Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Restaurant Review: Lotus

I've eaten at Lotus numerous times. So much, infact, that my usual dining companion and I have a special sauce there that they bring out only when we dine there!! I couldn't believe that I hadn't reviewed it here. I did mention it briefly, but not nearly enough.

Lotus, located at The Park Hotel, has the best Thai food in Chennai. And maybe in south India. A cozy restaurant with ample plush seating, the ambience invites you to linger over your food and have 3 hour lunches with a good friend.

Now to the exciting food. We always start with the Vietnamese spring rolls that are fresh and crunchy and served with a special dipping sauce that is incredible. The must order salads are the Mango Salad and the ever popular raw Papaya salad. They also have a Banana Blossoms salad that we tried recently which is very nice.



Then comes the Thai spicy fried rice, Pahd Thai, honey glazed crunchy vegetables, chicken satay and a vegetarian green curry. I must say here that every single one of those dishes is Excellent.



We usually end with the black sticky rice pudding, which is tremendous. I've been angling to get the recipe for a year now, and haven't managed to! One order might be enough for about 4 people - its really really rich.

If you love Thai food, head to Lotus for a delectable meal.

Lotus Thai
Park Hotel
601, Anna Salai
Chennai

Phone - (044) 4214 4000 for reservations

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

In the latest issue of Conde Nast we have restaurant from Madras (a first, I would say)...Prego

Baskar

Arundathi said...

Baskar - That is a first - good for Chennai! I did do a review of Prego as well - wasn't too impressed. More about the frills than the food.

Unknown said...

On my wishlist, next time I am in Madras :)

Arundathi said...

Good Good! You'll enjoy it!

Anonymous said...

Arundathi-

I have really enjoyed your blog since I visit Chennai often. My mother grew up there (she attended Stella Maris as you did) and I just returned from my latest trip last week. I went to Benjarong, (which was reviewed in the New York Times) and was not impressed with the food, as I had been to Thailand the week before. Next time I will have to try Lotus. I adore the Park. Also, I enjoyed my experience at Grand Sweets as it was reviewed in Gourmet Magazine a few years ago!
Vidya

p.s. I would love to hear if you have any spa reviews in Chennai. I have been to the spa at the Park and at Le Meridien but did not get to try Oryza and was wondering if you had any experience there.

Arundathi said...

Thanks for stopping by, Vidya. Yup - Benjarong has definitely deteriorated but seems to always be full of people. The food is very average.

Hmm...I haven't been to Oryza but everyone who has been loves it. I love the Park spa only because I love Thai massages and they dont give those anywhere else... Hope that helps.

Deepa said...

In Sowkarpet you can discover a wonderful array of delicious food. It is in N.S.C Bose Road. They make simple veg.chutney sandwich. They also make peanuts and pori mixed with grated vegetables and spices. You have it with sugar cane juice.There is also a chat stall 'chotumotu' .These vendors make everything fresh in the morning. There , it is always very busy from morning to night till 10 P.M. They also make fresh pudina dosai.

--Vidya (Deepa's mom).

Arundathi said...

Thank you, Vidya and Deepa. Next stop, Sowkarpet!

orderplz said...


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