Lokah Restaurant and Cafe – a review.

When I spotted the Lokah Restaurant with the promising tagline “The World at your plate”, I knew I had a situation. I was literally promised the world. And legend has it that I turn a very sour woman when promises made to me are broken. Ask my husband.

At 8pm on a weekend, we tried to hit the place. Not only was there zero space to park our car, the restaurant was buzzing with people. I was genuinely intrigued. So we tried again on a weekday and thankfully, the place was serene with bearable number of diners. At the restaurant foyer, a chalkboard welcomed us, showing off the day’s specials, which included the more generic Dragon Chicken, Achari Gosht and Mutton Pepper Fry, to the more fancy West Lake Lamb Soup, Minestrone Milanese and Ajwane Aur Till Fish Tikka. The English lover in me however, kept going back to the unwanted apostrophe in “Special’s”.

The chalkboard with “Special’s”

At the onset, I was disappointed to see only straight-back chairs in the entire restaurant. That meant I had to make-do with chairs to lay down my 2 months old baby. Interiors were minimal with bamboo sticks decorating corners of the room.

Lokah- the inside look

The menu card was a pleasure to look through. There was Indian, Pan-Asian and the World sections, which showed Starters, Soups and Main course options. The name of the dish was followed by the cuisine category and a short & clear description of the item. After some good thought and the great family discussion, we made our order. With the toughest job done, we only had to wait till our table got filled.

Aromatic and clear, the Tom Yam soup (Thai cuisine) was zingy to the taste buds. Ginger and lemongrass were as welcoming as the chicken to bite into. We got to taste a little bit of Indonesian cuisine via Chicken Satay- strips of chicken in skewers, marinated in delicious flavors, grilled and served with a lovely peanut sauce. It was a well-performed start to the show.

Starters- Tom Yam Soup & Chicken Satay

Our maincourse was varied considering an average Keralite family’s order. The Chicken Mexicane was chicken cubes and bell peppers, sautéed in hot Mexican sauce and served with Mexican tomato rice. It had a dominating but pleasant flavor of fennel seeds and was given a nod of approval by all on the table.

Chicken Mexicane

The Chinese Roast Chicken was served on a bed of fried rice and was a treat to the taste buds. Fairly so, this was the first dish to get creamed off. My appetite had requested for meat, and the Beef Stroganoff (listed as Russian in the menu) did it total justice. Sautéed meat with mushrooms, onions and sour cream, served over well-cooked penne pasta, the dish was one of the best I had had in Cochin.

The Chinese Roast Chicken

Beef Stroganoff- a taste of Russia

A real mallu (malayalee) hasn’t ordered it right, if he hasn’t ordered a minimum guarantee dish. Hence, there came Chicken Hakka Noodles and Chilli Chicken. And when it tasted as good as it can possibly get, Lokah passed the basic approval test in flying colors.

Hakka Noodles & Chilli Chicken

Stuffed and satisfied, I had one more section to evaluate. Diving into the desserts menu, I saw brownie with icecream, tender coconut soufflé, gulab jamun and apple crumble pie among other goodies. We decided on a Mocha Caramel, Rasmalai and Sweet Lassi to end the ride. We weren’t let down. While the mocha caramel could have done with a bigger portion minus the orange peel garnish, everything tasted good.

Mocha Caramel- I could’ve done with more of it!

A decent Rasmalai

While waiting for the bill, I learnt that the Head Chef Mr. K.K. Nair was on leave for the day. Instead, Mr. Biju, the Assistant Chef came to meet me. He was rightly proud to have been a part of the Lokah Team ever since its inception 4 years back. He informed me that their menu is bound to undergo a change within the next 3 months and that their current star items included the Chinese Roast Chicken, the Chicken Lasagne (which I have vowed to try in my next visit), Pasta Bolognese and many others.

A pleasure to have met Chef Biju.

Chef Biju exuded a positive vibe that I could very much relate to the good food that was served to me that night. It is the same positive vibe they gave out while giving our parcel in a newspaper bag and not a plastic bag. For that positivity and a very satisfying dinner, Lokah breezes into my good books, especially when I’d like to have the world on my plate while enjoying my Cochin life.

Lokah- positive and efficient.

Lokah Restaurant & Café Bill for 4 (in Rs):

Tom Yam Chicken Soup (2/4)- 220

Chicken Satay- 150

Chicken Mexicane- 210

Beef Stroganoff- 195

Chilli Chicken- 175

Chicken Hakka Noodles- 130

Chinese Roast Chicken- 240

Ginger & Lime Juice- 35

Sweet Lassi- 50

Mocha Caramel- 40

Rasmalai- 40

Parcel Container- 5

Mineral Water- 35

TOTAL: Rs. 1525.

Working hours: 11am – 4pm. 7pm- 11pm.

Ph: 0484 4033220, 4033221.

Vyttila NH 47 Bypass Road, Chalikkavattom, Cochin.