Restaurants worth a reservation in Chennai. Recent opening highlights lead into our picks for distinctive cooking, critical recognition and a culinary point of view.
Restaurants worth a reservation in Chennai. Recent opening highlights lead into our picks for distinctive cooking, critical recognition and a culinary point of view.
places on the shortlist
7 recent openings
Regional Southern Indian flavours become inventive tasting menus at ITC Grand Chola.
A recognised destination for progressive Southern cooking, with an open kitchen and a distinct tasting-menu format.
Chindi Varadarajulu draws on Singapore’s hawker culture for Zhouyu’s weekend breakfast menu.
Chee cheong fun, radish cake and mee siam make a distinctive morning meal. The breakfast menu runs on weekends; confirm availability when booking.
Regi Mathew’s kitchen preserves Kerala recipes collected from homes and toddy shops.
An established specialist restaurant with a clear regional mission and a named chef.
Sashi Cheliah’s restaurant explores the Peranakan food traditions of Singapore and Malaysia.
A distinctive regional cuisine rarely given a dedicated dining room in India.
A bright neighbourhood restaurant and bakery serving leisurely breakfasts and Asian-influenced comfort dishes.
A useful daytime choice for diners who care about breads, breakfast and a kitchen with a distinct repertoire.
Taj Coromandel’s longstanding South Indian dining room celebrates the region’s culinary traditions.
A recognised destination for a more formal regional meal; its CNT award evidence dates to 2023.
An intimate Korean diner above KUP Coffee Roasters, with guksu noodles, bulgogi and playful desserts.
A focused dinner spot for Korean flavours. Limited seats; reserve through the restaurant before visiting.
Chettinad flavours reworked into dishes such as crab rasam and curry-leaf mushroom tart.
Indulge’s firsthand review highlights a playful but food-focused new kitchen.
The Anna Nagar outpost combines sushi and Asian plates with coastal Indian dishes and cocktails.
Indulge highlighted the tori maki, Malabar prawn curry and drinks, while noting an issue with the tuna sashimi.
A compact restaurant for sushi, Asian plates and cocktails.
Indulge praised the nigiri, tofu and Japanese cheesecake; its review found some seafood dishes less consistent.
A Tamil kitchen serving crab rasam, seeraga samba biryani and patient regional preparations.
The cottonseed-milk halwa and slow-cooked mutton give this new branch a distinct reason to visit.
A longstanding specialist Thai restaurant in Alwarpet.
An established kitchen for a full Thai meal, with a long-standing place in Chennai’s dining scene.
A family run vegetarian dining room with charred paneer tikkas, mushroom preparations and crisp South Indian dosas.
The Mount Road branch pairs considered interiors with a kitchen that gives equal attention to tandoor cooking and breakfast classics.
Akkarai dining with a strong Tamil strand, including Karaikudi kari sukka, Nilgiri mutton and black rice halwa within a broader menu.
An ECR option for a leisurely regional meal, with a current menu and reservations available directly from the restaurant.
Ajit Bangera and Abhishek Mody reinterpret Indian classics through fire, fermentation and patient cooking.
From seventy-two-hour Rampuri gosht to burrata with Kashmiri palak, the kitchen brings a clear chef’s perspective.
Pricol Gourmet’s restaurant explores East and Southeast Asian cooking in a dedicated Kotturpuram setting.
A dedicated kitchen for exploring East and Southeast Asian flavours beyond a generic global menu.
A dessert stop playing with familiar Chennai flavours, from filter coffee to an unexpected thayir sadam gelato.
The appeal is in the flavours and small batch dessert craft. Visit for a scoop rather than a full dinner.
A garden restaurant with Yercaud coffee and dishes ranging from Scotch eggs to roti canai.
The chef’s Scotland experience shows in its British plates; a relaxed option for groups with varied tastes.
A Chennai roastery café serving Indian estate coffees, espresso, filter coffee and cold brew from its own roasting programme.
A chance to try locally roasted estate coffees at the roaster’s Alwarpet café, from espresso and filter coffee to cold brew.
A rooftop Japanese and Sichuan restaurant at Novotel Chennai Chamiers Road.
A specialist choice for sushi, carpaccio and a longer Asian dinner above the city.
A dedicated Italian kitchen at ITC Grand Chola, with artisanal pasta and wood-fired pizza.
An established premium table for diners seeking a focused Italian meal.
ITC Grand Chola’s luxury vegetarian restaurant draws from India’s royal kitchens and seasonal traditions.
A destination where vegetarian cooking is the central proposition, with a formal dining format.
A coffee house where guests can choose records and settle in for an album, with cakes and savoury breakfast plates.
Listening sessions and a permanent record collection make music central to the visit.
Abbas Shahzad’s restaurant explores regional Indian vegetarian food through contemporary plates.
April coverage identifies a new kitchen with unusual combinations and regional specificity.
