Madras Cafe, South Indian restaurant in Sunnyvale, California.
Madras Cafe is a South Indian restaurant in Sunnyvale, California, housed in a strip mall near the corner of El Camino Real and Bernardo Avenue. The menu centers on dishes from the Tamil Nadu region, including dosa, idli, uthappam, and filter coffee made in the traditional way.
The restaurant opened in a Sunnyvale strip mall and was one of the first places in the Bay Area to focus entirely on South Indian cooking, without mixing in North Indian dishes. Over time it became a regular stop for people from Tamil-speaking communities who had settled in the Silicon Valley area.
The name Madras refers to the former name of Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu in South India. The food here follows the same style you would find in a small neighborhood eatery in that city, without adjustments for a Western crowd.
The entrance is set back behind a McDonald's, so it can be easy to miss on a first visit. Coming early in the morning is worth it, as the breakfast items tend to sell out before the lunch rush begins.
The filter coffee here is served in the traditional metal davara and tumbler set, the same two-piece vessel used in homes and tea shops across Tamil Nadu. The ritual of pouring the coffee back and forth between the two pieces to create a frothy top is something you can watch being done right at the counter.
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