Little India - Singapore

Singapore as such is one of the lovliest places to live. Be it the facilities, connectivity to the outside world, safety, warmth of the people, you can keep adding adjectives to describe the city. However, for people from India, there is one thing which makes it even more special - Its a place called the "Little India" in Singapore. Being away from Chennai, my home town for long periods of time, any opportunity that provides an alternative to the craving of visiting Chennai is welcome. Having said that, this is one place which makes me feel at home, gives a feel like being in Chennai. To analogise, the ambience here is just like the one of T.Nagar and Mylapore in Chennai.

Given the fact, about 15% of the Singapore populace constitutes  Tamilians. You get a much more feel that you are in Chennai when you land here. There are shops that sell just about anything that you can get in India. There is even a Nalli Silks on Buffalo Road just in case you wanted to grace any occasion with a new silk saree or a silk dhoti. Apart from these shops, there are more than 20 restaurants in this stretch of Serangoon Road that serves authentic Indian food. These restaurants cater to the taste buds of people from regions across India. Right from Swaad that serves Gujarathi specialities to Komala Vilas serving mouth watering south indian food to MTR serving Udipi style dishes, there is no dearth of restaurants to satisfy your appetite depending on your day. You have the Veeralakiamman Temple in the centre of Little India that I frequent. You also have the Srinivasa Perumal Temple and Vadapathira Amman at the end of the little India stretch along with a Shirdi Baba Mandir and Raghavendra mutt. Another important thing to relish about this place is its keenness to embrace the festive fervour, whether its Deepavali or Pongal. The whole stretch is decorated beautifully with lights and its a spectacle to watch and walk this stretch during night time. Last but not the least, the ever awake Mustafa is located here which makes this place to always bustle with activity. True to its name, Its does not disappoint you. Any Indian Item - you name it & you get it in this place.

Komala Vilas Singapore

As a hardcore Chennaite, I am used to devouring rice for all three meals a day from breakfast to dinner, be it in the form of Idli, Dosa, Sambar or curd rice. I don't get  a wholesome feel unless the morsel of food spreads throughout the mouth leaving the taste and flavour even long after you have finished your meal. This can only be got with the polymorphs of rice mixed with south Indian specialities like Sambar or Rasam. For the uninitiated, Sambar and Rasam are basically stews that are meant to be mixed and consumed with cooked rice called Sadam in Tamil. Especially with Sambar, there are innumerable versions like Onion Sambar, Drumstick and Radish Sambar, each one transcending the consumer to a different level.  Having said this, I have tried eating in almost all the Indian restaurants in Singapore, right from Annalakshmi to the moderate Mani Iyer mess on Hindoo Road in Little India. With ~15% of the population of Singapore belonging to the tamil diaspora, there is no dearth of South Indian food and restaurants. You can find them all over the Island. But of the lot I have tried here, the Komala Vilas restaurant in Serangoon Road stands out among all.

They have an awesome spread on the menu from Naan and Aloo Palak to the piping hot sambar Idli. The taste is amazing. My favourite here has always been the rice meal here. They have a different menu each day. With a variety of 3 vegetables, along with Sambar, Thuvayal, Vathal Kuzhambu, Rasam and Kheer, etc., Its very much a likeable option for me whenever I visit Komalas.  The best part about this restaurant is the quality of food which remains consistent whether you go at 8 AM in the morning or at 10 PM in the evening just before they close. The reason that the restaurant is in Little India makes it a much more enticing reason to visit this restaurant on all weekends.