From the junction at Seven Roads, Sujatha Shankar Kumar picks some centrally located eating places in Kodaikanal with unique hill-town flavours.

From bakeries and gourmet cafes to five star resorts, Kodaikanal’s kitchens have a zest for organic, churning out recipes from scratch. Cheeses, herbs and vegetables are procured farm fresh. The laid-back atmosphere of a small town is deceptive. Restaurants and cafes bustle about to cater to the busy crowds of the season.

Cafe Cariappa

A miniature gourmet coffee house for true coffee lovers, Cafe Cariappa is a delightful nook with tables on barrels and wood panelled walls. Alongside, they serve hot Belgian waffles with chocolate syrup and honey, carrot cake and organic muffins. Sandwiches are filled with cheese and mustard from Caroselle, specialty cheese maker from Pethuparai. Kishore Cariappa’s dream was sparked by environmental interests and a yen to grow organic coffee. Purchasing a small farm 35 km from Kodaikanal, Cariappa set out to preserve the natural ecosystem engaging the local Mannadiyars, early agricultural settlers. The single origin coffee at the cafe is pure Arrabica, a premium brand. Cariappa roasts and grinds the coffee beans, all in-house, with his specially procured Italian machines. An elephant drinking coffee from a cup adorns the brown Kraft packaging with Cariappa’s trademark stamp ‘Origin Palani Hills’. He says, “I want this to be a revolutionary centre for ecology where coffee is the meeting point.” As coffee grows in the shade, trees are never cut in his estate. Elephants do visit the Cariappas and my bet is Kishore wishes they drink his coffee!

JS Heritage Complex, PT Road

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus> Food / 1 part of 7 outlets / by Sujatha Shankar Kumar / Chennai – June 05th, 2014