Podi Or BBQ? Stuff Your Faces With The Best Idlis In Chennai

This Sowcarpet tiffin centre is your one-stop-shop for everything podi-licious. Jam packed on all days of the week, Seena Bhai is known to serve authentic ghee and podi idlis apart from yummy dosas and uttapam of course. Yes, it is a podi fest at this joint, known to be one of George Town’s oldest tiffin centres, 37 years and counting! Their Mini Podi Idli is drenched in ghee and simply yum. Do try.

Eating Circles in Kilpauk serves plates of humongous thattu idli generously sprinkled with podi. They have recently opened up in Alwarpet as well, and this is their most recommended dish. Imagine a volcano of podi flowing out of a huge idli? That’s exactly what you get here. Wash it down with their kaju rose milk and you’re set!

T Nagar’s Sapthagiri Tiffin Centre is a vegetarian’s delight. What looks like any other fast food place, Sapthagiri Tiffin Centre is actually a brilliant discovery if we may say so ourselves. Among the top recommendations from this place, like the Channa Parotta and Thakali Dosa, there also happens to be a special idli delicacy for spicy food lovers. Yes, their Chilly Idli, spicy, fluffy and slightly tangy, is worth a bite (and more!), so don’t miss.

Ah, the classics. There is no ideal Chennai breakfast without ordering yourself some filter kaapi and hot-hot idlis from one of these two iconic South Indian joints. Both, known to serve authentic idlis, are the best places to be on a bright sunny morning or even to kick start the perfect family outing. Which one did we like better? Find out here.

While we were sulking over Madras Kafe shutting down – college goers’ favourite place for podi fried idli, we just found another paradise for the same. Tawa 9 has some yummy South Indian dishes too. And the Podi Fried Idli here is a sure hit. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with mouth-watering podi, these are instant favourites. You can also check out their Tangy Rasam Idli and Cocktail Idli among many other interesting combos.

Another thattu idli hub, Kanappa happens to be one of the first restaurants to introduce this flat idli variety in Chennai. Highly recommended by South Chennaites, Kanappa serves awesome gun powder infused idlis; you can also try some delicious butter, mushroom, baby corn versions of their dosas too.

Now, if you’re a hardcore kozhi (chicken) lover like us and yet your craving involves some idlies too, then here is the right fix for you. Kozhi Idli has everything to do with kozhi. From idlies to paniyarams, it is all about the chicken. Do try their Idli with Kozhi Kolambu. You can order this with either some Pepper Kozhambu or two pieces of Red Chilly Chicken. Meaty and wholesome!

So lastly, we found idli with a continental twist. Soul Garden Bistro serves vegan starters like Chilly, Peri Peri, and BBQ Idlis. Awesome isn’t it? While the Chilly Idly is tossed with Chinese sauces, the Peri Peri Idli is deep-fried with Peri-Peri seasoning. And the BBQ Idly is quite a saucy dish cooked with smokey barbecue sauce. Would you try?