New arrivals, high prices & healthier options... What dominates sabha canteens this music season

Avid sabha goers rarely step out of the place without grabbing a bite at the catering services, who’ve set up shop within the premises. The overarching theme this year seems to be the availability of newer and healthier dishes, even as caterers seem to have spared no effort in curating menus filled with lip-smacking dishes, including a variety of sweets and snacks.NEW IS THE NORM“We’ve introduced new dishes, many of which would normally not be available outside one’s home,” says Nirmala Venkatesan of Sastha Catering Services at The Music Academy. “Our elai saapadu comprises many new dishes this year, like arachuvitta sambar, appalam vathakuzhambu, kothamalli sadham (made using basmati rice), Chettinad rasam, nellikai rasam, kovil milagu sadham , and kovil puliyodharai , among others.”“We’ve tried to be innovative and offer dishes that restaurants won’t do,” says Sowmya of Arusuvai Caterers at Vidya Bharathi Mandapam. Their menu comprises Tamil Nadu staples like nonbu adai, thenga poorana kozhukattai, pachadis made using orange skin and veppam poo, and more. “We make sure not to repeat our menu,” Sowmya adds.Kumar of Sattva Catering says, “This year, we’ve introduced new dishes made using millets, including dosais and idlis , as we’ve turned our focus towards offering more healthier options this year.” “We’ve even introduced sweets made using karupatti --like karupatti kaju katli and karupatti Boost poli Boost poli kesari, among others, this year,” he adds.Ask him about the newest inclusions to his menu, and K Srinivasan, son of Mountbatten Mani Iyer (who passed away at 93 last year), says, “I’ve introduced chikoo kozhukattai , pineapple kuzhi paniyaram , red banana kuzhi paniyaram and kozhukattai , and several other dishes based on fruits. We even have dishes made using vegetables and greens, like palak greens dosai, methi greens dosai , and gongura dosai , while our sprout idli is a hit among our guests.” None of the dishes, he claims, are namesake and have the fruits or vegetables infused properly in them.YOUNGSTERS ARE THIS SEASON’S TARGET CROWDThis year, attracting young crowds has been key, as they prefer noodles and pizza over Mysore bonda and bajji . Revanth, a teenager, says, “I really liked the podi idli and filter coffee I tried.” Kumar adds that youngsters enjoy vegetable chapati and ammini kozhukattai , while Srinivasan points to chocolate-flavoured idlis and dosais .Caterers deny exorbitant pricing; point out to footfallsOne sticking point from last year remains the price of lunch, ranging from ₹400 to ₹1,000 on New Year’s Day. “At the Music Academy, it costs over ₹2,000 for a family of four,” says Malini, an IT professional who had come with her family.While Manohar, a business owner, says meals above ₹500 are expensive for many. Caterers say prices reflect costs. “We are not repeating the menu,” says Sowmya, pricing her elai saapadu at ₹650. Nirmala notes footfalls are up despite lunch at ₹550, echoed by Srinivasan, who is affirmative about the sentiment, with his ₹685 lunch featuring his eight decade-old badam halwa.What about the New Year specials?For the New Year, Nirmala, the canteen caterer, is going Kerala style. “We’ve decided to cover an assortment of dishes from the neighbouring state. Our offerings will include chakka pradhaman, olan, erissery, and kalan . This is exclusive for New Year’s Day,” she says.Written By: Praveen Kumar S