Chennai Margazhi Sabha Canteen: A Guide

Sangeet Academy, Sastha Catering Services

For RK Venkatesan of Sastha Catering Services, planning the lunch menu for the Margazhi Sabha canteen starts two months in advance. Keeping seasonal vegetables in mind, he plans a menu for 25 days.

“We take pre-bookings, and customers can avail our parcel service this year,” says Venkatesan, who has been catering at the Sabha canteen for the last eight years. Although their canteen serves filter coffee and traditional breakfast from 7 am onwards, the crowd gathers in large numbers at lunch time.

“We serve around 800 Ilai Sapad on weekdays and during weekends it is more than 1,200,” says Venkatesan. Their special Kalyan Sapad is priced at ₹550 and they will also do a January 1 feast for ₹650. For those who prefer a quick meal between concerts, a mini lunch (₹300) is offered.

Coffee being made in the Sabha canteen. Photo Courtesy: S Shiv Raj

Variety is the hallmark of this caterer, which has listed 30 types of dosas and 10 types of idlis on its menu. Gulkand Kasi Halwa, Chikoo Kesari, Strawberry Kesari, Aval Kesari and Ginger Kesari are some of their special sweets.

Enjoy Vethala and Molaga Bajji, Kozhukattai, Morakali and Ila Adai served from 4 pm to 7 pm. For dinner, there are live counters for making idiyappam and adai.

@The Music Academy, Mylapore, till 8 January. Open from 7 am to 10 pm. Lunch from 11 am to 3 pm. To pre-book your parcel meal, call 9962919460.

Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha, Arusuvai Caterers

Sweets and salty snacks for sale in Sabha canteen. Photo Credit: Raghunathan SR

N Sridhar, owner of Arusuvai Caterers, and his staff are all set to ensure that revelers enjoy the traditional Ilai Sapada at the Sri Parthasarathy Swami Sabha. This caterer has replaced the banana leaf with a giant one. Thanga Thambalam (Golden plates) for serving food.

Diners can enjoy a South Indian traditional meal (₹600) with two types of payasam and a traditional dry sweet. paan And filter coffee. The menu is planned for three days at a time and their weekend menu is great. “We open our canteen at 7 am and serve breakfast till 10.30 am. After that, our focus is on lunch, when we get the maximum footfall,” says Sridhar.

“We will be offering filter coffee throughout the day at our dedicated counter where the brew will be made fresh. We are also planning to set up a stall for delicious snacks like muruku, thattai, seedai etc,” says Soumya Ramesh, part of the family. “As we saw more children coming with their parents, we have prepared a special menu for children for the evening time. We have fried rice, noodles and crispy ghee dosa for them. “We also serve unlimited cups of Ilanir Payasam and Litchi Payasam to the kids at lunch time,” says Sridhar.

@Arusuvai Caterers, Vidya Bharathi Kalyana Mandapam, Mylapore, till January 2, 7 am to 9.30 pm. Lunch will be served from 11.30 am to 3 pm. dine in only.

Krishna Gana Sabha and Vani Mahal, Satva Catering Service

A coffee counter in Satva Ki Sabha canteen. Photo Credits: Akhila Easwaran

Just before singers Nisha Rajagopalan and Amrita Murali took the stage at Krishna Gana Sabha at 3.55 pm, some concert goers quickly grabbed a cup of coffee. Perhaps one of the most beautiful Sabha canteens in Chennai, complete with greenery and aesthetic Chettinad pillars, the Krishna Gana Sabha canteen by Satva Catering Service has experimented with its evening snack menu this year.

“We have traditional favorites like morakali, ammini kozhakattai, pidi kozhakattai and many varieties of dosa,” says RS Kumar, founder of Sattva. It is going to be a busy December for Sattva, which has also organized gatherings at three other locations. Canteens have been established at – Vani Mahal, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan at Kilpauk, and Bapalal Bhavan at Thiruvanmiyur.

For lunch, the canteen serves the traditional banana leaf ‘Kalyana Virundhu’ or wedding feast, and Kumar says the menu varies throughout the week. Apart from regular favorites like sambar vada, rasam vada and vazhapu vada, filter coffee and hot almond milk is available round the clock.

@Satva Catering Service, Krishna Gana Sabha, Maharajpuram Santhanam Salai, T Nagar, 7 AM to 9 PM till January 2. The meal costs ₹330. Contact 9840303403. Sabha canteen at Vani Mahal will run till 15th January.

Narada Gana Sabha, Shri Sasthalaya Catering

Paneer Dosai at Sabha Canteen by Shri Sasthalaya Catering. Photo Courtesy: S Shiv Raj

The canteen of Sree Sasthalaya Catering Service at Narada Gana Sabha has live counters selling snacks like appam, kara paniyaram and kuzhi paniyaram, which are busy during lunch hours.

“Over the weekend, Adai Aviyal was a big hit,” says K Ramesh, founder of Sri Sasthalaya. He lists a long list of sweets they have this year – Gulab Jangri, Special Khoya Jangri, Ashok Halwa, Kasi Halwa, Stuffed Gulab Jamun and more. While there are many traditional dishes, Ramesh says they also have paneer dosai and appam, and this time there is also pizza idli.

Their breakfast and snacks menu is the highlight of this season. For breakfast, which starts at 7am, people can choose from idli, dosa, pongal and appam, as well as the special Kumbakonam Cuddapah and vadakari. “For lunch, we have small meals and all-day specials including dosas, chapattis, puris and parottas that people can order at any time,” says Ramesh. Famous for its excellent coffee, a dedicated coffee counter has been set up, serving hot cups throughout the day.

@Shri Sasthalaya Catering Service, Narada Gana Sabha, TTK Road, from 7 am to 9.30 pm till 1 January. Dosas, snacks and coffee will be served throughout the day. Call 9500028384 for details.

Mylapore Fine Arts Club, ABC Catering

Lunch is being served in the Sabha Canteen at Mylapore Fine Arts Club. Photo Courtesy: S Shiv Raj

The Sabha Canteen at the Mylapore Fine Arts Club opened its doors just before the start of the music and dance festival for the season. “We have already seen people coming for lunch and evening snacks,” says Srinivasan Narayanan, founder of ABC Caterers. “This is the first time that they are setting up a canteen there, and they are already enjoying the response.” Are excited about. This year the canteen has a chaat counter in the evenings, as well as North Indian and Chinese dishes that can be made to order.

“For lunch, we have the Thanjavur banana leaf meal – the entire meal is served on a large leaf. With over 24 dishes, the meal will have a different payasam, sweets, rasam and vegetables every day,” says Srinivasan. Chakka pradhan, jackfruit payasam, coriander mint rasam and other dishes will be part of the meal, and a variety of rice, bisi bele snan and bagala snan will also be available for lunch.

The evening tiffin menu includes vermicelli, vada and bonda, and bhel puri, pav bhaji and dahi samosa will be part of their chaat menu. Their restaurant-style dishes like Paneer Butter Masala, Noodles and Gobi Manchurian can also be made to order.

@ABC Caterers, Mylapore Fine Arts Club, Musiri Subramaniam Road, till January 3. Lunch costs ₹480. Call 9003288633 to pre-book.