Chennai Curry Palace – Al Quoz

Chennai Curry Palace is a small South Indian restaurant in the recently opened Al Khail Gate Community Centre in Al Quoz. Its interior is clean, well-kept and doesn’t stink of spices as some similar establishments do. There’s a large glass enclosure behind which one can see their hot beverages guy making filter coffee (worth a minute of your time). The far end of the restaurant opens onto a veranda which is still pleasant to sit out in early in the mornings and late in the evenings. The place was packed the Friday morning I visited so I had to share a table with someone. Sitting at a table with a blogger can be a little unnerving, we sniff, sip, slurp, take notes then click, click, click our way through our meals. Poor guy, no wonder he left soon after I started my meal.

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Chennai Curry Palace serves Karama quality dosa, idli and vada, and by that, I mean their dosa, idli and vada was very, very good. I started with an idli-vada dip which comes as two idlis and a giant vada soaked in sambar. I think my order had been waiting in the kitchen to be served for some time because it was soggy, having absorbed much of the sambar by the time I got it. It was delicious but I prefer mine with a little more bite to the vada and idlis. My masala dosa rectangle was served next. It wasn’t as crispy as I like but it tasted good and wasn’t at all oily. The masala was tasty, a thumbs up for the whole package. I ordered a filter coffee, watching in fascination as it was made. The theatrics were better than the taste. Sadly, it had none of the kick your get from the coffee at Saravana Bhavan.

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It’s hard for me to fairly judge what service is really like at Chennai Curry Palace. The place was bursting at the seams when I was there. The two or three waiters simply could cope. As a consequence, food took a while to get to the table and when it did, I found it was either soggy or tepid. I got the impression things would be better if they were less crowded. That said, a full house is not an excuse, it’s a blessing. I’m going to let this one slide because I can’t remember the last time I had such good dosa, idli and vada in Al Quoz. So, if you’re in the area and in the mood for a good South Indian meal, look no further than Chennai Curry Palace in the Al Khail Gate Community Centre.

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Xerxes physically dines at, or orders from, each and every venue he reviews. He pays in full for whatever he and his companions eat, drink, take away or occasionally throw at each other. Xerxes accepts no money, gifts, discounts or free meals in return for reviews or favouritism. What you have read was NOT influenced in any way by the venue. Join me on Instagram @ravenousxerxes or email me on xerxes@dellara.com.