I wonder why there is a sudden rush for Arabian like food in Chennai! It must be doing well and if the trend goes, we might soon has Indian Arabian, just like we have Indo - Chinese. None of the dishes are Arabian really, but, of course, one cannot open a restaurant for people who want authentic food and price it low. They have to play to the market and going by the crowd at Laham, with a simple but nice interiors, quirky posters, I think the owners have found the sweet spot.

Three of us walked in and found that both brands, Laham and Tas Tea, belong to the same person. Tas Tea, is a bubble tea that I have had at Malaysia and I was keen to see how well they have fit the concept to the Chennai market. So we ordered for chicken shawarma, Shish Tawook and Chicken Sheekh Kebab. Apparently the restaurant had just opened and a lot of dishes on the menu was unavailable.

The bubble teas came up first and though the 'bubbles' were similar to what I have had before, the tea did not seem to have any tea in it. Only then did I realise that I had ordered the crushed ice bubble and since there was no crushed ice at all, it didn't seem like it and I presumed I had ordered tea. The other two guys had their tea and I tasted them both and they were fine. The bubbles are nothing but small flavoured tapioca balls added to the tea and the straw is large enough to suck them through.

The owner recognised us as his school seniors and joined us for a chat. He told us about his previous experiences with restaurants and told us his plans for this restaurant, which included bring in sheekh kebab burgers in both chicken and lamb. With a vast background in food, he seemed to know what he is doing. But I found the shawarma to be like a Bengali kati roll. There was no veggies, no pickled veggies, no french fries - just a pita roll stuffed with chicken. So if you like your roll to be full of chicken, you will like this, if you're like me, wanting a balance between the chicken and the veggies, then you wont. The roll was tasty, it is just not shawarma for me. The chicken sheekh kebab was juicy and very tasty, while the shish tawook was very differently spiced and not what I am used to. There is a lot of gravy and roti on the menu that we did not try.

The owner refused to take the bill and said that the place was just up and running and he was glad to get feedback from us and waived off the bill. He has asked us to visit him again in a few weeks once his full menu is up and then we could pay! So I am not rating this place yet! Prices of dishes are between 80 and 200 for most dishes and a meal for two should cost about Rs. 500! But this is Indo Arabian, not Arabian and with an almost full house, I guess it has clicked.

Laham is right at the Kelly junction in Kilpauk with a parking space for about four cars.

Dosa Calling, a south Indian vegetarian outlet, has had be wanting to get there for a long time, and when the wife and me were both hungry and it was right across the road on which we were driving, we obviously could not resist it!

Wife is not a great eater, which means that between the two of us, we ordered only 3 dosas and 1 vada, of which I ate two dosas and the vada, so the review is limited to these foods!

The oriental dosa which I ordered was nothing to boast about, but a decent dish by any standards-tasty, filling and hint of home food. The regular masala dosa that the wife ordered, but just that- a regular masala dosa, again, tasty, filling and a hint of home food! But one dish where you do not want the hint of home food is in a paper roast, you really want it crisp and crunchy, but DC (as this joint promotes itself) went a tad further and made it like a home dosa, soft, soggy with no hint of anything near crisp paper, and I made sure I wrote it down on their feed back form!Prices are pocket friendly but the special stuffing dosas are slightly on the higher side, but not exorbitant!

Service was prompt and attentive and the decor very good. The place is slightly off from the usual Chennai food joints, located at Kilpauk and the their outlet in Nelson Manickam Road has been shut due to some problem, so its time for them to expand and do it soon!

Food 6/10
Service 7/10
Ambiance 7/10
Price 7/10

Dosa Calling is located in Kilpauk, near the OLD UMA THEATRE. Another branch opened up on Nelson Manickam Road, but has been temporarily shut.

Hogdog is an 8X8 sized two men manned, hot dog outlet. At present, you can find it at Spencer's third phase on the first floor next to the Nike and Java Green outlets.
You choose your choice of eating styles out of two options-on the stick or in the bun! Then you choose your meat (from chicken or mutton) and then the sauce mix you want on your hot dog (you can choose between mexican, bbq, chicago and tangy). You will get your hot dog in less than 1 minute after placing the order!
I have tried all the permutation and combinations available and really have nothing to complain or rave about any of them! However its a quick meal, a couple of them will actually fill you for a while (if you are an average eater that is, we are not talking about monsters) and will not burn a hole in your pocket!
The hot dogs in the bun are priced at Rs. 50 and those on the stick at Rs. 30 and will be a good munching meal while you shop!!!!