Al Saj Kitchen - Aluva
All show no substance. My friends and I were craving some nice Chatti Choru in Aluva, and this is where Google Ammachi told us to go. When you reach the entrance, you are welcomed by a swarm of people and parked cars. With so many cars and people, we assumed naturally that the food must be delicious, which is why they are here. Alas! We should have been right about the food part. They do have a lot of parking spaces, but it would not be easy to get one. You can drop off your family members at the entrance and ask them to look for a place to sit while you find a place to park your vehicle (as this might take some time). There are plenty of tables, but it is so crowded that it is difficult to get a table (we arrived at 2:30 PM on a weekday, hoping we would avoid the lunch crowd). Once we got to the table, it was time for part 2 of this episode: Who is the waiter? We first waited 10-15 minutes to find someone and catch their attention. Once you catch the server's attention, making them come to your table will be difficult. Even if they do, they will be in such a hurry that it will make you feel like you don't have their complete attention. Either they are understaffed or the service is slow; I'm not sure, but at this moment we are not happy with the experience. The ambience is good; if you can manage to get a table near the riverside, then good for you. Otherwise, there are flies inside to keep you company, and the fans don't do much justice. I read the reviews that said this place is overpriced and overrated, and I see now why they said that. The food takes some time to reach your table, and the rates are moderately and highly priced. The rates are not worth the food that you will receive. They also have a small boating service for six people at one corner of this place; you could try this as well if you have time to kill.
So, we ordered mixed Chatti Choru (Rice in an earthen pot), Kalanji (Sea Bass) fry, and lemon soda.
The mixed Chatti Choru on the menu will make your mouth water, which is why you will be ordering this dish.
It has a mix of vegetable dishes, seafood, and beef items. You look around, and you will find that everyone is having this Chatti Choru, giving you more confidence to get this dish. Now, let me explain why I found this Chatti Choru to be a scam. 85% of this Chatti (earthen pot) is Choru (rice), and the rest 15% are curries. So you will be full, but you won't feel content, if you know what I mean. The taste is very basic, not delightful enough that I would want to come here daily for this dish.
The Kalaji looks good; texture-wise, it is impressive, but is it flavorful? No!
₹1,000 for this big fish is not worth it if it tastes very basic. It was cooked to perfection, but it had a robust black pepper flavour, probably the only spice we could taste. We were pretty disappointed with this as well.
On the whole, our experience here was a sad affair. The food was basic, the service was slow, and not worth coming here for a second time. I still need help understanding how a crowded place is unable to deliver good, flavorful food, why else is the crowd here; certainly, it can't be for the service. Probably the day we went, the cook would've been different; I'm just giving them the benefit of the doubt. But, with that first impression, I'm not going here again and wouldn't suggest any family or friends go here either. I would like to give the:
Food - 2/5
Service - 1/5
Ambience - 2.5/5
You can also find my review of this restaurant on Zomato here as well.
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