A vegetarian restaurant named after India’s former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has opened in Little India.
It serves Udupi food, which is famous for dishes made primarily from grains, beans, vegetables and fruits.
“We are totally inspired by Mr Kalam, who was known for his simplicity and support for the under-privileged,” said Mr Raj Narayanan, a Singapore permanent resident who co-owns the restaurant on Kitchener Road with Singaporean Femila Ramamoorthy. Kalam, he noted, had a preference for vegetarian food.
The 120-seater offers items such as sweet buns, idli, kara thosai, lentil sambhar and green gram salad, which are specialities from Udupi, a city on the south-west coast of India in Karnataka.
“Little oil is used, and the preparations are not spicy,” said Ms Femila. “We also don’t use artificial colouring and the ingredients are fresh.”
Filter coffee made with fresh milk is another attraction.
Last Sunday, the Kalam restaurant was inaugurated by Dr Kalam’s grand-nephew Sheikh Saleem, who flew in from Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu where Dr Kalam was born and raised.
Dr Kalam was an Indian aerospace scientist and statesman who served as the 11th president of India from 2002 to 2007. He died on July 27, 2015, aged 83.
The Singapore-based Abdul Kalam Vision Society, dedicated to implementing the visionary ideals of Dr Kalam, also held a special lecture on the former president that morning.
“We have 120 members and are service-oriented to the community,” said Mr Raj, who is a member of the society.
“Our regular activities include tree planting, picking litter from the streets of Little India, cleaning beaches and providing free health screening to migrant workers. We aim to deliver free food from our restaurant to nursing homes for the elderly and orphanages once a month.”
The restaurant will also soon have piped music so customers can eat in comfort.
“For Dr Kalam, language, religion and race were not issues,” said Ms Femila. “He mixed with all. Similarly, our food is prepared in a way that will be liked by all.”
