A legacy of its own

Mixed cuisine

There’s something different about going back to a restaurant that’s been popular in the City for 30 years. There are certain memories associated with it that generations love to relive. ‘Konark Vegetarian Restaurant’ is one such place that has stood the test of time and still remains many Bengalureans’ favourite.

Started in 1985 on Residency Road, the family restaurant serves Chinese, Continental and Indian cuisines. Passed down over 3 generations, it’s Rama Murthy who runs the restaurant with much diligence. He recalls, “This restaurant was started by my grandfather. I completed my education when I was 25-years-old and joined the family business. I’ve been a part of this since its existence and it’s wonderful to see how much we’ve grown since then.”

When asked if there was a particular reason for choosing the name ‘Konark’ for the restaurant, the owner laughs and says, “When we started the restaurant, we actually named it ‘Kadamba Vegetarian Restaurant’ but we realised that the name was already taken by another restaurant near Majestic. Since ‘Konark’ was another name that we had shortlisted, we thought we would do with this. It’s after all the place where the Sun Temple is. However, we are often mistaken to be an Odisha restaurant due to the name, but we serve everything here.”

Claiming to be the first restaurant in the central part of the City to have a fully air-conditioned space, they have built their loyal customers since then. Rama Murthy says, “We did have a few rough patches between 1989 to 1995 in terms of lesser customers, but as Bengaluru began growing as the IT capital, people kept coming here very often.” Now, the restaurant is usually filled with customers; during peak hours, one might have to wait!

One of the reasons that people love going back to the restaurant is their usage of ingredients. They don’t use any taste enhancers, MSG or artificial colours. Though the owner says that it’s not cost efficient, they prefer to give priority to the quality and taste than worry about the price.

‘Konark Vegetarian Restaurant’ is known for their ‘Cheese dosa’, which is also known to have made it to the list of many surveys of ‘Top 10 Dosas in the City’. And what makes their ‘dosa’ one of the best? “We stick to the traditional way of making it — preparing the batter with boiled rice and beaten rice. That’s the way we’ve been preparing for the last 30 years and the only way we are planning to go ahead,” he assures. He also says that the ‘sambhar’ served is spicy and not the sweet one served at other restaurants. Some of the other popular items on the menu include their varieties of chutneys, ‘paneer butter masala’, ‘palak paneer’, ‘chana masala with bhatura’, ‘bread paneer’, ‘fried baby corn’ and ‘babycorn sauteed’. There are different chefs who specialise in the cuisines that they offer.

One of the other things that sets this restaurant apart from the others is that they are one of the few who use biogas for cooking. He explains, “We’ve started using biogas to cook at all our outlets because it’s important that we care for our world as well. We can’t always be so selfish, so we think this is our way of contributing to a better world.”

It’s not just loyal customers that the restaurant has but also loyal employees. Rama Murthy says, “I have 2 employees who have been with me since day one. They know how the restaurant works so it’s easier when we get new ones to join our family.”

While the oldest and the  most popular outlet is on Residency Road, they have also opened a branch on Commercial Street and near Sree Kanteerava Outdoor Stadium.
Down to the third generation, Rama Murthy hopes that the restaurant still continues in his family’s hands. He says, “I am blessed with 2 lovely daughters of which one is already ready to take over the restaurant. I hope that we are able to maintain it that way and keep the legacy going.”

    The restaurant is located at 50, Field Marshal Cariappa Road, Residency Road.