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The next day we celebrated my niece's birthday at The Papaya Cafe in Cochin. There is a strong innovative drive in Kerala cooking, and people want something new as well as something old. We love putting things together. Here's the menu.

https://papayamedia.in/Papaya_Menu_Main.pdf

It's mixing western/ fast food ideas with traditional processes. The atmosphere is light, modern, with an up to the minute laid back funk sound track, not too loud to talk. They have art exhibitions including an NFT show last weekend. There are art books, art and literary magazines, old National Geographics, graphic novels and novels in Malayalam and English to browse. If it all sounds unbearably hip, I have to say it all worked well together.

Plantain fritters in a cumin batter with a mild chicken curry.

Chilli chicken wings

Shrimp tempura with a virgin passion fruit mojito standing guard. The tempura was light.and crisp, the shrimp just firm. The virgin mojitos were superb. The wife loves mojitos but I've always been a bit disdainful. These would have been killer with some rum. Licencing laws are difficult here.

A beef lasagna with tapioca mash, pasta sheets, parmesan and Kerala fried beef.

Brown rice, chicken, salad

Brown rice, chicken, coriander, papadom strips.

Fajita chicken wraps. Tapioca and beetroot crisps on the side.

Kappa (tapioca) au gratin sitting over a mild chicken curry.

Pidi and chicken. Pidi are rice flour gnocchi, quite dense, about 1.5cm diameter, usually served with chicken or other meat curry. This was covered in melted cheese and topped with crispy papadom pieces. Odd, but not unpleasant. This was my main.

Dessert was batter fried coins of banana with a jaggery (molasses) dipping sauce topped with plain ice cream. Hard to fault. Coffee only came with Italian names. I had a machiato.

Overall, a great vibe and interesting, tasty food. Nothing too hot for the spice shy. The preparations were intriguing and thought provoking.   The portions were large, and we over-filled on the starters despite the waiter's warning. I would go back given the chance, but order less. Oh, for a serviceable wine list!

 

PS a note on pricing. Rs 9950, about £ 105, $125 for 15 people.

The next day we celebrated my niece's birthday at The Papaya Cafe in Cochin. There is a strong innovative drive in Kerala cooking, and people want something new as well as something old. We love putting things together. Here's the menu.

https://papayamedia.in/Papaya_Menu_Main.pdf

It's mixing western/ fast food ideas with traditional processes. The atmosphere is light, modern, with an up to the minute laid back funk sound track, not too loud to talk. They have art exhibitions including an NFT show last weekend. There are art books, art and literary magazines, old National Geographics, graphic novels and novels in Malayalam and English to browse. If it all sounds unbearably hip, I have to say it all worked well together.

Plantain fritters in a cumin batter with a mild chicken curry.

Chilli chicken wings

Shrimp tempura with a virgin passion fruit mojito standing guard. The tempura was light.and crisp, the shrimp just firm. The virgin mojitos were superb. The wife loves mojitos but I've always been a bit disdainful. These would have been killer with some rum. Licencing laws are difficult here.

A beef lasagna with tapioca mash, pasta sheets, parmesan and Kerala fried beef.

Brown rice, chicken, salad

Brown rice, chicken, coriander, papadom strips.

Fajita chicken wraps. Tapioca and beetroot crisps on the side.

Kappa (tapioca) au gratin sitting over a mild chicken curry.

Pidi and chicken. Pidi are rice flour gnocchi, quite dense, about 1.5cm diameter, usually served with chicken or other meat curry. This was covered in melted cheese and topped with crispy papadom pieces. Odd, but not unpleasant. This was my main.

Dessert was batter fried coins of banana with a jaggery (molasses) dipping sauce topped with plain ice cream. Hard to fault. Coffee only came with Italian names. I had a machiato.

Overall, a great vibe and interesting, tasty food. Nothing too hot for the spice shy. The preparations were intriguing and thought provoking.   The portions were large, and we over-filled on the starters despite the waiter's warning. I would go back given the chance, but order less. Oh, for a serviceable wine list!

