with it.
The Chettinad chicken roti was quite a surprise, and basically came looking like tacos. Hahahahah. I was so tickled. I wondered about that as an appetizer because even though there were four of us, a small bowl of curry plus naan would render our stomachs too full for the actual mains. Well, the kitchen used naan as the wrap, and the chicken was completely shredded. So yes, it definitely worked as tacos. Oof! The king crab masala cutlets were seriously flavorful. They got the crunch right, and it was a gorgeous mix of spices within. BUT, I prefer fish cutlets, and these don't beat Aunty J's fish cutlets.
The berry pulao with cucumber and raisin raita totally hit a spot. I love rice like this. There was grilled pumpkin, curry korma and baiji crumbs. These two dishes alone would usually satisfy my stomach as one happy meal. The main of tandoor baby lamb with green chutney and chickpea curry was really mild. The chickpea curry was ingeniously made into a uhhhh channa masala mash at the side. The pan-seared snapper with curd rice and molle curry was delicious. Thevar's fish molle (or molee) was most elegant. The server mentioned that this curry was Sri Lankan, so I immediately removed all thoughts of Kerala fish molle out of my mind. Sri Lankan fish curry tastes distinctly differently from its Kerala counterpart, and it would be more stew-like.
Okay, the descriptions on Thevar's menu got me eye-rolling like crazy. Yes, the menu printed 'molle curry'. Ermmm. It's like typing out....'chai tea' or ‘aloo gobi potato’. Hahahhaha. Describing a dish or its ingredients as 'curry korma' completely confused me (Thevar referred to the appetizer of grilled pumpkin); it's either curry or korma, how could it be both? 🙄
Portions are small, or rather, they're portions for one. Two people could share and order more dishes to taste. The restaurant is long and narrow, and can get stuffy when it's filled with more diners. Be warned that the seating is all high chairs and high tables and a counter. Bring a small bag or be prepared to put it on the floor. We got to dessert- an oddly not-too-sweet carrot halwa kulfi with coffee soil, honeycomb and basil, and the cute cempedak puffs.
The spices are subtle. While there's nothing chilli-fiery about the dishes, there's so much texture and depth of flavor. The fairly interesting current menu is created by Penang-born 29-year-old Chef Manogren Thevar. Rasam as granita on Pacific oysters sounds really strange, but it worked. I'm not such a big fan of oysters that I would take it all the time, but I wanted to try how rasam would go with it.
The Chettinad chicken roti was quite a surprise, and basically came looking like tacos. Hahahahah. I was so tickled. I wondered about that as an appetizer because even though there were four of us, a small bowl of curry plus naan would render our stomachs too full for the actual mains. Well, the kitchen used naan as the wrap, and the chicken was completely shredded. So yes, it definitely worked as tacos. Oof! The king crab masala cutlets were seriously flavorful. They got the crunch right, and it was a gorgeous mix of spices within. BUT, I prefer fish cutlets, and these don't beat Aunty J's fish cutlets.
The berry pulao with cucumber and raisin raita totally hit a spot. I love rice like this. There was grilled pumpkin, curry korma and baiji crumbs. These two dishes alone would usually satisfy my stomach as one happy meal. The main of tandoor baby lamb with green chutney and chickpea curry was really mild. The chickpea curry was ingeniously made into a uhhhh channa masala mash at the side. The pan-seared snapper with curd rice and molle curry was delicious. Thevar's fish molle (or molee) was most elegant. The server mentioned that this curry was Sri Lankan, so I immediately removed all thoughts of Kerala fish molle out of my mind. Sri Lankan fish curry tastes distinctly differently from its Kerala counterpart, and it would be more stew-like.
Portions are small, or rather, they're portions for one. Two people could share and order more dishes to taste. The restaurant is long and narrow, and can get stuffy when it's filled with more diners. Be warned that the seating is all high chairs and high tables and a counter. Bring a small bag or be prepared to put it on the floor. We got to dessert- an oddly not-too-sweet carrot halwa kulfi with coffee soil, honeycomb and basil, and the cute cempedak puffs.
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