Tiffin, meals or dinner: when to visit first

If you are coming to Vazhai Kitchen for the first time, the time of day changes the experience quite a lot. Here is what to expect at each.

Tiffin runs from 7 to 11 am. This is when our dosas are at their best, and the room is full of office-goers, college students and families after the morning temple visit. Weekdays are quick; you will usually get a table within five minutes. On Sundays between 8.30 and 10, expect a fifteen-minute wait. Order a ghee roast or podi roast with filter coffee, or the mini tiffin to taste idli, vada, pongal and a small dosa together, for ₹180.

Meals are from 12 to 3.30 pm, served on banana leaves with unlimited refills of rice, sambar, rasam and the vegetables. The servers come round with buckets and ladles; just cover the leaf with your hand when you have had enough. This is the time to try Kongu food at its fullest. On Sundays, the seeraga samba biryani is served from noon and usually sells out by 2 pm.

Dinner, from 6.30 to 10.30 pm, is lighter: dosas, uttapams, parottas and a few curries, ordered from the menu. It is the calmest time to visit with elderly parents or small children. Whatever time you come, the spice is medium by default, so ask for mild if you need it. We do not take table bookings, except for groups of eight or more, which we can hold for fifteen minutes.