Cuisine

Our kitchen keeps it simple and honest - food is prepared with fresh, locally sourced ingredients, based on what’s seasonal and grown nearby. Aavi Beach Retreat is an endeavour to keep alive the soul of yesterday; kitchen gardens, local fishermen, the practice of returning from the market with a jute bag or sanji as it is known in these parts with daily produce and other things that keep us connected and save a treasured past from being rendered redundant.

What is served at our open dining space evokes that sense of long lost homecomings. Recipes that have been perfected over centuries and delighted visitors from all over the world, for just as long. This is perhaps the reason for a certain element of celebration in Malabar Cuisine. Like as if they were always expecting guests and would not be taken by surprise. Out here, hosting is sustenance - the very essence of life and the land’s personality.

Typical Kasaragod fare is a gastronomic render of how sociable and welcoming this land has been throughout history. There are traces of Arab, Mangalorean, Konkan influences that sit cosily with typical Kerala and Malabar dishes.

The Malabar Biriyani has a multitude of flavours and textures, and surprises even the most jaded of palates. Rice breads like Neypathal, neerdosa and pathiri, so soft and sweet, complement the deeply complex and hearty flavours of our meat based or seafood curries - for your own sake, don’t even bother keeping count of how many you’ve had. Portion control and vacations do not mix well.

Seafood is central to the table here, often caught that morning and cooked without pretentious fuss. Fresh catch from the sea finds its way into practically every meal - sometimes even on the snack table. Arikaduka, the snack of the most indulgent of gods - fresh mussels stuffed with a flavourful filling of spices and rice flour steamed and fried - accompanied with a glass of Sulaimani Tea and great conversation, is a bit of tea-time heaven. Other tea-time snacks like kinnathappam, kalathappam, etc. are signatures of Malabar tea-time.

What’s served isn’t styled or staged - it’s the kind of food this coast has always made, passed down through generations and cooked with care and affection. And lovingly prepared with one thing in mind - to be remembered well.