749 Saybrook Road
Middletown CT 06457
860 346 3355
Udupi Bhavan is the type of restaurant a postmodern Jane or Michael Stern might make a career writing about. Like the quintessential American road-food joints the two writers idealized in print, Udupi is a strip mall, Styrofoam plated, local secret. The only difference between Udupi and “American” road-food? Udupi is a vegetarian (and mostly vegan) Indian restaurant. Despite the cuisine and lack of meat, Udupi oddly fits into the middle-America landscape just as much as the liquor store next door.
In place of the typical display of fabric, candy and ornaments to be found at swanky Indian restaurants, a single, functional bowl of fennel seeds welcomes patrons. Diners approach the counter and place their order, then help themselves to water from a fridge or select a hand labeled cup of lassi. After a few minutes, Styrofoam plates and plastic cups give diners a huge heaping of completely vegetarian food. This is especially welcome for those vegetarians that enjoy the vegetable dishes but fear the backhanded use of animal fat in rich Indian cuisine.
The restaurant’s interior is Formica and sparse, with often full tables in an unadorned room. Employees shout out numbers surprisingly quickly considering the freshness of the food. The dosas are hot and huge, the curry spicy and exceptionally flavorful. In the handful of times I’ve visited, I haven’t seen anyone walk away without leftovers.
After selecting a few plastic forks below a sign that reminded diners to “bring a toy for your kid – plastics are expensive,” I tucked into the korma and chickpea masala that I had finally decided upon. The flavors relied notably more on fresh spices than the thickness of the sauce, a welcome change, and were served over a bed of equally seasoned rice. The samosas were just as perfect, crispy and spicier than I was used to. Although my companion and I ordered just one appetizer and two entrees, we couldn’t finish even half of what was before us.
The cashier wrapped up my plates in tinfoil, and then threw in a bag of spiced crackers for the road. The place was busy even at two, which was hardly unsurprising. Although vegetarians and vegans in the Hartford area may favor It’s Only Natural, Udupi Bhavan should be considered an equal in quality and innovation.
by Benjamin Bernstein
