It took me a while to find a place in Hyderabad which serves good dosa and sambar. And for a long time sweet, rasam-like water passing as sambar at certain places was the best this city could do. And then me and my friends went to Minerva Coffee Shop. In its website, the coffee house promises an ambiance of "warm difference". That is certainly true. As you set inside the place, especially when it is pouring outside, the host very courteously gestures you to comfortable seats. The setting is all gold and mahogany with soft lights and scents of coffee and spice tease your senses. As you sit, you are immediately attended to by one liveried man who hands you the menu while another fills your glass. You hear about the Nizami hospitality. In this coffee house you see the proof.
The restaurant offers a selection of food that is varied and vegetarian. But its piece de resistance is its various dosas with white butter and hot filter coffee. We ordered three masala dosas and one plain dosa. Along with that, we ordered four cups of filter coffee. The service is a little slow especially when during rush hours. But once the food is there, you forget all about the wait [Trust me on that].
The masala dosa is crisp with a dollop of white butter pooling on top of it. It is served with a side of tamarind and tomato chutney, coconut chutney and thick spicy sambar. The insides of the dosa is rubbed with spicy podi or powder and filled with generous portion of spicy potato filling. The plain dosa is artistically arranged in a cone and the white butter is served on the side.
For the next few minutes, there is silence at the table as we heaped chutney and sambar on top of the dosa and started delicately tearing at the offering in front of us.The white butter is so different from the regular one. It is lush and elevates the dish to new levels of deliciousness. The condiments come together to compliment each other. When you finish - as described by my friend - you feel full and light at the same time.
The filter coffee is another matter entirely. Hot, slightly bitter and sweet, it forms the perfect end to the meal. And when you have come in from the cold rains, it is a perfect jolt to the system.
Unpretentious and warm, this place makes you want to come back again and partake of their delicious fare. For me, if you are in the vicinity, take a walk into the place and try the food.
Location: KFC Lane, Himayat Nagar
What to try: Any of the dosas, filter coffee
Rating: 3.8/5
The restaurant offers a selection of food that is varied and vegetarian. But its piece de resistance is its various dosas with white butter and hot filter coffee. We ordered three masala dosas and one plain dosa. Along with that, we ordered four cups of filter coffee. The service is a little slow especially when during rush hours. But once the food is there, you forget all about the wait [Trust me on that].
The masala dosa is crisp with a dollop of white butter pooling on top of it. It is served with a side of tamarind and tomato chutney, coconut chutney and thick spicy sambar. The insides of the dosa is rubbed with spicy podi or powder and filled with generous portion of spicy potato filling. The plain dosa is artistically arranged in a cone and the white butter is served on the side.
For the next few minutes, there is silence at the table as we heaped chutney and sambar on top of the dosa and started delicately tearing at the offering in front of us.The white butter is so different from the regular one. It is lush and elevates the dish to new levels of deliciousness. The condiments come together to compliment each other. When you finish - as described by my friend - you feel full and light at the same time.
The filter coffee is another matter entirely. Hot, slightly bitter and sweet, it forms the perfect end to the meal. And when you have come in from the cold rains, it is a perfect jolt to the system.
Unpretentious and warm, this place makes you want to come back again and partake of their delicious fare. For me, if you are in the vicinity, take a walk into the place and try the food.
Location: KFC Lane, Himayat Nagar
What to try: Any of the dosas, filter coffee
Rating: 3.8/5
I havent been to this cafe in Hyderabad but thanks for the review
ReplyDeleteThe day I start describing food like you do here, I will know I am a wordsmith :-)
ReplyDeleteBy the way, a special mention for the set dosa from me.
I'm writing you on behalf of one of Hyderabad's top city guide and recommendation website: http://CityHyd.info and I would like to invite you to be a contributor.
ReplyDeleteAt this moment, I'm trying to amass the magician word-wizards of Hyderabad city under one umbrella i.e. CityHyd. With this opportunity we are trying to build a community of Hyderabadi bloggers expressing themselves on regular basis on a single platform. The idea is simple- You get to express yourself on CityHyd and we give you enough credits to drive up your readership.
If you would be interested, kindly drop me a note please- viveknanda1@gmail.com