We Found Some!

Real authentic South Indian food that is. In what is becoming a recurring theme, we seem to counter the negative effects of a dismal bureaucratic encounter (in this case, a curious meeting with the Vancouver Learning Center to confirm Miles' distance education for grade 3. Unresolved as of this writing.) with yummy food that provides both solace and nutrition. In this case, we had a lovely lunch meeting with Chindi Varadarajulu, who is the proprietor of Chutney Villa, a South Indian Restaurant on Broadway just west of Main Street.
Chindi is a wonderful and energetic woman who, in addition to running her restaurant, does regular culinary tours in Southern India. She met with Laurel and I to offer advice and give us some contacts for our trip to Cochin. She will be in Kerala in February, and it looks like she is willing to film some segments with us in the markets and spice farms. She also promised to take us to some off the tourist track places that only the locals know. How cool is that? She seemed to be totally into what we were doing, and was more than happy to help us out. At the end of a delicious lunch (one of the most authentic we've eaten in Vancouver. Hot means HOT!), she gave us both big hugs and wished us well, promising to connect in Cochin. Pretty cool to go from total strangers to friends in the space of an hour and a half! Funny how good food enables that...