Babaji's Kerala Kitchen - Warburton — Restaurant in Melbourne

There are many wonderful dining establishmemts in Warburton. This not one of them. Whomever awarded this venture a hat, has obviously never seen a head. Perhaps the misguided hat-awarder was intoxicated at the time or perhaps it was their first day on the job. I'd recommend their boss takes them on a professional development outing to any of the many marvellous southern indian establishments around the country. From the moment we came through the door and was greeted by a woman with the warmth of an arctic winter, the demeanour of a woken bear and the smile of a brighton 'karen' after too much botox, I thought "wow! now here is a woman who belongs in customer service!" Luckily she allowed our small group to dine, despite being completely booked out (code for every table was completely empty) and I did my best to assure her we wouldnt be there long to ruin things for her...as pesky paying restaurant patrons often do. She gave us clear instructions on where to sit and how to order and pay first at the bar which I had yet to experience in a hatted restaurant. But we soon found out why. To call the food portions microscopic would be an affront to amoebas everywhere. I assumed the tiny bowls that had arrived were small sauces or chutney to accompany my main which would follow shortly...but alas they WERE the mains, and at $25 and $27 for each main, there was only around 40 grams of meat in the ashtray sized bowl. oh and these are designed to share... so about 5-10 grams of meat for each of us. The parotta which at a whopping $4.50 for one small piece, was in tatters making it not something you could use to mop up or eat your 5g of meat or sauce with. the chai was so clove'y it was medicinal and more suited as a numbing agent for a dental procedure. But I digress. The small amount of food we ate was tasty, the meat tender and flavoursome, but all generally unremarkably ordinary. The keralan decor from floor to ceiling and bar to carpark rickshaw clearly spoke of a thoughtful woman (or possibly 2) with a soft creamy nostalgic centre who wishes she could have stayed in southern india for ever. Kerala and its cuisine obviously speaks to her, and has become an intrinsic part of her being. But when the condescending response to every single critical google review, customer request, or attempt at feedback is either "well every other customer who comes here is thrilled with us" (they're not), or "you dont know what it costs to run a restaurant" (oh but I do), "no we cant do that here" (yes you can, you just dont want to), or "if youre not happy then go somewhere else (lord, how I wish I had) or the ultimate "well thats how it is done in Kerala" (said to clients from Kerala)... rather than making even a teensy allowance for the possibility that you may actually be able to improve some miniscule aspect of your restaurant, to make it something truly remarkable ....then i'll just have to ready myself for the "i told ya so" dance. Cos anyone who robs patrons blind while rudely insisting that it is both fair, culturally representative and even applauded by thousands of other adoring fans, with the insistence that everything in the restaurant is perfectly fine the way it is.....has a very short lifespan in hospitality ahead of them. And for those like myself who visit Warburton regularly, if you fall for the hype as I did, you can be guaranteed one thing for sure at Babaji's... that the customer is...

Poor communication between person waiting and kitchen, RUDE serving staff .food had to be returned as it was served before suggested "MAY BE"long wait time without people on table , on top had to cope up a comment from waitress I am being unfair?? . Half the tables were empty contrary to HYPE created by the lady in waiting. Eventually reheated food was served as our order was prepared and stived into warmer. Price and portion size were hating each other . Great attempt by Chef to bring in authentic Kerala flavours. Could have tasted better if person serving wasn't rude and not doing us a favor. We will try visiting again on a quiter day to see if colour of my face or lesser crowd make a difference. We have enjoyed the chicken fry that can still fly with feathers on its wings. A geat place to dine with beautiful interior and external views throughout. Definitely a revisit if you are lucky to get a waiting staff that knows to have a smile , warmth , that suits with local atmosphere and some basic hospitality.

Hi Billy appreciate your response , you have missed important points ,

1. I didn't even speak to you after the tables are booked , unless you are speaking on behalf of your staff. I was very clear on not getting in to an argument with her and even advised your staff to serve the food if the kitchen is busy.
2. You have failed to acknowledge the chicken fry was served with feathers.
3. Through out the time you and your staff made us feel very unwelcome to start , I did not see full capacity of 200 guests arriving , while I was there from 13:20 to 16:00 hrs , you need to see Warburton local bakery to understand what busy and rush hr means.

If you cannot take criticism or a negative feed back it is your problem not mine , Again , you didn't me any favor by accommodating us , in business every penny counts and you are all working hard for it so don't feel too much about being pride on this . you are there just to do business .

My feed back will not change as it is not an opinion it is an experience .

Check your responses to low rating feed back on trip advisor and your response to my review if you are not being racist.

I generally do not leave any negative reviews as I understand and appreciate the hard work that goes behind , may it is time for you to retrospect ??? Pseudo Roots of Kerala and...

Our visit to Babaji's Kitchen was entirely coincidental. I spotted this restaurant on the way to Mt. Donna Buang, but only noticed the "Kerala Kitchen" sign on our return journey. Encouraged by my partner, I made a U-turn about a kilometer past the restaurant. We parked next to a lot overlooking the Yarra River, which, in this part of the country, is merely a tenth of the size it is in Melbourne's CBD. The outdoor seating was well-managed and evoked a scene from a Malayalam romantic song.

Upon entering the restaurant, we were initially surprised and skeptical about the predominantly Caucasian staff. However, our doubts were quickly dispelled when I spoke to a lady named Billy, whom I later identified on their website's "About Us" page. She introduced us to Max, who was having his late lunch, and it soon became clear how things operated. When Billy mentioned that she knew the name of my hometown in Kerala, I began to feel very positive about the place.

We ordered Parotta, the 'national dish of Kerala,' goat curry, and thali meals with beef curry. Our food was delivered by a very friendly young Caucasian staff member. At that moment, it truly felt like we were no longer in Australia but had been transported to a restaurant in Kerala. The Parotta was fluffy and flaky, clearly freshly cooked and not frozen. Back home, Avial is my favorite dish for lunch, and I salute Team Babaji for making it absolutely 100% delicious. They say vegetables taste different in various countries, and so does the food, but this challenge was well met by Team Babaji. Every single item, including the Paneer Curry, the Parippu (Daal) Curry, the Kadala Curry, and the papad, tasted exactly like it would in a restaurant in Kerala.

Overall, it was a wonderful experience for us. We learned about their upcoming Onam Sadhya in September and are very keen on booking for myself and my non-Indian friends. I am proud to introduce them to authentic Kerala cuisine, especially since they are all tired of the ubiquitous North...