Qmin OMR, Chennai — Restaurant in Tiruporur

VEGANS AND THOSE WITH ALLERGIES MUST BE EXTRA-CAUTIOUS BECAUSE THE LABELLING CAN BE IFFY. ALWAYS CHECK WITH THE HEAD OF WAITSTAFF OR THE MAITRE D' OR CHEF IF YOU ARE VERY PARTICULAR. Update 17 Dec '23: Breakfast Buffet @ INR 450 or so was fine but with ghee used to finish dishes like Pongal and Kichidi. The allergen signboard, displayed just as you enter the dining area from the elevators, can be a bit misleading because it suggests that dishes like Idli, Utthappam and Dosas contain dairy products when that is the case only on special occasions (e.g. the rava dosa may contain some ghee as finishing). I tried nearly everything--including some non-vegan stuff like the Pongal, Kichadi and Muffins (with egg) unfortunately. All the plant-based and vegan-friendly items, i.e., idli, chutneys, sambar, bondas, eggless sugar doughnuts, watermelon juice and the like were very pleasant. It wasn't the finest buffet in terms of taste but it actually was pleasant and I think great value although I'd have liked way more plant-based options on the menu. I mean, there's no real need to finish anything off with ghee or animal products: the guest can always add a bit to their plate if they want. So I'd suggest a small constantly warm vessel with melted ghee for guests who want it. Personally, I think a dish should be able to stand its own ground without ghee to add richness in most cases. Staff were friendly and helpful but maybe not very well-informed about ingredients used to prepare the dishes. That can be improved quite easily with a bit of training or the labelling. Update 16 Dec '23: Tried the Dinner Buffet @ INR 599 and it was pretty good value, IMO. I'm vegan but still found enough on offer: Vegetable Manchurian, Stir-fried noodles, Jeera Pulao, Dal Masoor, Veg Khurma, Appazham, Coleslaw, Mixed Veg Salad, Indian Masala Pasta, Khuska (Biryani Rice -- unfortunately containing some ghee as finish), Blue Tropical Juice. All decent. Recommended at that price for sure because it could be better value than what's on offer at the food court in the neighbouring Marina Mall.

Recon 14 Dec. '23: A recon visit of the entire hotel's facilities before in later this week. The staff and atmosphere at QMin, the onsite restaurant, were fine for this class of hotel but the food was mediocre: I mean, barely passable. I ordered just one simple Indian dish, i.e., Dal Tadka with roti and almost any average Indian roadside joint could do better. The roti was rather curious because it had no charring whatsoever despite being fully cooked and the dal was lacklustre in terms of flavour profile. Staff and service were okay. A bit disappointing considering the hotel seems nice enough overall and has received such great reviews. This review will be updated over the next week or so because I'll be staying there for about 10 days and trying out their breakfast buffet on a couple of days. Let's hope the buffet's better than the dal tadka...

Very satisfied with the service. Thanks to Eva and Divya, they are polite and hard working. Delicious food,...

400 for breakfast buffet total...