Not many people can claim to have made a significant and influential impact on Cardiff’s restaurant scene once, let alone twice. And now Anand George is going for the hat-trick with Tukka Tuk Canteen. When the Keralan-born chef arrived in the city, “Indian food” was synonymous with the curry house – a venerable institution close to the British heart, but George felt that minds could and should be opened.
First, in 2011, came Purple Poppadom, which elevated his native cuisine to the echelon of fine dining. Then there was Tukka Tuk, the polar opposite: a cheap and cheerful celebration of street food, to be consumed on the fly rather than in a formal setting. His latest venture, Tukka Tuk Canteen on Whitchurch Road, sits somewhere in between – the closest approximation of his gastronomic experiences growing up.
As such, it promises relative informality (diners are positively encouraged to eat with their fingers if the mood takes them) and some familiar Tukka Tuk favourites: the lamb rolls and the Keralan fried chicken are both sensationally good. It’s housed in a space that feels smart and contemporary. “Easy Indian dining” is one slogan; “rustic Southern cuisine” is another. That word “rustic” often works to disguise or at least excuse a multitude of sins, but there are no rough edges or cut corners at Tukka Tuk Canteen; the food is evidently prepared and presented with precision and care.
Were we here on an evening, I’d be tempted by one of the more unusual dishes from the main menu – the bone marrow valuval, perhaps, or the crabbie crab – but a (relatively) light lunch is the order of the day, so instead I opt for a dosaa, the Indian answer to a crepe, now only available at lunchtimes. So attractive is the colourful trio of chutneys – green (coriander), red (tomato) and white (freshly grated coconut, the best of the bunch) – that I frantically start tearing strips off the perfect half-moon dosaa to dunk in the dips and the accompanying lentil sambhar, totally forgetting about its filling: mashed potato flavoured with ginger, onions and a tickle of chilli. It’s softly rather than savagely flavoured, nuance over knockout.
From the ‘short eats’ section of the menu, catering for the small plates crowd, comes a bowl of beef fry, a tumble of dry spiced cubes of tender meaty joy. I share them around and watch as eyes roll back in heads and arms slyly snake out for seconds. On another day, I’d be happy with just a mounded plateful of these.
Elsewhere around the table there are two portions of kola urundai chicken, kofta balls in a rich pool of Ceylon style curry sauce, served with the recommended idli, a combination of rice and ground lentils fermented for two days and then formed into UFO-like discs. The Mangalorean prawn kari, meanwhile, satisfies cravings for more heat, though the red chillis duel with the unmistakeable hit of tamarind for dominance.
Service is faultlessly professional and striking just the right balance in offering welcome guidance without becoming overbearing. But it’s not entirely surprising that our party is well looked after: we arrive at 1pm to an empty restaurant, and no-one else sets foot inside before we pay up at 2.15. With Brass Beetle and Society Standard, also on Whitchurch Road, having both closed earlier this year, it’s worrying to see Tukka Tuk Canteen undeservedly unloved on a Friday lunchtime. Let’s not lose this one, please.
Tukka Tuk Canteen, Whitchurch Road, Cardiff. Info: here
words and photos BEN WOOLHEAD
