Saravanaa Bhavan — Restaurant in Melbourne

I must mention this first as I don’t complain in this platform and if I have any grievance I go up to the senior member of the any restaurant. Today visited this venue as last time I had visited it was superb to a point that I had personally given my star ratings towards the exceptional food to chef ( I am too a chef for over 20 yrs). Today ordered food Mango lassi - good taste freshly made hence might not be chilled and I can understand. Stir Fry Veg Hakka Noodle : very nice and tasty. Gobhi Manchurian : absolute disaster, dripping in oil ( which as a chef can tell you is reused beyond its life - tasted Rancid and no crunch and although was ordered dry but still should have sauce glaze but nothing but oily sad dish and nor did they care to put spring onions) Please take it out of your menu if you can’t make it. Cheese Dosa : very nice and fresh. Medu Wada : very nice, freshly fried and tasted awesome. Punjabi Thalli: first time it was no hotter then 35 degrees to a point where dal, cholle, paneer Sabzi, pulao all cold except freshly bake naan. So I had to walk to a senior person and say that food is cold can you please sort it. Mind you I was very polite. He was too and promptly got that taken away and after 15 mins got me a fresh thalli via Dummy Waiter ( robot) at that instance I honestly was very hungry and let go that they forgot the veg Pulao but without any reminder the dummy waiter came and delivered Pulao. Food was hot this time but mind you when I tasted it, I can be certain the dry spices were raw and uncooked ( not fried enough leaving harsh feeling in my palette and resulting acidity later) I like everyone was polite but choose not to eat 85% of the food. Gulab Jamun were the highlight. The best was that. Upon leaving as a constructive feedback I went upto the counter and politely conveyed my grievance and the staff was courteous and apologetic but I guess she didn’t have enough authority but just to reply “I will convey this to chef” I know you all must be going through staffing challenges and skill shortages. My advice is reduce the menu based on the skill set in the kitchen so atleast you are certain about the best been served. If north Indian cuisine is not something that the team can produce and give to the price of the dish then amend the menu and stick to dishes that can be done and served correctly. Mind you in the whole process (not that I was expecting) not even once anyone came to reconciliation to ask me to come back with a voucher as I would also be happy to know if that was done to be sure that it has made good changes and they would’ve got me back but I don’t think I walked out with good taste and experience and they have lost me forever. Poor management, Poor customer experience, poor quality ( based on the temperature and uncooked spices). Please fix this asap or else many people will loose faith like...

Absolute fab service by humans and Robots 🤖..... Funny but true..... Stopped by after coming from a tired excursion.

Surprised to find this place and frankly I disagree with some not so pleasant reviews here.....This place is closest to authentic South Indian preparation which I have had in Melbourne over the years. I absolutely appreciate the effort put in to create the experience in guest satisfaction by service and kitchen staff.

😋 Chole Bhature 😁 (Pics in Gallery) no wonder is a crowd pleaser. It's fluffy, soft , tender and just melts in the mouth. Chickpeas alongside compliment the Bhature bread. Happy with the spot on the taste of condiments served alongside. Don't get fooled by the big size Bhatura pc which is just yum and if I had nothing else, I would have ordered another one :-)

Masala Dosa 🥖 (pic in gallery)the absolute basic one is made to perfection which is nothing short of a dream Just the right amount of tempering in the potato mix with light spices to have the flavor burst with the crispy crunchy texture in your mouth, is outstanding.

Rava Masala Dosa: requested the chef to make it crispy, as I have had this most of the times and they surely did an exceptional job.

Sambar 🥣 is made more of Chennai style which is hands down great 👍.... Nothing just great taste.....so happy with that (portion size is pretty controlled though 😢)

Vada and Idli : nothing to fault here...just sheer taste

Aidai Avial :( Pics in gallery )Highlight of the day as they make it only on weekends (if I'm not wrong) what a distinct authentic taste , right from the aroma to the after taste.... Extremely unique and acquired taste of this one and can only be appreciated if you have a palette for such an exquisite dish. The pancake made of lentils and spices is so flavorful, the taste reminds me of South India . The blend of spices in the sauce is so unique that if someone has it for the first time, it would take them straight to culinary delight. Recommended to give it a go if you're aware of this dish, such a rare gem. Naman (apology if not quoting the name correct)thanks for the wonderful gesture ,this dish is beyond amazing mate.

Lastly I would like to commend the service team who were extremely helpful for any query we had. If they didn't know something, they were happy to check with the kitchen team and share the answers.

I enjoyed their Kulfi and some teatime snacks which went so well on their own and also used them as canapes.

I will return and enjoy the food there which is such a delight and recommend people to try this place out.

Tip : while ordering through their table barcode, feel free to mentythe chef if you want something less spicy or anything else you want. The chefs actually read the comments and pay utmost attention to it. Great service attitude...Keep up the...

I have been visiting Wantirna branch since it started but my experience in the last two visits was pathetic with regards to service. Both the times inspite of asking no cutlery was provided on the table and I myself get up and got the cutlery jar. The staff member who I requested cutlery few minutes ago was busy watching facebook on his mobile, he saw me picking up the cutlery but didn't bother. In my last visit, I ordered an idly samber thali and was waiting for someone to see so that I can let them know I want idli and sambar separate since dish was for my kid who may not have spicy samber but no one turned up, although there was hardly one or two tables were occupied that time. When it came I requested it to be separate and the guy told me in a taunting way, " Its a South Indian dish and is served in that way, you should have mentioned that in comments while ordering through mobile". He refused to changed it so I decided to leave without having food inspite of the fact I already paid for it. This is the same guy who told me in the last visit that mini idlies are served immersed in sambar, i.e why I order the normal size idli this time but he continued arguing with me. Finally a girl from the kitchen heard us and replaced idli. i think this robot serving is lacking personal touch and will impact the business in the long run. I never had that kind of experience visiting the branch earlier, the staff used to be so polite and friendly but things...