Paati Veedu - Fine Dining Pure Veg. Restaurant — Restaurant in Zone 9 Teynampet

Paati Veedu - A Culinary Time Capsule in T.Nagar, Chennai

Located in the bustling neighborhood of T.Nagar, Chennai, Paati Veedu stands out as a unique and nostalgic culinary destination. Specializing in pure vegetarian Tamil Brahmin cuisine, this restaurant offers a niche dining experience that is hard to come by in a city overflowing with diverse culinary options. If you’ve ever yearned for the taste of home-cooked meals made with love, Paati Veedu is the place to be.

Ambiance and Atmosphere Paati Veedu is housed in a beautifully restored ancient home, which has been thoughtfully modernized and revamped to offer a blend of traditional charm and contemporary comfort. The building itself is quite spacious, with large rooms and high ceilings that give it an airy and open feel. The restoration has managed to retain the old-world elegance of the architecture while incorporating modern amenities that enhance the dining experience. The wooden furniture, brass utensils, and soft, ambient lighting create a setting that feels more like a cherished family gathering than a restaurant. It’s a place where time seems to slow down, inviting you to relax, unwind, and savor the experience.However, one notable drawback to the ambiance is the noise level. Given the size of the restaurant and the bustling crowds it attracts, the noise can sometimes become overwhelming. The lively chatter from adjacent tables, coupled with the clattering of dishes, can make it difficult to have a coherent conversation with your dining companions. If you’re looking for a quiet, intimate meal where you can engage in meaningful conversation, Paati Veedu might not be the ideal choice during peak hours.

The Menu: A Tribute to Tradition Paati Veedu’s menu is a carefully curated collection of authentic Tamil Brahmin recipes, passed down through generations and prepared with the utmost attention to detail. Each dish is a celebration of the rich culinary heritage of Tamil Nadu, focusing on simple yet flavorful ingredients that highlight the essence of vegetarian cooking.Welcome Drinks to Start Your JourneyThe culinary journey at Paati Veedu begins with a selection of welcome drinks that are both refreshing and unique. The Tharboosini Pazha Charu, a delightful watermelon-based drink, is light and invigorating, perfect for whetting your appetite. The Elumichai Pudhina Charu, a tangy lemon and mint concoction, is another standout, offering a burst of flavors that set the tone for the meal ahead.

Appetizers and Starters: A Taste of Tradition The appetizers at Paati Veedu are a testament to the rich variety of Tamil Brahmin cuisine. The Chinna Cholam Karuveppilai Varuval, a millet-based dish spiced with curry leaves, is a crunchy and flavorful start to the meal. Another highlight is the Maravallikizhangu Vadai, made from yam and served with a spicy Milagai Thokku, which adds a perfect kick to the savory treat. These starters are not just appetizers but an introduction to the layers of flavors that await you.

Main Course: A Feast for the Senses The main course at Paati Veedu is where the restaurant truly shines. The menu offers a diverse array of dishes that cater to both traditionalists and those looking to explore new flavors. The Kanjeevaram Idly, served with Thenga Chutney and Sambar, is soft and fluffy, a perfect representation of this iconic dish. The Pidi Kozhukattai with Puli Milagai is another must-try, offering a unique combination of textures and flavors that is both comforting and satisfying.The special tiffin section includes dishes like Elumichai Aval with Kudaimilagai Pachadi, a tangy lemon-flavored beaten rice served with bell pepper chutney, which adds a burst of freshness to your palate. The Tawa Delight section offers Urulai Chappathi with Cauliflower Pattan Masala, a wholesome and hearty option for those who enjoy a bit of spice with their meal.For those seeking a more traditional meal, the Thayir Platter is a must-try. This platter includes Thayir Poori, Omam Podi, and Karaboondhi, each dish meticulously prepared to offer a...

We went for a Sunday lunch. There were only 2 options on the menu. Poorna Bakshana was the Super Premium Max Pro Option and then Maha Bakshana was their Super Premium Max Pro Plus option. I strongly recommend Poorna Bakshana as it comes with regular saapaadu where you get to taste a variety of items besides their welcome drinks, starters, desserts and special dishes. The pro max version only offers you tiffin kind of dishes and a soup and no meals. They also give you two large glasses of welcome drinks which make your tummy full. And more portion sizes of lesser items.

