Best ever vegetarian Indian food

Just only recently, I did a review of an Indian restaurant and now I am doing another one, this time, it’s an Indian vegetarian restaurant.

It is not always that I go to a vegetarian restaurant for a meal, not because I have anything against vegetarian food but mainly because of the quality of the food and the tendency for the foods to be swimming in oil. So, I was pleasantly surprised by the exceptionally great food over at Annalakshmi Restaurant in the Temple of Fine Arts. It’s no wonder the restaurant is called the ‘culinary arts centre’.

As you can see, they don’t have much parking space so you will have to park outside the compound along the roadside.

The restaurant have this relaxed open air feel to it and though the decor is quite simple, it is warm and cozy enough for a nice, quiet and relaxing meal. It also has a nice garden so you feel as if you are dining surrounded by greenery.

The buffet line may seem like there’s limited choices but trust me, it is MORE than enough food! Since it is vegetarian, you can’t expect much except for different vegetables and vegetable curries.

Instead of rice, I took the chapati. I have this thing for Indian breads so when I saw that they have chapati, I must give it a try. Here are close-ups of the foods:

(Top right) The stir-fried cauliflower and potatoes are probably the best I’ve ever tried. The potatoes and cauliflower are probably boiled first then stir-fried with spices. Amazingly, it is not in the least oily too.

(Bottom right) This is the vegetarian version of cucur udang (prawn fritters dish with peanut sauce) so instead of prawn fritters, it is blanched beansprouts, fresh cucumbers, carrots and cubed deepfried beancurd. This combination is mixed with a sweet peanut sauce.

(Left) I absolutely love the chapati I took and it goes very well with the tiny bowl of curry too!

The rice is so exceptionally fragrant and though a tad sticky, I like it. It is probably cooked with ghee and green peas. Of course, when it comes to Indian food, we must mix the rice with loads of curry!

The long beans are stir fried, yes again with spices. It is slightly spicy but not much so and as with most Indian-style stir fried vegetables, it is soft and a bit soggy. Still, I guess it is supposed to be that way as it is sorta like a mix of a stir fried dish and a vegetable curry. I don’t really like long beans but this, I like.

The curry consist mainly of tomatoes and potatoes. It probably has some lime too as it has a sourish tint to it which I think is all good because it takes away the richness of the curry and gives it a fresh taste.

Ah, then we have the dhall. The essential accompaniment to any Indian meal! It is chickpeas curry and my, theirs really is good. One thing, they sure don’t stinge on the amount of chickpeas they used in this curry and it is so thick, I suspect they also added some potatoes to it. Just the way I like it.

The pappadum is also another common feature in any Indian restaurant and it is usually eaten in accompaniment with the rice and dipped in curry of your choice or as it is. Theirs are prepared fresh and yes, it is not salty and it is so crunchy, it’s almost like potato chips, except better.

The shredded carrots is also another surprise dish for me as it didn’t look all that remarkable but the taste brought a burst of flavours, sweet, sour, salty and definitely delicious!

Ahh..then we have the Indian milk rice. Now, not anyone could stomach this ultra rich rice which I understand is cooked with spices, ghee and milk. Thus, it is sticky and has this fragrant, slightly salty taste to it. It is popularly eaten as a breakfast food but who cares? I’ve not eaten this before and eventhough it is lunch, I simply must give it a try. Luckily I only took one tiny scoop, it is much too rich to be eaten in huge portions.

Their vegetables curry is a bit watery but I guess that’s because it has melons in it. It is mainly turmeric and some spices.

Now, on to dessert…

I don’t know what these are called but these tiny squares are very sweet and if you don’t like sweet stuffs, it is advisable to give these a miss. My guess is that these are made with condensed milk, sugar, flour and more sugar…heheheh…I guess it is pretty normal as most Indian desserts are very sweet.

Not because I am greedy or anything I took a lot of food for pictures to show you and I simply can’t waste all those wonderful food…

Anyway, I LOVE that the food is served on stainless steel plates and cups. It is a pretty traditional way of eating Indian food so it really gives you the feeling that you are eating a homecooked meal at an Indian household and not at a restaurant.

I would have to say that the food do have that homecooked feel to it and probably that’s why I simply love the food here. Oh, and the reason I finished everything I took is because there is no price fixed to the foods at this restaurant.

Yep. It is a pay-what-you-want restaurant. I’d say it is free but any diner with any modicum of self respect would make some contribution before leaving. You see, they don’t charge diners for the food served here. Their menus (for ala carte days) contain lists of food and drinks BUT no prices. So, essentially, the food is free and the service they give you is exceptionally good too because they are friendly, warm and pretty fast in serving the food or drinks. Of course, if it is a buffet day, it is all self-service.

Most diners (except for the few scum who’d eat and leave without making any contributions) would go up to the counter and donate whatever amount they feel like giving. So, the cost of a meal at this restaurant is entirely up to you. I guess they have this concept because they do quite a lot of charity and this restaurant is probably meant for the poor. However, the crowds we see here are mostly office workers who could well afford to pay for their meals. Fortunately, most of those who eat here do donate some money before leaving.

They have different specialty dishes on different days. They have buffet for lunchtime everyday and for dinnertime, their buffet is on Wednesday and Saturday. Also, the Temple of Fine Arts is known to have performances and shows, outside in the front garden where there’s a stage, regularly so if you happen to go on a day with a performance on, you’d get to experience a wonderful cultural experience.

Rating: 8/10

Price: Free (But do be responsible and DONATE whatever you feel the meal is worth!)

Here are the restaurant details:

Annalakshmi

The Culinary Arts Centre of The Temple of Fine Arts

Opening hours: Lunch (11.30am – 2.30pm), Dinner (6pm – 9.30pm)

1, Babington Avenue

Tel: 04-2288575 / 2274155

Email: contactsavi@hotmail.com / gravy_ravi@yahoo.com

It is closed on Mondays.

They also offer catering services.

Here is the direction to the place.

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