Twenty years ago, people like Maong Nungsang Jamir who began Naga Reju in Choolaimedu and Ramayon Keishing, owner of North East Kitchen, lit their stoves to serve Naga and Manipuri food to forlorn students and working professionals from the North-East, desperate for a taste of home. It was a privilege they never had.
With their interesting menus, there arrived a timid hunger among Chennai-folk curious to try different food spiced by pepper, cinnamon and the fiery Naga chilli, as well as new flavours like pungent fermented bamboo shoot. Over the last two decades, these restaurants have been crucial in introducing us to gravies, chutneys and salads vastly different from the kozhambus and tiffin items of our day-to-day. Till date, students or those visiting the city for various health treatments go up to the owners and request dishes from their hometown. When it is possible, the ask is accommodated. “Earlier, we used to bring back several spices from our hometowns to provide an authentic experience. Since more people from the eight states have settled here in Chennai, North-East provision stores have opened too. Things have vastly changed since I first began my restaurant in 2004. All for the better,” he says. In the spirit of experimentation, walk with us on this North-East food trail and expand your palate.
North East Kitchen, Egmore
Ramayon Keishing arrived in Chennai in 1994, as a bright-eyed bushy-tailed young man, hoping to crack the UPSC exams. “That dream was short-lived,” he says, placing a North East Kitchen meal before me. On the sectioned plate is a wonderfully healthy affair — a fry and a gravy with a meat of choice; steamed spinach; a boiled potato and fermented fish chutney called eronba; and some fresh cucumber salad alongside a bowl of rice. As we eat, Ramayon, who is from Ukhrul in Manipur, says that he wanted to open a restaurant that could unite all of the North-East folk. “Around 2014, there was some harassment of NE folk in major metros. I wanted to ensure that there was a place where everyone could feel welcomed,” he says. In the 11 years that he has run the kitchen, Ramayon says that he has noticed drastic changes. While it was predominantly people from the NE who came to the restaurant when it began, the tables have now turned. “Now, 60% of the crowd is local. When they ask for takeouts, they specifically call us to ensure that the eronba is packed,” he says. Shubham Hawlder from Andaman and Nicobar island, says that he visits NEK everytime he is in Chennai. “There is a common misconception about food from the North-East being bland. It is in fact wonderfully flavoured by ginger, garlic and whole spices. It does not have masala, and is hence light on the stomach,” he says.
We recommend: The NEK meal, their chilli meat preparations and their Korean specialty dishes including the Tteok-bokki
Momo Sa-Khang, Choolaimedu
Formerly Kailash Kitchen, named after the imposing Mount Kailash, Momo Sa-Khang began in 2007 as a refuge for Tibetan students who scoured the city’s streets for a bite of fluffy, steamed momos. “I just really missed biting into a momo and I knew that several other Tibetan students did too. We decided to keep things simple and started a shop in Choolaimedu as I was familiar with the area and knew many Tibetan students who studied in Loyola College. We had only two dishes on the menu. A vegetarian and chicken version of a momo and of the popular warm noodle-soup thukpa. We introduced the dhangtuk, a cold noodle dish, because it was better for the Chennai summer. The thukpa tends to make the body very warm,” says Rinchen Tashi, the owner who came to Chennai as a 20-something. “I am now 44 and do not plan to leave,” he says. Momo Sa-Khang now has three stores under the ownership of Rinchen (at Choolaimedu, Anna Nagar and Besant Nagar) and two other franchises (at KK Nagar and Velachery). At the restaurant is a gaggle of young women from Ethiraj College for Women who are here to try momos and chow mein after having watched an Instagram reel. S Mahavaishnavi is the only one among them who has been here before and is a big fan of the economic pricing and their spicy momo chutney that often elicits expletives after subsequent bites. “We use the local red chilies from Chennai and flavour it with star anise, cinnamon, fennel seeds and sesame oil. That is what leads to the addictive taste,” Tashi says. He adds that the chillies in his town are much hotter. “The people here have not been able to handle the taste,” he says.
We recommend: It’s a limited menu. Try everything including the fruit beer, a non-alcoholic soda.
Hotel Brahmaputra, Greams Road
It has only been four years since Hotel Brahmaputra opened its doors but it has been dishing out a steady stream of their Assamese thalis replete with three kinds of potato variations; a paneer subzi; a mixed veg subzi; a raw mango sweet pickle; and the watery, mild and comforting Assamese dal. Hotel Brahmaputra began to cater to a need. Located in Greams Road, the owners, who do not wish to be named, say that several families from Assam, West Bengal and Tripura, began arriving in Chennai for treatment in hospitals in and around the Nungambakkam neighbourhood. Everyone wanted soft food, reminiscent of home. “Since we cater to families that have patients, we wanted to keep it light and home-style,” he said. Saswati Sarkar who is in Chennai from West Bengal for health-reasons, says that there is usually less mustard oil in their food at home but the thali does its job. Besides the meal, the restaurant’s staff recommends two kinds of fish — the katla fish and boal fish — which are popular both in their curry and fry formats. Even the simple aloo pitika with mashed potatoes tempered with mustard oil, onions, hot green chillies, is a well-loved dish here.
We recommend: The Assamese thali and the fish varieties.
Naga Reju, Choolaimedu
Maong Nungsang Jamir is a big proponent of cheap meals. When he was a student who arrived in Chennai in 1999 for the first time, he ate whatever was served at his hostel. “At that time, I didn’t have a choice but once my brother and I moved to a rented apartment, we began spending a good amount of time learning to cook. Once we realised that there is a serious dearth of North-East cuisine in Chennai, it was about time to do something about it. My father suggested that we name our place ‘Naga Reju’, meaning a Naga shelter for travellers passing by. In 2006, we became the first place selling pork, beef and chicken that was made the Naga style,” he says. Maong adds that food across Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland is mostly similar. The meals are simple and light with boiled vegetables, a fresh salad with a bite, a protein (usually pork. No celebration is complete without it, he says), and some carbs, usually rice. Over time though, their Naga king chilli fry version of meats and paneer, has gained popularity, especially among the local Chennai population. “I began Naga Reju in Choolaimedu because a majority of my community lived here. Rent was cheap and we were allowed to be. At the start, 80% of my customers were from the North East. Over the years, YouTube has popularised us. Many locals love our sweet, sour and pungent taste despite not being used to it. Now if you go to Nagaland, you will know exactly what you’d like to eat, just like how we now know the perfect consistency of sambar and the right softness of an idli,” he says.
We recommend: Naga king chilli with any meat and stir-fried bamboo shoot