Let me start with the welcome drinks in the poorna option. They give you 3 welcome drinks. I found the paanagam very good and went for s repeat. The starters were good but the chutneys provided for the vada and kozhukattai were lip smacking. There was a Sevai which was soft and good and a dosa which was okay. There was a yummy tomato chutney for the dosai and a ladies finger raitha for the sevai that were outstanding.

The highlight of the meal for me was the arisi paruppu Saadham which was totally out of the world. I shamelessly has two refills. It came with a kollu rasam in a short glass and vaazhakkai varuval. The entire combination was just orgasmic!

The meals was perfect. Loved the podi and ghee, murungakkai sambhar, rasam, thuvaiyal and kootu were droolworthy. Even the sundakkai vatha kuzhambu was perfect with appalam. Somehow the potato fry, which I so looked forward to, didn't work for me. The curd rice had great texture but something was missing. Having said that my family loved it.

The payasam in the dessert was lip smacking that even a diabetic should try it risking a sugar spike! The other sweets were good but functional.

The coffee they served at the end was a nice finishing touch. Perfect filter coffee to end the meal.

Service was perfect. They use wireless to communicate and get you your refills immediately. The supervisors are all smiles and courteous but cannot say the same about the frontline staff. I didn't see a smile on their faces but yet, they did their jobs well and on time.

About the ambience, it's an old traditional house converted into a restaurant. But nothing exceptional to create a wow. The seating is thoughtfully well spaced out, giving each table the needed privacy. Which is very good.

Overall, a great dining experience. Good food, good service and decent ambience. But the question is all all this worth the premium we pay for the food. 1500 to 1800 for a veg meals? For me, it's mostly an one time experience. Despite all its pros, I may still not want to go to Paati veedu often. I may save it for some special occasion for the future when I want to host some guests or clients to 'flaunt' a premium option. And am not a cost conscious person. I do give liberal premium to price for quality, service, ambience and overall experience. Still, with all these credits, it doesn't add up to their current pricing. But yes, it's a must visit place for a great one-time dining experience! If their meal is priced even at 999 inr, it might become my favorite go-to veg place few...

This was my third time visiting with my family. We had poorna bhakshana and taste&quality of food has declined a lot and felt that they could have done much better. Most of the items were either stale or cold. Senai varuval was cold and stale, potato was overcooked and i got many overcooked black parts and the sambar was cold and bland. Could have added little salt to the carrot stir fry and kootu, which i usually like very much was very bland. As tiffen item they served chickpea dosa and tomato chutney, the tomato chutney was extremely sour like literally no chilli or salt was added. It felt like just sour tomatoes were pureed and was served to us. Even the parupu podi was not up to par. The desserts were not too good either. It was very average in taste, therati paal halwa in particular was unnecessarily over compensated with ghee. But we did love the starters, pidi kozhukatai in particular was too good.

One thing they did better this time is , we did not have to call and ask them for repeats but they asked us first making us not feel uncomfortable to ask for repeats.My aged parents felt very uncomfortable in our previous visits, this time that didn't happen.

Also I was disappointed by the separate inclusion of 5% service tax without asking the customers first. I understand that 5% GST included the service tax, but a separate extra 5% was just too much. Adding a disclaimer at the bottom of the bill regarding this non mandatory extra service tax did not quite sit right with me. Shouldn't all the fairs already considered and accommodated in the selling price of the dish. Also I would have happily accepted and paid the extra 5% provided they asked me first before billing,. instead they just provided the bill with the extra 5% service tax assuming we would just pay, which I did, as i didn't want my parents special day to be ruined. Nonetheless I was not very happy to see that.

Also i understand the concept of set course menu for lunch but it would be much appreciated if they could just include one or two dishes seperately, for there were instances in our previous experience that a certain party in the group with less or no appetite would want not the whole set course but still want to enjoy with the family.

Update : The Manager Mr.Murugesh invited us to revisit again and indeed their team provided us with wonderful service and the food this time was just top notch, especially the Elaneer Halwa was out of this world...I loved it soo much that I alone had 3 servings of it despite my stomach being full. 2 of us were almost half an hour late than the reserved time, but they accommodated and waited for all of us to come without even a sign of hesitation in their face. It was almost similar to the first time we visited when we absolutely...