 

PS a note on pricing. Rs 9950, about £ 105, $125 for 15 people.

The next day we celebrated my niece's birthday at The Papaya Cafe in Cochin. There is a strong innovative drive in Kerala cooking, and people want something new as well as something old. We love putting things together. Here's the menu.

https://papayamedia.in/Papaya_Menu_Main.pdf

It's mixing western/ fast food ideas with traditional processes. The atmosphere is light, modern, with an up to the minute laid back funk sound track, not too loud to talk. They have art exhibitions including an NFT show last weekend. There are art books, art and literary magazines, old National Geographics, graphic novels and novels in Malayalam and English to browse. If it all sounds unbearably hip, I have to say it all worked well together.

Plantain fritters in a cumin batter with a mild chicken curry.

Chilli chicken wings

Shrimp tempura with a virgin passion fruit mojito standing guard. The tempura was light.and crisp, the shrimp just firm. The virgin mojitos were superb. The wife loves mojitos but I've always been a bit disdainful. These would have been killer with some rum. Licencing laws are difficult here.

A beef lasagna with tapioca mash, pasta sheets, parmesan and Kerala fried beef.

Brown rice, chicken, salad

Brown rice, chicken, coriander, papadom strips.

Fajita chicken wraps. Tapioca and beetroot crisps on the side.

Kappa (tapioca) au gratin sitting over a mild chicken curry.

Pidi and chicken. Pidi are rice flour gnocchi, quite dense, about 1.5cm diameter, usually served with chicken or other meat curry. This was covered in melted cheese and topped with crispy papadom pieces. Odd, but not unpleasant. This was my main.

Dessert was batter fried coins of banana with a jaggery (molasses) dipping sauce topped with plain ice cream. Hard to fault. Coffee only came with Italian names. I had a machiato.

Overall, a great vibe and interesting, tasty food. Nothing too hot for the spice shy. The preparations were intriguing and thought provoking.   The portions were large, and we over-filled on the starters despite the waiter's warning. I would go back given the chance, but order less. Oh, for a serviceable wine list!

 

 

 

The next day we celebrated my niece's birthday at The Papaya Cafe in Cochin. There is a strong innovative drive in Kerala cooking, and people want something new as well as something old. We love putting things together. Here's the menu.

https://papayamedia.in/Papaya_Menu_Main.pdf

It's mixing western/ fast food ideas with traditional processes. The atmosphere is light, modern, with an up to the minute laid back funk sound track, not too loud to talk. They have art exhibitions including an NFT show last weekend. There are art books, art and literary magazines, old National Geographics, graphic novels and novels in Malayalam and English to browse. If it all sounds unbearably hip, I have to say it all worked well together.

Plantain fritters in a cumin batter with a mild chicken curry.

Chilli chicken wings

Shrimp tempura with a virgin passion fruit mojito standing guard. The tempura was light.and crisp, the shrimp just firm. The virgin mojitos were superb. The wife loves mojitos but I've always been a bit disdainful. These would have been killer with some rum. Licencing laws are difficult here.

A beef lasagna with tapioca mash, pasta sheets, parmesan and Kerala fried beef.

 

Brown rice, chicken, salad

Brown rice, chicken, coriander, papadom strips.

Fajita chicken wraps. Tapioca and beetroot crisps on the side.

Kappa (tapioca) au gratin sitting over a mild chicken curry.

Pidi and chicken. Pidi are rice flour gnocchi, quite dense, about 1.5cm diameter, usually served with chicken or other meat curry. This was covered in melted cheese and topped with crispy papadom pieces. Odd, but not unpleasant. This was my main.

Dessert was batter fried coins of banana with a jaggery (molasses) dipping sauce topped with plain ice cream. Hard to fault. Coffee only came with Italian names. I had a machiato.

Overall, a great vibe and interesting, tasty food. Nothing too hot for the spice shy. The preparations were intriguing and thought provoking.   The portions were large, and we over-filled on the starters despite the waiter's warning. I would go back given the chance, but order less. Oh, for a serviceable wine list!

