Explore Chennai’s iconic street food scene

Chennai has tonnes to offer in terms of steet food. Enjoy a bowl of nourishing nombu kanji, kebabs from Barakath Barbeque, biryani from KGN Aarifa Biryani Centre and mango ice cream from Kunhiraman for a unique culinary experience.

This nourishing porridge full of rice, lentils, and delicate masala piquancy, is a Ramzan staple across Tamil Nadu. “People break their fast during the month with the dish but we tend to consume it once a month in my house at least. Then comes the iftar meal,” says Shabnam. A bowl of nombu kanji is also commonly distributed at mosques for the needy, ensuring nourishment for those who may not have enough to fill their stomach after their day-long fast.

At Mannady, a locality in North Chennai, this hug-in-a-bowl is available throughout the year. Nameless vendors on the street sell sizable glasses of kanji at about ₹20. The street offers both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options of the dish with a heaping of mutton kheema for the latter. Shabnam says that drinking nombu kanji almost reminds her of drinking a liquid concoction of biryani. “The spices are very similar,” she says.

The festival saw over 70kilograms of kanji being sold on Sunday alone, she adds.

Nombu kanji is available across Mannady but specifically at Angappan Naicken Street near the Eidgah Mosque neighbourhood.

Barakath barbecue is from Chennai’s meat heartland — Dadashamakan — near Otteri. Shabnam says that bodybuilders used to frequent the area to get their share of protein including oxtail soup.

“Many vendors from the area, who are used to their regular, loyal customer base, asked me why they should step out of their comfort zone and sell at a food festival. I asked them to try their hand at it. The owners of Barakath barbeque were pretty thrilled by the response. It was a new audience they were exposing themselves to,” says Shabnam.

The establishment sells a variety of kebabs and specialises in beef delicacies including beef kebabs, cutlets, phal and tawa beef with idiyappam. Shabnam says those who ate at Barakath are keen to visit Dadashamakan.