In a nutshell:
I just hope someone opens an eatery in Gurgaon that serves such good food as Madras Coffee House, Khajuraho.
Meal for 2: Rs. 120 onwards
Cuisine Type: Vegetarian
Short Description – In case u r in a hurry:
If u talk location in Khajuraho, nothing can get better than this – situated bang Opposite the Ticket counter of the most popular Western Group of temples. In other words, the place where this restaurant is located is like ‘the Times Square of Khajuraho’.
The owner & his family stay in the same premises – in rooms besides the Dining Hall. I had a brief chat with him post I praised the taste of the food here. He said he came from Southern part of India in the 1950s, briefly ran a shop in Malviya Nagar Delhi & then moved to Khajuraho & has stayed back ever since.
The facade has not been painted quite long & the interiors are also as basic as it can get – but neat & clean.
The traditional food is awesome & I found it better than most Delhi & Gurgaon Restaurants. They also serve fusion food like Cheese Dosa, cheese utthapam etc , which seems to be very popular with the European tourists.
In fact, they also serve non South Indian Food like different kinds of Omelet, scrambled eggs, poached eggs, different kinds of pancakes, porridge, sandwiches, thali, South Indian curries, North Indian curries & even egg Biryani, veg chowmein & egg chowmein!!!!
We stuck to basic South Indian food & it was awesome.
Detailed Description – In case u have the time to njoy readin:
The idly was super soft, had a slight fermented feel to it, was fluffy & not visually perfect. Taste was excellent but shades lower than idli at Murugan Idly, Chennai & Saravana Bhawan Delhi.
The chutney served with the idly was outstanding & we finished it off the last drop – It was outstanding.
Sambhar was like ‘home made’ – tasty, mildly spicy, non oily & mildly hot but very balanced. It tasted good inspite of Ghiya/lauki/gourd (with big seeds) being added to it.
The masala Dosa was outstanding – It did not look perfect like the ones made by professional Chefs in large Restaurants. The dosa had a mild crispy outer layer, soft inside, fermented feel & a perfect balance of sourness & salt. The taste was too good. The aloo ‘masala’ inside the dosa was again simple , non spicy, not hot but very very tasty.
The utthapam surprised me when served – It had tomatoes , onions & shredded cabbage!!!! That was really new & unexpected. However I braved myself to taste the utthapam with cabbages & wow – It was outstanding. The cabbages being of the non-seasonal kind, did not have much of a say in the taste & flavor – it was bland. The utthapam was too good . Loved it.
Overall – I wud surely go back to this place in my next visit to Khajuraho.