Hello there! My name is Abishek Joshi. I am the head chef and the co-founder of We Idliwale.

Through this blog, I would like to take you on a journey and experience the cuisine of Tamil Nadu.

In May of 2022, I backpacked across Tamil Nadu.

Chennai 60001

Hey there! You might be curious as to why I decided to visit Chennai in May, which is the hottest month of the year.

It was a combination of my love for the local food and my craziness that led me to venture out under the scorching sun, exploring the local eateries and bazaars in the afternoon.

During my visit to Chennai, I stayed at The Farm, a cosy bed and breakfast near Old Mahabalipuram Road.

My local friend Vignesh in Chennai works as a barista. He showed me around the city during my two-day visit.

He also helped me better understand the nitty-gritty aspects of what makes a perfect coffee and introduced me to the various filters of coffee making. He introduced me to a coffee farmer in Kodaikanal who supplies us with coffee beans at We Idliwale.

As we wandered around Chepauk, trying to digest a heavy meal, we stumbled upon a small tea shop where a crowd had gathered.

The tea maker, Anbu, was putting on a show with impressive speed and style. His hands moved with the precision and speed of Rajnikanth flicking a cigarette.

What made Anbu's tea-making technique stand out was his use of the sock filter method, which I had never seen before. This unique approach drew people from around the city to his humble shop. We ordered two teas, and as soon as I took a sip, I exclaimed, "Bloody Sweet!" in amazement.

We began our day in Chennai by visiting Mylapore for breakfast

Mylapore is the anglicised form of the Dravidian word “Mayilappur”. It is derived from the Tamil phrase “ Mayil arpparikkum ur, " meaning the land of the peacock scream”.

The standout place for me there was Rayar's cafe in Mylapore. Located in an alleyway, the unassuming appearance of the restaurant would make anyone new to the area mistake it for a house. However, when people start queuing up, you know something is cooking there.

In 1930, Mr.Srinivas Rao came from Villupuram to Chennai to start a food business. Mr Rao belonged to the Rayars community from Kannada Madhwa, and hence, he named the restaurant Rayars Cafe. Today, the third generation of the family is successfully running the restaurant.

We gorged on the idlis, and I liked the ghee podi dosa so much that I was inspired to add it to our menu at We Idliwale.
The idlis were so light that they defied gravity, and the combination of idlis, gunpowder, dosa and chutneys was genuinely worth the effort of visiting the cafe.

Madurai is famous for its rich cultural heritage and ancient temples and, due to this, is often referred to as the “Temple city” of India, and there is a general assumption that it is a pure vegetarian city.

It's partially true.

Do you know what's the best part about Madurai? It's their meat-eating culture that begins right in the morning! Can you imagine eating biryanis, paaya, parottas, and mutton curries for breakfast? Unlike Chennai, where we only had pure vegetarian food, Madurai was an entire non-veg scene. It was heaven for all the non-veg lovers out there!

We ate kotha parotta, mutton salan and biryani for breakfast and kotha parotta with salan was the best meal I had ever eaten.

In the evening we went to Goku iyengars tiffin centre. It stood out for me because of its very simple bondas, dosas idlis and vadas and kaara chutney ( Spicy Chutney).

When you go inside the shop, you are transported to another era, like they say, the old charm. Be it the food served or the photographs from the past.

Mr Ravikumar is the current restaurant owner, which his grandfather, Gopu Iyengar, started in 1935 by renting a property owned by the Meenakshi temple.

He told me back then, the customers sat and ate on the floor, and family members cooked every item on the menu. Today, we have trained our staff with the recipes created by them.

Mr Iyengar told me that At weddings in Madurai if the pickle gets over, cooks say to make Iyengar chutney because it's so easy to make with steamed and sauteed chillies and Bengal gram.

When he narrated the story, talking about his grandfather, ingredients and the process of making the vellaippama and chutney, it just made my mouth water, and when I ate, it felt like heaven.

Behind Meenakshi temple, there is a market for cast iron pans, and I bought lots of them for We Idliwale.

Have you ever tried cooking with cast iron pans? They're amazing! The best thing about them is that they're so thick that they maintain a constant temperature throughout cooking.

Unlike the pans I used in Maharashtra, which would heat up too much or too little. With cast iron, whatever you cook gets cooked evenly, resulting in a much better outcome.

Plus, the browning effect from the Maillard reaction is so much better on cast iron pans, as the sugar in the meat or onion gets converted into caramel.

The last place on our list in Madurai was this saapad hotel that served kola urundai(Mutton kheema balls), chicken and mutton sides, and lots of fish, crab and biryani.

And like this, our journey in Madurai ended, and I'll see you in the next blog in Karaikudi.

Tiruchirapalli, aka Trichy, is known for its exquisite temple architecture and meat cuisine. But to find the best place, you need to know the locals. Luckily, a friend of a friend was in Trichy, and he showed me around.

If you go behind the temple, you'll find an alleyway filled with roadside eateries, where the sizzling sound and the aroma of cooking meat fill the air.

We again went to this secluded, narrow, hole-in-the-wall eatery that served pepper bheja, pepper mutton,bheja kaleji as sides and biryani in the centre.

These dishes use a generous amount of pepper, making its presence noticeable while eating.

Hands down, this was one of the best non-veg saapad I had eaten in Tamil Nadu.

After such a heavy meal, I went to the market in the afternoon and saw sun-dried vegetables, dried fish and different jaggery varieties. To make kozhumbu, the chef uses sun-dried veggies to prepare a vegetable curry.
I called it a day and retired early that night because I had to go to Parthasarathy mess in Srirangam before 6 a.m.

Dindigul, affectionately known as "The City of Locks," is a charming town nestled in the heart of Tamil Nadu, India. It's a place where tradition meets modernity, and its name is synonymous with a vibrant cultural heritage, sumptuous cuisine, and a rich history.

The Dindigul biryani is a feast for the senses, with its tender meat, fragrant rice, and spicy flavours. The cook blends a unique mix of spices to give the biryani a distinct taste and aroma. The dish comes with a side of raita and a hard-boiled egg.

In Dindigul, we hit up this Venu Biryani restaurant. I know everyone talks about Thalapakkati, but Venu Biryani was terrific. They make over 100kgs of biryani daily, and it's all delicious - especially the crab!

We even tried a karandi omelette, a fluffy egg omelette cooked in a ladle-shaped pan and stuffed with crab meat.

As we leave Dindigul, our stomachs full and our hearts happy, we can't help but feel grateful for the experience.