FOOD -- 14:

THE BRUNCH BUFFET AT QUALITY RESTAURANT, COONOOR..

NEW IN TOWN

BY P S SUNDAR

To usher in tourism during this winter, Quality Restaurant in Bedford Coonoor has launched a Brunch Buffet on Sundays.

“We will be entering our 20^th year in three months from now but this is the first time we have introduced Brunch Buffet.   For that matter, no restaurant in the district has Brunch Buffet. So, this is a totally new concept here”, G Ujjual, Managing Director of Quality group of restaurants, said.

Quality Restaurant holds the credit of introducing buffet lunch and dinner daily in Coonoor in addition to ala carte menu.

“This is the high-season for the foreigners’ visit to The Nilgiris which will go on till February end.  While they are familiar with Brunch, we are introducing to them 25 Indian vegetarian dishes”, he disclosed.

“Our new concept is to encourage Brunch Buffet from 10.45 am to 12 noon on Sundays.  The lunch begins at 12 noon on all days including Sunday.  While the Brunch is totally vegetarian, during lunch and dinner, guests can order non vegetarian dishes in addition to the vegetarian buffet.  Of course, if they go for ala carte, buffet lunch / dinner is not for them”, Ujjual explained.

Since Brunch is a combination of Breakfast with Lunch, there are Tiffin items besides those bordering lunch.   The Brunch Buffet is elaborate with as many as 25 items on the spread beginning with Burnt Corn soup. 

For breakfast type of items, there are Idiappam with Kadalai Kari side-dish, Uthappam with chutney and sambar, Poori with Aloo paneer subji.

Interestingly, there is a live counter for Aappam which is served with potato stew.   Tourists, especially North Indians and foreigners, are seen enjoying the making of Aappam even as they taste the Aappam with the Kerala-style stew.

For the lunch part of the Brunch, vegetable Dum Biriyani with Mirchi ka Salan side-dish is a great favourite among the guests.

To give a Chinese touch, there is vegetable noodle which goes with vegetable ball Manchurian.

There is also a salad counter with peppered corn, boiled vegetables, mixed vegetable raitha and chutney-sandwich.

 

And, the dessert counter has fruit custard and Paruppu Pradhaman, the Kerala-style payasam which is preferred during festivals there.

There is fascinating ice tea kept in an attractive glass jar which guests enjoy almost throughout the Brunch.  

“Many of these dishes and the Tiffin items will not be in the lunch buffet which will have rice, rasam, vegetable side-dishes etc., with a choice for the guests to choose any non vegetarian dish.  Thus, the two – Brunch and Lunch – are different throwing open the option to enjoy an elaborate meal on Sunday forenoon”, Ujjual disclosed.

“In fact, we launched the Brunch concept only after studying the demand for the same from tourists and the residents, Defence officers living in Wellington near Coonoor as also planters and families in different parts of The Nilgiris district”, said Ujjual, a graduate of Institute of Hotel Management with 27 years experience in hotel industry including working experience with Ambassador, Residency and Taj groups.

Interestingly, the 52-seating capacity restaurant is full during the Brunch while some wait for seats during lunch and dinner.

“After studying the progress, we plan to offer the Brunch on all days.  We also have a plan of starting the Brunch in our Ooty branch”, Ujjual shared.

(Response can also be sent to: pssundar.coonoor@gmail.com)