Get ready for a pickle tickle at the newly revamped Swagath in Delhi
Get ready for a pickle tickle at the newly revamped Swagath in Delhi
Don't twitch your nose at the imaginary dosa and daal vada whizzing past your senses. All South Indian isn't about idlis. Those are best kept to the cafu00c3u00a9s, or so thinks the culinary crew at Swagath. The result: a plethora of peninsular cuisines on your platter, namely Malwani, Goan, Gomantak, Andhra, Chettinad, and Mangalorean. If only they briefed their junior staff about the sauce ingredients, too.u00a0 
6,000 square feet of south: The interiors are clean and contemporary,
but the al fresco area is even better
Russia weds Mangalore
And the reception's hosted at the second life-endowed Hotel Janpath. Walk in to the still-under-renovation lobby, take left, step in and lose yourself in the expat chatter. Alternatively, walk out from the other end to be greeted by an ambient, low-lit al fresco area, where each round table has an inbuilt li'l lamp and a fountain to unfurl some fantasy (there's space for 80 people there, so no sweat).
Take seat, spot server, accept smile, start orders. We began with a delightful series of slurpsu00a0-- the traditional tarkari soup and crab soup, in particular, leaving us salivating. Bring on the starters, and they did it quick. Chicken 65, the Andhra specialty, spiced up to tingle and tease your buds so that they're ready enough to be balmed by the Russian salad, a surprise element on the menu. Thankfully, there's no desi fiddling with the flavours.
Next up was Uppinayaki (read pickled, or achaari) paneer tikka, fresh and fiery. A welcome change from the Punjabi variant we're used to hogging on, up North, with the booze. And it goes well with the wine. Oh, on that front, there's plenty on the racks. Red, white, vermouth, whisky, vodka, the works. And while you're at the nibble, don't miss the must-have Malwani sauces. We only wish more attendants were briefed about what went into lending them those flavours and tinges. The head chef's prompt to please our curiosity, though.u00a0
Chettinad chowk
Any South Indian spread is incomplete without chomping on the Chettinad fare. It's unarguably the most overdone South Indian sub-cuisine, but few know where it really comes from. Chettinad is a region of the Sivaganga district of southern Tamil Nadu, infused with flavours of local spice, eggplant, drumstick and ghee. We tried the pepper mutton, and it pleased with its seasoning and succulence. Mangalore's turn. The veg gassi, a pasty multi-vegetable preparation that reeks of garlic, green chillies, garam masala and curry leaves, is best teamed with plain rice or chapatti, and sipped with jeera paani to ease digestion. It's heavy, hot, high-spiced, so stay away if you can't face the coast.
Instead, call in for the traditional sweet meatsu00a0-- the payasam oru00a0 paal paniyaram. The latter's what we'd recommend. Or if you think you need to break away from the beat, indulge in piping hot gulab jamun or kulfi faluda. In this case, the former takes the cake. Which brings us back to the rice one called idli. Hope it's off your imagination by now.
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At: Hotel Janpath, Janpath.
Timings: 11 am till midnight.
Meal for two: Rs 1500 plus taxes.
Call: 23366761.
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