A thali is a round metal plate with small bowls (katoris) arranged around the rim. But the name is metonymy — in South Indian eating, "thali" refers less to the plate and more to the argument it embodies: a complete meal should hit all six taste categories (shadrasa) — sweet, sour, salty, bitter, astringent, pungent — on the same plate.

Our vegan thali is a direct application of this idea. Seven small dishes, each calibrated to counter the others, eaten in sequence from right to left around the plate.

The seven

  1. Sambar — a lentil stew with tamarind, drumstick, and toor dal. Sour and umami, it anchors the plate.
  2. Rasam — a thin, peppery broth. Pungent and astringent, it aids digestion and cuts the starch.
  3. Aviyal — Kerala-style mixed vegetables in coconut and yoghurt-substitute (we use cashew cream for the vegan version). Subtle and sweet-savoury.
  4. Beetroot poriyal — a dry stir-fry with mustard seeds, curry leaves, and grated coconut. Earthy and sweet.
  5. Pulikachal — a fiery tamarind rice condiment. Concentrated sour and chilli.
  6. Thair sadam — yoghurt rice, substituted with cashew yoghurt for vegan. Cooling, probiotic, the finisher.
  7. Jaggery coconut — a small sweet of grated coconut and jaggery. The ritual end.

How to eat a thali

Traditionally: on a banana leaf, with the right hand, sitting cross-legged on the floor. Modernly: on the steel plate, with a spoon if necessary, at our table. The order matters — rice and sambar first, then rice and rasam, then aviyal, then the rice pickles, then yoghurt rice last to cool the palate, then the sweet to close.

A proper thali takes about forty-five minutes to eat. That is not a bug — it is the point. Every component is designed to be eaten slowly, in small combinations with the rice, so that each bite hits a different taste axis than the one before. By the time you finish, you have effectively eaten a 7-course tasting menu for the price of a weekday lunch.

Our vegan version is served Wednesdays and Saturdays. No animal products anywhere on the plate. Full balance preserved.