 

 

The next day we celebrated my niece's birthday at The Papaya Cafe in Cochin. There is a strong innovative drive in Kerala cooking, and people want something new as well as something old. We love putting things together. Here's the menu.

https://papayamedia.in/Papaya_Menu_Main.pdf

It's mixing western/ fast food ideas with traditional processes. The atmosphere is light, modern, with an up to the minute laid back funk sound track, not too loud to talk. They have art exhibitions including an NFT show last weekend. There are art books, art and literary magazines, old National Geographics, graphic novels and novels in Malayalam and English to browse. If it all sounds unbearably hip, I have to say it all worked well together.

Plantain fritters in a cumin batter with a mild chicken curry.

Chilli chicken wings

Shrimp tempura with a virgin passion fruit mojito standing guard. The tempura was light.and crisp, the shrimp just firm. The virgin mojitos were superb. The wife loves mojitos but I've always been a bit disdainful. These would have been killer with some rum. Licencing laws are difficult here.

A beef lasagna with tapioca mash, pasta sheets, parmesan and Kerala fried beef.

Brown rice, chicken, salad

Brown rice, chicken, coriander, papadom strips.

Fajita chicken wraps. Tapioca and beetroot crisps on the side.

Kappa (tapioca) au gratin sitting over a mild chicken curry.

Pidi and chicken. Pidi are rice flour gnocchi, quite dense, about 1.5cm diameter, usually served with chicken or other meat curry. This was covered in melted cheese and topped with crispy papadom pieces. Odd, but not unpleasant. This was my main.

Dessert was batter fried coins of banana with a jaggery (molasses) dipping sauce topped with plain ice cream. Hard to fault. Coffee only came with Italian names. I had a machiato.

Overall, a great vibe and interesting, tasty food. Nothing too hot for the spice shy. The preparations were intriguing and thought provoking.   The portions were large, and we over-filled on the starters despite the waiter's warning. I would go back given the chance, but order less. Oh, for a serviceable wine list!

 

The next day we celebrated my niece's birthday at The Papaya Cafe in Cochin. There is a strong innovative drive in Kerala cooking, and people want something new as well as something old. We love putting things together. Here's the menu.

https://papayamedia.in/Papaya_Menu_Main.pdf

It's mixing western/ fast food ideas with traditional processes. The atmosphere is light, modern, with an up to the minute laid back funk sound track, not too loud to talk. They have art exhibitions including an NFT show last weekend. There are art books, art and literary magazines, old National Geographics, graphic novels and novels in Malayalam and English to browse. If it all sounds unbearably hip, I have to say it all worked well together.

Plantain fritters in a cumin batter with a mild chicken curry.

Chilli chicken wings

Shrimp tempura with a virgin passion fruit mojito standing guard. The tempura was light.and crisp, the shrimp just firm. The virgin mojitos were superb. The wife loves mojitos but I've always been a bit disdainful. These would have been killer with some rum. Licencing laws are difficult here.

A beef lasagna with tapioca mash, pasta sheets, parmesan and Kerala fried beef.

Brown rice, chicken, salad

Brown rice, chicken, coriander, papadom strips.

Fajita chicken wraps. Tapioca and beetroot crisps on the side.

Kappa (tapioca) au gratin sitting over a mild chicken curry.

Pidi and chicken. Pidi are rice flour gnocchi, quite dense, about 1.5cm diameter, usually served with chicken or other meat curry. This was covered in melted cheese and topped with crispy papadom pieces. Odd, but not unpleasant. This was my main.

Dessert was batter fried coins of banana with a jaggery (molasses) dipping sauce topped with plain ice cream. Hard to fault. Coffee only came with Italian names. I had a machiato.

Overall, a great vibe and interesting, tasty food. Nothing too hot for the spice shy. The preparations were intriguing and thought provoking.   The portions were large, and we over-filled on the starters despite the waiter's warning. I would go back given the chance, but order less. Oh, for a serviceable wine list!