South Indian Restaurants: My Funda

I have a simple theory about South Indian restaurants. I am not talking about restaurants, which serve all types of cuisines including South Indian dishes. This theory is true for restaurants serving South Indian dishes ONLY as well as restaurants serving Indian cuisine in general but specializing in South Indian cuisine.

I will share a little background, basically to indicate my 'credentials' and 'expertise' over the subject;

• I stayed in South India between June 2001 to July 2011. This period was spent in Bangalore (~1.5 years) and Hyderabad (remaining period)
• I have also traveled to many places in South India like Chennai, Pondicherry, Mysore, Warangal, Khammam, Vizag, Bidar, Suryalanka, Ooty, Coimbatore, Vijaywada, Mangalore and Udupi. And, I like South Indian dishes so I have had South Indian food at most of these places
• We also had this 'tradition' of having Sunday brunch comprising of South Indian dishes. So, in all the years that I have spent in South India, we can easily say that on an average, I had at least one South Indian meal each week. Trust me, it was way more
• I am a foodie and I know about food. If you do not believe that, I would be happy to send a picture of mine

I think we have established that I know a thing or two about South Indian food. 

So, here is what I do when I go to a South Indian restaurant. I first order a plate of 'Sambhar Vada' (also known as 'Sambhar Vadai'. Some restaurants have other fancier names like 'Sambhar Bucket Vada!!!') before ordering anything else. Please note that Sambhar-Vada is different from 'Vada Sambhar', which is just Vada and a bowl of Sambhar. 

Pic Source: www.madrasrestaurant.ca

The reason I order Sambhar Vada first is because I believe that one can tell how good or bad is the food in a South Indian restaurant by the taste of their Sambhar!!! 

Sambhar is an integral part of most South Indian dishes/meals. There are indeed dishes that are not Sambhar-based or are not accompanied by Sambhar. Moreover, there are people who prefer Rasam or dishes that go with Rasam and not Sambhar. I am not talking about those dishes and preferences, though the theory covers restaurants serving those all those dishes as well.

My simple theory is that 'If you cannot get your Sambhar right, you are a useless South Indian restaurant'. Period!!! And, thus far, this theory has NEVER failed me. I am yet to find a restaurant that serves below-par Sambhar and an awesome Uttapam.