Rarely does one come across a place that constantly garners praise. But Food Beez on Bypass Road is grabbing much attention. Some positive reviews on the social media drove me to this small place with an unpretentious vibe. I happened to walk in as the first customer of the day on a weekend and the young boy serving at the table was happy to explain the restaurant’s USP. He pulled out a special grilled chicken menu and suggested the different flavors of hot garlic, pepper, glazed butter and butter chicken masala. “Our restaurant serves the common grilled chicken with robust flavours,” he assured. I ended up ordering that one dish most customers swear by — the signature mutton biryani. It tasted different with subtle flavours and spices unlike what is usually available elsewhere in the city. Here only cardamom, cinnamon and cloves go into the making of the home-style biryani. The portion was adequate and taste of melt-in-the-mouth mutton pieces lingered on. What also set it apart is that the dish was cooked in chekku ennai (cold-pressed oil) instead of refined oil or ghee. In fact, the oil is used for all preparations at Food Beez. “The idea is to help people distinguish every flavour and also feel light after a meal,” sais M Muthukumar, one of the three partners who set up this 28-seater inside a closed TASMAC shop. “Our first challenge was to make the place brighter, family-friendly, and appealing.” Next, the core values were set — of not using artificial colours and seasonings, frozen meat, and the maida in the kitchen. Gradually as more people walked in, I noticed how fast the service was. I was now tempted to try the butter glazed grilled chicken with wheat naan. It was delicious. The well thought out menu had make-to-order gravies, chef’s sea food specials like the prawn thokku, egg manchurian and poriyal, masala omelette, and karandi egg Chettinadu and more, though the eatery’s forte is mutton preparations. Muthukumar said he and his two friends — Gopalakrishnan and Benito — as engineering students in Madurai often travelled in and around the city and nearby districts to try various dishes. And it was their dream to set up a restaurant selling their own tried-and-tested and improvised healthy recipes. While his friends continue to be in IT jobs, Muthukumar gave up his to focus on the restaurant. “They keep sending their inputs and suggestions.” Feedback from customers has been encouraging too. The main course was as good as the starters and desserts and each item is competitively priced between ?20 (for the drinks/omelettes) to ?180 for the mutton biryani. There were some surprises too like the seasonal Mughal biryani and the Kolkata white chicken, available only on weekends. Food Beez @Kalavasal signal (opposite Shanmuga Cinemas) Bypass Road Hit: Value for money Miss: Limited menu for vegetarians Meal for two: within ?500

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