Marthanden Hotel A Faux Pas Toddy Shop in Melbourne

I was at the toddy shop with Fafa, called “Toddy Shop,” a Kerala cuisine eatery located in the hipster neighbourhood of Collingwood and opened by an equally hipster-looking chef.

The Toddy Shop is much smaller than the open-air OG toddy shop I visited in Kerala, but Fafa said this was the usual size of the regular toddy shops in Kerala. Recalling some drinking scenes in 90s Tamil movies, I could picture it.

Compared to the abundance of choices in the OG toddy shop in Kerala, the menu here was minimal – a range of protein with no explanation of the cooking style (you know, because hipster) and a few ever-changing vegetable side dishes.

The people who came here were also different, as I had never seen another Indian while we were there. Yes, it was our second time here. We returned solely because of the Nadan Fish (Kerala-style fish curry). It was so delicious the first time around that we ignored that the fish meat had uncooked raw parts and ate around it.

Weeks later, knowing how much Fafa loved it, I tried to replicate the meen curry at home, but without the vital ingredient – Malabar Tamarind, the dish was below par compared to the one we had before (though even with it, I don’t think I could make it half as good). Alas, we returned for the same Nadan Fish and Ulli Theeyal (Kerala onion curry), a Kerala dish I was curious to try. We also ordered rice and flatbread – Parotta.

Now, I desperately wanted this place to be nice, especially for and because of Fafa. It’s the only Kerala restaurant within an acceptable distance for a meal. Actually, it’s the only one in Melbourne. The next one is almost 2 hours away in a country town Victoria.

Also, after Madras Bros closed down a few years ago, it’s nice to have another go-to South Indian restaurant to celebrate an occasion or fancy dinner date.

But there I was, minutes later, after the food was served, spitting morsels of uncooked rice from every spoonful I took.

The rice, which they overcharged for, came semi-cooked!!! Gah! But I decided not to complain. As long as Fafa liked the food, I could keep my complaints for later.

But then he asked me to try the fish curry and tell him what I thought of it.

The $25 curry with one piece of fish was so watered down; it was more of a stew than curry and lacked tanginess. It’s far from the first fish curry we had, with no distinctive taste of a Keralan fish curry. One good thing, though – the fish is fully cooked this time.

Oh Toddy Shop, an utter disappointment!

At home, Fafa shared some reviews of the Toddy Shop: uncooked rice and store-bought Parotta (they charged $5 a piece), which was apparently not Kerala style – not that I would know. But it didn’t matter, as once they sinned on rice, they are dead to me!

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