I feel it whenever I go there.
Its the old world charm of the seventies the whiff of nostalgia when life was more at leisure ,food was slower ,and eating out not a daily affair .
And these days eating out is become nostalgic
Dont know when we would do it
Even if we do to sit with stupid masks in a non AC place is a horror story .
Forget the bloody Corona ,lets talk ofvGrand hotel .
In 1963 its said the man who started it an agriculrturist from Kottayam dt did it as he was denied a room in a nearby hotel but that hasnt been confirmed by the family that still owns it .
It sits right in the middle of MG Road in the center of the city sqaure a three story terraced building with no pretense of ethnic red roofs .
The heritage is there of course in its spacious ambience ,wooden chairs, and exotic homely kerala food it specialises in .
If you ask me can I get a chicken fried rice or a masala dosa ,yes you may ,but dont go to Grand for that .
You go there only for the succulent juicy morsel hidden in the wetness of a green plantain leaf the karimeen polichattu Grands gift they say to Cochin .
The fish caught in the dipping Chinese nets off Vaikom is the famous pearl spot tasty and soft .
One goes to Grand to dip into hot red rice with avial ,thoran ,sambhar and Allepey fish curry with its tangy mango flavour or a fluffy white aapam or parotta with a pinch of coconut in their Beef olarthiyathu .
Its this emphasis of homely central kerala christian cooking that attracts people to this place .
As one hears whispers of kottayam slang ,Cochin banter,or Thrissur crescendoes or an American tang from a tourist the friendly waiters bring you tall glasses of limed sodas on the rocks or iced teas to cool the embers.
The couchyn bar provides adeqaute drinks if needed or ice cold beers in long glasses with steaming biriyanis .
We had aapam parotta Allepey fish curry ,meen mulagitathu and beef olarthiyathu
The mulagitathu was fiery red with oil , lovely to look at with very soft succulent fish though my heightened sensitivity detected a tad bit of rancid masala .
The Allepey fish curry was a bit salty and wasnt really vying itself for the best one in town .
Beef olarthiyathu was good though I had to search for the coconut bits and a bit chewy .
The lime soda was a delight in the humid climate of may last year
All in all a very fine experience .
Best part was the company my dear son in law Achu .
Real Grand
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