Sree Abhirami

Sree Abhirami Veg. Restaurant Review

A relatively new addition to the Kochi veg restaurant scene is Hotel Sree Abhirami. Located near the Indian Oil Petrol Pump/Gas Station at Koonamthai Edappally, it has a good parking area and is situated on the main road. We come here occasionally for dinner when we want to eat light and have something vegetarian. 

The restaurant is spacious, they have a good seating capacity with ac and non ac areas. The AC section has been full every time we went there at night, and we feel it possibly offers better service, as you will read below.  
Being a budget veg restaurant, the 'ambiance' is practically non existent; it is basically a 'sit, eat, leave' kind of place which is pretty crowded. Cleanliness was average in terms of drinking water served being a bit questionable, and the place in general was not as well kept as a few other places we have seen. 
They also have a sweets counter which offers a good selection of laddus, like rava laddu, gund laddu, besan laddu etc. and mysore pak, gulab jamuns, pedas, halwas and so on, for those who are interested. 
The menu mainly consists of South Indian dishes, but others like fried rice, biryani and even noodles etc. are also available. 

Suggested Reading: Not familiar with  South Indian food? We have just the right article to get you up to speed: South Indian Breakfasts!

Onion Rava Dosa

We ordered an onion rava roast telling them to make it crisp and well cooked. It came out crisp & not too oily as in most other restaurants. 

It contained onions, chopped green chillies, jeera etc. This was accompanied by sambar, mint chutney and a nice coconut chutney with a hint of garlic. 
Edit: Another time we ordered the Onion Rava Roast, the onion was still raw despite telling the waiter to make it crisp and well cooked. This leads us to believe they need to work on the consistency of their dishes. Coincidentally, this occurred when the AC section was full and we had to eat at the non-AC area, which could be a potential reason for the reduced quality/service, as much as it should not have happened. 
[Note: The vada seen in the photo is not included, it was ordered extra]

Masala Dosa

Their masala dosa was also accompanied by these items. 

It had the usual potato filling and as you can see in the photo, the dosa was rather limp and not very crisp, though this could be expected. There were slightly chunky pieces of onion and the filling was bland; it was not seasoned well enough.
[Note: The vada seen in the photo is not included, it was ordered extra]

Butter Roast
The butter roast was also rather large, much larger than the plate it was served in and was nice because it was crisp and golden brown like it should be. 

It was accompanied by the aforementioned sambhar, white and green chutneys. The taste was fine. 
[Note: The vada seen in the photo is not included, it was ordered extra]

Idli

The idlis [savoury rice cake] served here were nice and soft, reminiscent of what you would find in Tamil Nadu. 

Uthappam
On requesting, they made the uthappam [savoury rice pancake] slightly crisp as we like it. It was topped with chopped onion and chili. 

Uzhunnu Vada

Their uzhunnu vadas [savoury donut] were piping hot & very tasty. 

These are available even at night which is not the case with other places. They had chopped onion and green chilies distributed inside. 

Puris

The puris are also rated good, being golden and puffed like it should be. Served with the usual spiced potato gravy. 

Chapatis

They faltered here too: chappatis were undercooked as was evident with the dark colour it had underneath the surface. They need to work on this one.

Strangely, whenever we ask them for Mysore Masala Dosa which is on the menu, they simply tell us it is 'not available'. Once, twice heck, even three times is fine but they have kept saying the same excuse each and every time we have been here, and this is absolutely unacceptable. 

When the bill arrived we were amazed at how low the prices were. Sure, they have a lot to pick up on, we summarize our findings below: 

• Certain menu items like the chapatis and the masala dosa need improvement
• Mysore Masala Dosa either needs to be removed from the menu or made available for ordering.
• Rava dosa should be a little more consistent and the onions well cooked unless mentioned 
• Their service can be inconsistent, waiters need better training 
• Drinking water is of questionable quality
• General cleanliness could use a boost.

To sum it up, this is another vegetarian restaurant that serves decent food if you order the right thing [what we have suggested ordering above] and offers substantially good value for money. The ample parking area is a bonus and you should not have trouble finding a seat either. They are very strategically located, so if they iron out the above issues, they stand a chance to do well.

Type of Cuisine: South Indian Vegetarian
Location

Near Indian Oil Pump, Koonamthai, Edappally.

Parking: Lots of place right in front, should not be a problem.

Ambience: Average

Service: Ordinary

What we liked/Recommended for:

• Ample parking space. 
• Air conditioned area. 
• Value for money. 

Potential Shortcomings:
Read bullets above. 

Taxes: Included in price, no fat tax applicable.

Phone Number: +91 95673 88735

Timings: 08:00 - 22:30

Website: http://www.sreeabhirami.com/

On Zomato:
      


This review will be updated based on further experiences so stay tuned.

Have you been to Sree Abhirami? Tell us your experience in the comments below!