This is exactly what that makes Gafoorka’s Thattukada special in all aspects as a restaurant. This restaurant has a bunch of people passionate about both food and cooking, working behind it. “Eating at such a restaurant thus becomes a whole new experience for the foodies visiting it, and that is what we wanted to do”, says V.S. Biju Kumar, one of the owners of the people’s favourite Gafoorka’s Thattukada in the UAE.

 
When Abdullah Bambani decided to start a restaurant, Biju Kumar came to know of the same through his friend Saji, who was already a partner in the business. Biju immediately decided to join in, never giving up on his love for anything food-related. 

Biju Kumar, sits down with Day of Dubai over a cup of Sulaimani to tell us more about Gafoorka’s Thattukada. 

A Passion for cooking

Biju has always loved cooking. He tends to see it more as an art than a mere survival-need. Biju has hosted Cookery Shows on NTV and has played the judge in prominent cookery competitions. His passion for cooking drew him to Abdullah Bambani when he was starting off with a novel concept of a restaurant - Gafoorka’s Thattukada.

“17 years back, we had started off with just 2 tables, today we have grown out to have as many as 7 branches in the UAE. Our latest branches have party halls that can accommodate around 100 guests. Yet, even though we have grown so much since then, our taste and rates remain as good as ever.”

Fun in the name

“The restaurant has a very peculiar name,” says Biju, “and that itself makes it closer to people. The name, though different, is very familiar to Malayalis. After all, which Malayali doesn’t know of ‘Gafoorka’ and the fun element woven around it? We wanted to start from there. Also, we were not looking for anything sleek or fancy, we wanted to give a homely feeling of nostalgia to our customers. We have tried to embrace this fun element in the names of our dishes too. Take a look at our menu and you will know.”

Evoking a sense of nostalgia

“What does nostalgia smell like? The aroma of our food”, laughs Biju. “At Gafoorka’s Thattukada, we try to bring back the authentic tastes of the yore. We take our customers through a journey down the memory lane with a variety of tastes. We are a paradise of traditional food. We want to give the new generation a chance to taste the food of our olden times, and to the older ones, we want to recreate that homely feeling.

There is an interesting connection between our taste buds and our memories. Isn’t it true that when we taste something from the past, it immediately takes us back in time, to the place and people we have been with, then? Some dishes remind us of our mother, some, of other special occasions. That is the power of food. This is what we do at Gafoorka’s Thattukada.”

Food wrapped in memories

“We focus mainly on traditional food varieties. We prepare special dishes like â€˜Podhichor’, ‘Podhi Biriyani’ and the likes which are served all wrapped in a banana leaf. The wrapping up of these items in banana leaf adds to the taste and the experience. We also serve Porotta wrapped up with beef in a boiled leaf. It brings in a succulent taste and aroma to the food. 

We boast a rich variety of non-veg items in our menu that has everything from camel, rabbit, duck and deer to other fish varieties. ‘Thakkara Kozhi’ is one of our signature dishes and costomers’ favourites. A myriad of mouth-watering snacks welcomes our customers in the evening, with everything including kappa & chammanthi, kilikkood, chedichatti, chattippathiri, irachippidi, pazhampori and more, leaving them spoiled with choices. 

In addition, we cover almost all traditional food items when it comes to breakfast and other main courses. Nevertheless, everything will still have a Gafoorka’s Thattukada’s special magic spell to it. Which is why, we bring in cooks from India and train them before they enter our kitchens. Another specialty of our food is that we make our own masala powders like chilli, coriander, turmeric and coconut oil. We don’t rely on any other packeted products for this. 

Apart from these, we have dishes that are unique to our kitchen, which you should come and experience for yourself!”

Food for all

“Even though Gafoorka’s Thattukada might sound very South Indian, we entertain customers from various nationalities. Arabians, Europeans, and North Indians all enjoy our delicacies like anybody else. In order to cater to different tastes, we often customize our food accordingly. For instance, if the family has small children, we make it less spicy.

And when it comes to serving South Indian dishes, we have a formula of our own that says ‘Kasargode to Trivandrum = 0 km in taste’, which means we have the ability to cater to the varied tastes of all our guests irrespective of where they come from.”

People’s Favourite

“Our approach to food, taste and rate has eventually made us one of the most preferred restaurants in the UAE. In 2016, we received the Metro Award from the Minister of Kerala Tourism Department for the Best Kerala Restaurant in the UAE.

We often bring out new seasonal dishes. When the movie Bahubali was released, we introduced ‘Beef Kattappa’ in our restaurant, when Odiyan came up, we had ‘Odiyan Kanji’. We celebrate festivals as well, with Onam Sadhya, Achayan Sadhya and the likes according to the occasions.”

Biju Kumar himself is a popular person with his easy-going and food-loving attitude. Biju, lovingly called VS by his friends, says his wide friends-circle is one of his biggest strengths. He is a person much into the social sphere and is a part of major organisations and events in the UAE.