Meenakshi , that was a great review.
Couple of updates/things you missed.
As the Jayanagar lease has lapsed, Kadambam's location is now Putanna Chetty Complex ,Vani Vilas Rd , ( near the Ramakrishna Mutt ) Basvangudi. It has both indoor , outdoor seating , the same old Tanjore paintings , the scrubbed walls, and good parking around .
A few not to miss dishes:
Pongal with gojju ( a sweet -spicy tamarind thin curry, tempered with mustard, dried red chili and curry leaves, ) is imported from the heavens. The sheer marrying of flavors -robust pongal, a hint of ghee , and whole pepper, along with the gojju , is amazing . Worth the 15 kilometers we travel there for a a Sunday breakfast . And then there is the Puliyogre , tamarind rice served with curd, each grain separate and well coated . The Bisi Bele Bhath is another perfect small meal , where the sambar and vangayam , melt together in happy harmony .
And then the choice of dosas - medu , set , masala, and on a good day (yippee ) rava, methi and ragi dosas. Take the simple masala dosa - its difficult to say just what is so wonderful about it ( the accompanying khem chutney is a worthwhile distraction ) but it is. Its when you eat a dosai outside ( Airlines hotel, any Darshini whatever), you know its not the Kadambam pat of rotund perfection , and you know you are spoilt for life, and (tragedy!) can never enjoy any other dosa again .
As its normally the two of us for breakfast , we go halves on the pongal, pulliogre , bisi bele bhath and dosa, so we can have a better variety. Its about a 150 rupees altogether . WELL worth it .
You wind up with an unobtrusive although well melded sajjige . The hint of pineapple, the succulent raisins and cashew in the halwa make a great accompaniment with the strong coffee , one lingering sip at a time . And by the way , we havent reached the lunch menu as yet .
Some other time.
The owners come in and personally supervise , and you can see the effort pays off .
The downside - you could order for something and by the time you work your way through to it , its over. Self service and granite tables add to the austerity and tradition of the place .
A shining jewel in Bangalore's crown. Go visit.
allhail
