Add spice to your palate

It H V Ramesh’s passion for food and an eagerness to serve some authentic stuff that prompted him to start the New Prashanth Hotel in Jayanagar 4th Block, just behind the bus stand.

The restaurant opens only for lunch and dinner. There are eating joints in every nook and corner of Jayanagar 4th Block and restaurants serving every conceivable cuisine. But Ramesh had surveyed the place and structured the menu in such a way that it doesn’t clash with those of the other restaurants. Which is why this eating joint has become popular with the people living and working in the locality.

Walk into the restaurant a little before noon and the place is already crowded. The prices are competitive and the quantity served is more than filling for two people. Ramesh says that the non- vegetarian dishes move faster than the vegetarian ones. Mutton and its variations are very popular and people who come back for the same dish. “Mutton is fast-moving. The mutton biryani is cooked with medium spices and on a low flame. This not only retains the taste but ensures that the meat is cooked well. Then there’s ‘mutton pepper fry’, ‘mutton kurma’, ‘mutton chops’ and head meat (thale mamsa). These are delicacies and sometimes we make it according to the customer’s requirement,” says Ramesh.

Ramesh takes a lot of effort to personally know and interact with the people who come to his restaurant. “I know most of the people who come here and this helps me to gauge their tastes and preferences,” adds Ramesh.

The chicken items include, nati fry, ‘lemon chicken’, ‘chicken manchurian’, ‘chicken 65’, ‘chicken lollipop’ and ‘chicken kebab.’ “People who come to our restaurant are clear about what they want to eat. Most of the chicken dry items are first fried and then cooked, this gives it a tangy taste. The ‘chicken manchurian’ is first minced and then stir fried,” explains Ramesh. What also adds to the taste of the dishes is the masala is bought and ground by Ramesh. No artificial flavours are added.

There’s a good vegetarian spread as well. “There’s dal fry, jeera rice, veg biryani, pudina chutney, rasam and  dishes which are more of digestives,” states Ramesh. The regulars, most of whom are non-vegetarians, say that they come for the ‘chicken and mutton biryani’, ‘mutton dry items’ and the chicken dishes. Prasad, who works in a consultant firm says, “My friend and I regular drop in for lunch. We share one plate of biryani and also order fried fish. The quantity is perfect for two people.”

Suma, a housewife shares, “The biryani is quite unlike what we make at home. When I crave for something different, I come here along with my children. The ‘mutton chops’ and ‘rava fish’ are our favourites.”  The food is reasonably priced between Rs 15 for a ball of muddhe and up to Rs 200 for non-vegetarian items. The hotel is open between 12 noon and 4 pm and 7 pm and 11 pm. The hotel is located at 119/A/36, Garla Granet, 2nd floor, 9th Main, Jayanagar 4th Block. For details, call 32559420.