Saw the shop name in nearby restaurants search, had read about this guy from Kerala who came to US and ventured valiantly into food business to sell Kerala cuisine in the least expected of places. Well, it was a pleasant surprise for a group of us to see some of our native food (only 3 of them though) in the menu. First of all, this place is a little place in the corner of a bar and is not easy to find.
We ordered biriyani and kappa with konchu. Didn't order the fish because it said pompano clearly in the menu instead of pearl spot fish which is normally used for that dish. But eating a proper malabar biryani and kappa/konchu would have made the trip for us. But to our utter disappointment, the biryani was basmati rice mixed(in the to go package) with some store purchased chicken tikka masala(my hunch). Not to exaggerate, the real malabar biriyani fans would choke at the sight of this dish. Konchu was ok, but Kappa was big pieces just steamed - not the variety which normally goes with konchu or fish curry. Not to mention a surprisingly high $16 - $19 for these dishes.
In short, this is a cleverly marketed (misusing a nostalgic brand - Kallu (Toddy) - please don't use this name if you don't serve toddy - my humble request ) place, but unfortunately doesn't even come close to the expectations. The two stars is to this guy's entrepreneurship efforts. Coming to terms that if you need authentic Kerala food, you need to be in Kerala.
Disclaimer: My review is solely based on the ethnic Kerala cuisine on the menu. Other dishes on the menu might or might not be doing justice to the excellent ratings. I know my Kerala food.