Annachikadai

I normally don't factor in ambiance unless it's at one of the extremes. We dined in and got one of the tables next to the window. The bottom of the window had a thick layer of dirt. One might say how does it matter as long as it's not on the food. Well, the cutlery they put for self service was dirty as well. I had to dip all the spoons and forks in fresh water and wipe them out before we used them. The restaurant is not large, they barely had about six tables so I couldn't see why they had difficulty maintaining it. By this point I was skeptical of the cleanliness of the kitchen as the dining area was in such a pathetic state. We got some veg and non veg thalis and a plate of chicken 65. As advertised, the thalis came out on steel trays lined with banana leaf. But the rest of the dishes on the leaf were served on plastic and paper cups. The thali came with a South Indian style flaky paratha, rice, Kurma, chole, some vegetable curries, rasam, sambar, yoghurt and a dessert which had food coloring. I could see why the place was popular inspite of the cleanliness of the restaurant, the food was really good. The paratha and Kurma combination was on point, absolutely delectable. I enjoyed the rasam and rice combo as well.

We got the non-veg thali which was really good (it is unlimited and is only served on the weekend). It came with chicken 65, chicken curry, fish curry, veg kurma, lentil curry, rasaam, pickles, plantain chips, rice, buttermilk and of course papadam. We were confused if it served chapathi or parotta as well with it. Some people had it with the thali and some didn't (I am in that group that didn't get it with it).Every single item in that non-veg thali tasted so good.We had take out with them as well during the weekday. I was surprised they put coffee in the bag, I wish they asked if we wanted it in the bag or if we wanted to carry them. I would of preferred to carry my coffee.The service for the unlimited thali was really good. They are fast and efficient. The place is small. They have 2-3 tables outside. And it's first come first serve. But the maximum amount of time anyone had to wait when I was there was at most 5 min. There is no music, which is great because I want to hear the people that I came to the restaurant with.

We ordered takeout from here. We got Idly with fish curry, Fish 65, and egg kothu paratha. The food is extremely spicy here, so if you can't handle the heat, then stay away from this place. I had to dilute the curry with yogurt to make it palatable, but that's just me; I can't handle the spice.My husband, on the other hand, does appreciate spicy food and enjoyed it. Good selection of items on the menu, and food is usually ready quickly.

Ordered Annachi mutton biryani on a weekday. and the taste was very good. One of the best in Bay Area.

Perhaps the best Indian food I've ever had. Amazing rich/deep flavors.The Parotta was the right thickness. Flavorfully, and serves fresh. The Mango Lassi was waaaay too thick to drink with a straw, but it helped cut the heat of the curry nicely.Not the nicest place to look at, but the food more than made up for it.I'll be back if I'm ever in town again.

The unlimited non-veg thali is a joke .. each item came in a little plastic container with no meats and only curry .. we had to ask them numerous times for meat/chicken ... fish curry is only curry and they do not serve any fish in it .. highlight was the chicken 65 which was under flavored .. there are many other places for a a great andhra experience .

10/26/2022Annachikadai80 W El Camino RealMountain View, CA 94040Went for dinner with wifey on a Wednesday evening. It is in a small ECR strip mall close to Grant Rd./237. There is indoor seating for about 30 people, paper and plastic setups and the menu is via scanning a QR code. There was a lot of take out business while we were there.We ordered the Veg Pakora, Parotta bread, Boneless Chicken Curry (medium) and Boneless Mutton Curry (spicy). Although we were dining in, the curries came take out ready in plastic tubs. The Pakora consisted of julienned vegetables battered and crisply deep fried. It was lightly salted and excellent. Both curries were very tasty with satisfying amounts of protein, lots of sauce and strongly spiced. The heat level was okay for me unless you eat one of the chili peppers. The accompanying bread was nicely flaky.Prices are very reasonable, consistent with the minimalist operation experience. If you are wearing polyester or wool, your clothing (and hair) will acquire the Indian spices odor. Bothered wifey a little but not me. It's a new neighborhood favorite, definite repeat.

Took my friends and family from out of state to this place for impressing South Indian food with authentic taste .. all the dishes we ordered was tasty and reminded me of having street food in Madurai .. favorite was idicha chicken with parotta, appam with mutton curry n coconut milk, chicken fried rice!! Mutton Biryani was nice too but the meat should be cooked even softer, was little chewy for me.. :) dessert - wheat halwa was great !

I tried this little spot this last weekend. My second try at Southern Indian food, I keep reading about how spicy it is compared to other regions. I ordered a samosa chaat and a chicken thokku biryani. I didn't mention spice levels, I just ordered it. My goodness it was spicy! It could have been twice as spicy as it was and it would have been perfect. But yeah, it was spicier than most any other places will give you. It was very good and very flavorful.It was mostly rice, like biryani's tend to be. There was however a solid layer of big fat tender chicken chunks right in the middle of the rice. I was surprised, they did right by me on that aspect of the dish!Thank You guys!!!Oh yeah, the samosa chaat was good too! Good healthy food, but the flavor just had a slight sweetness that annoyed me. I still ate and enjoyed it, but those last few bites I had to force down as the sweetness had overwhelmed my desire to finish the meal. I never had samosa with all that stuff on top of it before then.

Interesting place as they do catering. Folks seem to come in not sure how to order. Every one of us go up to the counter to order expecting to pay and they say pay after. The food is interesting. It's what I wanted in terms of variety. Will come back to try other things. The best part is nothing has filler. All the food is natural.