Udupi hotels, an ode to way of life

The Mathsya hotel waswas once Udipi Home

Long before the invasion of international cuisine and even north Indian food, Madras was home to a network of hotels that served pure vegetarian fare rooted in the Udupi region of Karnataka. Though there were several hotels under different names that had cooks from the region preparing the fare, the tag line ‘Udupi Hotel’ was a benchmark for quality.

One of the unique features of these hotels was that almost all of them employed natives of Udupi as head cooks and had a very strict regimen about their kitchens. The food was tasty and affordable.

P.J. Chandrasekar, proprietor of Murudi’s Lunch Home, one of the last remaining Udupi restaurants in Chindatripet, said his father P. Janarthana Rao ensured that the cooking was similar to the tradition followed in Hindu temples. The menu was limited and even the food was served at specific times.

Udupi hotels thrived across the city, even till the 1980s, with old Madras localities such Egmore, Chintradripet, Purasawalkam, Ayanavaram, Villivakkam, Mount Road, Triplicane and Royapuram boasting of many such outlets. They gradually shut up shop unable to compete with swanky restaurant chains such as Saravana Bhavan and Adyar Ananda Bhavan.

Dates in History

Before 1947

Mathsya earlier known as Udipi Home, was established

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1950s 

Udupi hotels started becoming popular across the city

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1980s

Many Udupi hotels started downing shutters in the city

Standout Dishes

Idli, vada, dosa

Several factors like the younger generation not willing to take over the mantle of the business, paucity of cooks and change in the food preferences of residents led to the once thriving family-run hotels closing down. Others were sold off.

Mr. Chandrasekar recalls at least four hotels run by his family in Chintadripet alone.

“This hotel was started in 1954 by my father and is the last of the Udupi hotels here. The three establishments run by my cousins have all shut down.”

Another Udupi hotel that stands tall amidst the decline is Mathsya that was started before Independence and is still going strong. The restaurant, located near Egmore Railway Station, went by the names Udipi Krishna Bhavan and Udipi Home when the city was still Madras.

Ram Bhat, a partner of the family-run Mathsya, finds people’s preference for north Indian dishes to be the reason for several Udupi restaurants, where only south Indian dishes were served, closing. 

While he did have to include north Indian dishes in the menu, he is proud of the fact that the restaurant is one of the few to have a separate Udupi fare.

The Hindu   R Sri Kanth 9 Aug 2014