Rude Food by Vir Sanghvi: A new high for South Indian cuisine

Is modern South Indian food finally getting its due? From Goa to New York, chefs are putting their heritage on a plate

It is possible that I am overstating the case a bit, but I think that South Indian food is having a moment. In Goa, the excellent Hosa is very much the restaurant of the moment. In New York, Semma has a Michelin star, has wowed the critics, and is packed out so solidly that it is a big deal to score a table. In Kolkata, the most difficult reservation is Avartana, the second avatar of the modern South Indian restaurant from Chennai. A third Avartana will open shortly in Mumbai. On the West Coast of the US, Srijith Gopinathan, who walked away from his Michelin stars at Campton Place, is the hottest Indian chef and continues to open restaurants that celebrate his unique Malayali-California cooking. In Singapore, Mano Thevar has two Michelin stars at his eponymous restaurant, which serves the food of Malaysia’s Tamil community. And back home in India, Regi Mathew, who runs Kerala restaurants in Chennai and Bengaluru, was recently crowned India’s number one chef.

The Kochi chicken curry at Hosa in Goa.

Goa’s Hosa serves modernised versions of classic South Indian food.

In Singapore, Mano Thevar’s food celebrates the Tamil dishes he grew up eating in Malaysia.

At Semma in New York, chef Vijaya Kumar found inspiration in the food he ate in his village, such as kaikari uttapam.

Avartana offers modern South Indian dishes such as the cuttle fish with black garlic, coconut and cauliflower (top).

Mano Thevar’s cuisine is South Indian diaspora food, but it is also different from anything you will find anywhere else.

Cuttle fish with black garlic, coconut and cauliflower at Avartana.