A warm welcome at Vanakam India

Early this year I ventured into Taman Eco Botanic for a meeting arranged in a coffee place located adjacent to Educity in Iskandar Puteri and that was when I discovered rows of shophouses in a new commercial and residential area.

A full house for lunch in Vanakam India even on a weekday!

Call it, Eco Botanic or Eko Botani, it’s the same place.

Recently when my friend, Bala, invited me to Vanakam India at Eko Botani City, I instantly recognized its location.

It’s been several months since we talked about dining at this restaurant and finally, I’m here with a group of friends, comprising Malay, Chinese and a Japanese, to savour some of the popular North and South Indian dishes served at Vanakam India.

A quick look at the menu gives me an idea of the specialties but Bala has already prepared a list of recommended starters/appetizers, main course items like rice and breads with gravies, and of course, dessert.

Facade of Vanakam India at Eco Botanic

On such a warm and sunny day, the chilled Vasantha Neer, a coconut mocktail Welcome Drink made with fresh coconut juice, is indeed very welcome!

As I sip this refreshing drink, I watch as the tables in the dining hall fill up one-by-one, until it’s a full house. And this is lunch time on a weekday…

The wait staff are busy taking orders while others are serving up dishes, and very soon we are also being served a range of starter dishes.

Bindi Kur Kur – I know Bindi is okra or ladies’ fingers – and these are sliced thinly and deep-fried with a light and crispy batter.

Toss in deep-fried fragrant curry leaves and this is a winning dish all around. (I can tell because the bowl was passed around and not a scrap was left in the deep bowl!)

Mutton Kola Urundai, large meatballs served with a slice of lime to squeeze a drizzle of juice over them, turns out to be yet another winner. A side of mint sauce is also available as a dip.

A range of Starter/Appetizer dishes [Clockwise] Tandoori
Chicken with a side of mint sauce, Mutton Kola Urundai,
Bindi Kur Kur, Dry Fish Salad and papadam crisps

Two tandoori starter dishes popular here are Tandoori Chicken and Paneer Tika, squares of cottage cheese toasted in the tandoor oven, where each serving comes with a small salad of raw onion rings with slivers of carrot and cucumber and a side of mint dip sauce.

The appetizing flavours of these starter items are going down very well with us as we share the dishes and take our time to savour each mouthful.

As anticipated, the first bite of the Lamb Seekh Kebab is so full of flavor.

Then a few moments later, I feel a subtle heat in my mouth from the spices in this grilled lamb recipe.

Lamb Seekh Kebab served with a side of mint sauce

Our Japanese friend decides that its time to get some water to put out the heat and she orders glasses of water all around for us.

The water does help to clear my palate after tasting each item and soon I’m ready for the next recommended main course items.

Sizzling Lamb Masala, Chicken Butter Masala, Malabar Fish Curry, Palak Paneer and Lamb Rohan Josh to savour with rice and freshly baked breads like Onion Kulcha, Cheese Naan and Garlic Naan.

As its name suggests, the Sizzling Lamb Masala is served on a hotplate, sizzling in an aromatic cloud of steam.

Sizzling Lamb Masala

Once the sizzle and steam abated, we help ourselves to the juicy cubes of lamb, dripping in a tasty, rich sauce.

Bala also wants us to taste a choice of rice and serves two types of Briyani: Chicken Briyani and Prawn Briyani, where each portion comes with a side of curry and raita.

Vanakam India also has a menu for Indian-Chinese dishes and recommended items include Butter Garlic Prawns, made with whole prawns in a mild garlicky gravy and Fried Rice with Chicken and Egg, prepared with long-grain Basmati rice.

The taste of this Chicken and Egg Fried Rice sends me straight back to India when I spent weeks in Chennai, working on a book project several years ago.

Butter Garlic Prawns in a mild garlicky gravy

Its taste is reminiscent of the Chinese-style fried rice (not in the menu!) I ate in Chennai which the kind hotel chef tried to tempt me with, probably because he guessed that by then, I should be homesick for some Chinese food!

Bala tells us that the team of chefs at Vanakam India were handpicked from India, with the head chef from Karaikudi in Tamil Nadu, the tandoor chef is from Kolkata while another chef who specialises in curries is from Delhi.

They take pride in selecting fresh ingredients and grinding the various recipes to make the masala or blend of spices, to prepare the various dishes here.

Signature Crab Masaka served on a sheet of banana leaf

Bala does not hesitate to emphasise that, “No MSG (artificial flavouring) is used!”

Finally, its time for a taste of their Signature Crab Masala served on a sheet of fresh banana leaf, for an added fragrance.

Now is not the time to talk because the only way to enjoy crabs is to roll up my sleeves and use my fingers!

I suspect Bala and his team are watching us with amusement while we relish each tasty morsel. As we lick the crab shells until they are clean, the mild gravy is just right for us to wipe up every drop with the naan bread…mmm…

End the meal sweetly with Ladoo [Front] and Mysore Pak

Yes, there is a double set of sinks for us to wash our fingers before we return to the table to end our meal sweetly with a dessert of popular Indian sweets.

To celebrate Deepavali, Vanakam India will be serving a wide variety of Indian sweets.

That’s really something to look forward to but for now, we are happy to enjoy these lovely sweets in a serving of Ladoo and Mysore Pak, for an idea of many more tasty treats in the coming festive season.

Thank you Bala, for making us feel very welcome at Vanakam India.

Vanakam India is located at No. 39, Jalan Eko Botani 3/4, Taman Eko Botani, 79100 Iskandar Puteri, Johor. [No pork or lard are used in the kitchen.]

Open daily from 11am to 10.30pm (last order 10pm).

For reservations, Tel: +6011 6377 8015