I was looking for a place for a quick dinner and found this on Yelp. I was skeptical about the quality when I stepped in, but I couldn't have been more wrong.
The gentleman who runs the restaurant greeted me with a warm hello and pointed me to the daily specials. The jackfruit curry caught my eye and I decided to try it. I ordered a nice hot chai to go with it. The gentleman told me to finish eating first and that I could pay later. It's almost as if he knew I couldn't stop ordering more items!
The jackfruit was spectacular! I am from South India but I have never had anything like it. The spices had the punch but were not overbearing. He told me later that he's from Fiji and so is the dish. The tea was very good too, just the right amount of sweetness.
The gentleman came and sat with me at the table (there was no one else at the place, so kinda worked out) and talked about Fiji and the influences of tamil nadu and kerala styles on his Fiji cooking thanks to his parents.
He also offered me a sample of a spinach, eggplant, tomato curry which was also fantastic. The biggest surprise was the murukku! They were so crisp on that outside and soft on the inside and not soaking in oil like in some other places.
He grinds the masalas himself every couple of days and the freshness shines through. He makes the sweets and snacks himself too (that's his ancestral trade apparently). So I HAD to try the gulab jamoon. The only thing limiting my description of its richness is my vocabulary.
This was a totally unexpected and refreshing experience. The food and the pleasant conversation did truly make it feel like I was having dinner at a friend's place. I have never posted a Yelp review before this, but the sincerity this gentleman has in serving good food to his customers and make them leave the place happy, touched me. There needs to be more such people and places in this world.