Chennai is one of the most visited cities in South India, popular among foreign tourists as well. With many things to do in Chennai, it is one of the most visited Indian cities. With many places to visit in Chennai, the metro city is highly popular. Here is your Chennai travel guide on resorts and restaurants in the city.

Places to visit in Chennai include fantastic beaches, long and beautiful highways, and a well-connected transport system. Because of all these, Chennai tourism has increased by leaps and bounds over the years. The city has theme parks, big universities, high rise business complexes, as well as modern multi-speciality hospitals. With many things to do in Chennai, resorts and restaurants in the city have also developed and modernised to suit all tastes. Skim through this Chennai travel guide for more details.

People of Chennai

Chennai is a major cosmopolitan city in South India. It has the third-largest non-native population in India, after Mumbai and Delhi. The residents of the city are known to have orthodox beliefs and a core value system. Chennaiites follow customs upholding brotherhood, mutual respect and tranquillity, and are famous for their hospitality.

Chennaiites follow a variety of religions like Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam. The people are conservative and take their traditions earnestly. The culture of the city is a harmonious mixture of traditional beliefs and modernity. Besides local Tamilians, the major migrant population is from neighbouring places such as Telangana and Kerala. Other notable communities include Punjabi, Bengali, Anglo Indian, Gujarati & Marwari communities and people from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

The traditional dressing for men in the city is lungi and shirt. Women wear sarees with gold decoration and gold jewellery as daily wear. Also, women of Chennai would occasionally adorn their hair with flower garlands.

Chennai Tourism

Chennai has a rich cultural history to its name, perfectly balanced with its metropolitan lifestyle. The city is well connected by road, rail, air, and sea routes with international airport and seaport. So, how to reach Chennai is not a problem for anyone. State transport buses and auto-rickshaws are prevalent modes of transport within the city. The city located on the Coromandel coast of Bay of Bengal is as zestful as it is immersed in its heritage. The city is one among the four major metropolitan cities of India with many places to visit.

While how to reach Chennai is not a problem, being a metro city, traffic in the city is an issue. Also, the humid tropical climate leaves passersby sweltering. However, Chennai is worth visiting to see south-Indian temples, British-era monuments, and Marina Beach. The old-world charm of the city is hard to be overshadowed.

Chennai houses over 2,400 heritage buildings in the city limit—highest in the country. Mylapore and Triplicane areas in the city are famous for their serene, beautiful temples and traditional cuisines. Traces of the British rule like Queen Mary's College, Madras University, Ripon Building and museums are examples of the Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, for which the city is famous.

Best Time To Visit Chennai

The city’s coastline keeps its weather hot and humid. Summers in Chennai are sweltering and the monsoon brings heavy downpours and even cyclones. Due to the geographical location of the city, the best time to visit Chennai is winter season and the duration before the rainy season, which translates to the months between October and February. This is regarded as the best time to visit Chennai.

October to February: The months brings the winter season in Chennai. The temperature during the time ranges between 20 and 25 Degree Celsius. The daytime breeze from the sea provides relief from the otherwise hot climate.

Club Mahindra Chennai Resorts

Tamil Nadu state is enveloped with the amazing Nilgiri and Anamalai Hills. The state has beautiful beaches, awesome temples, old architectural monuments, churches, and museums for you to glimpse into its past. Club Mahindra offers five beautiful conveniently-located resorts in the state of Tamil Nadu. Out of the five, one is Club Mahindra Puducherry, which is a three-hour journey away from Chennai offering the best stay possible out of most Chennai resorts.

Have a wonderful stay at Puducherry resort, a Club Mahindra resort closest to Chennai. The resort located just outside town is lavish and spread across 24 acres of sea-facing land. They have used Titanium Oxide in the construction of this resort. The glass coverage in buildings and the dry green forest surrounding makes the resort eco-friendly. The staff at the resort is friendly and warm. Then there is a swimming pool and a kids pool. The food is delicious ,and there are a lot of activities you and your kids can indulge in throughout the day.

Yercaud Resort Lawn Yercaud Resort Garden

Restaurants In Chennai

Chennai tourism is known for its hospitality and traditional food. In South Indian culture, serving food is regarded as a religious deed. You are sure to have some unforgettable moments while you eat in Chennai restaurants. The traditional food types include idli, sambhar, dosa, rasam, coconut chutney, dry curry, kootu, etc. Steamed rice on banana leaf is the traditional dish in the city. Chennai tourism offers a variety of cuisines that are suitable for vegans as well as for non-vegetarians.

Chennai has developed over the years as a foodie’s destination as the lifestyle of the locals has significantly changed over the past years. Chennai tourism is incomplete without the best restaurants in Chennai, you’ll see how the dining scene of the city has grown while maintaining the traditional dosa and steamed rice dishes. Also, you cannot miss the Tamilian filtered coffee. There are many diverse restaurants you can explore while on Chennai tourism. Here is a list of the best restaurants in Chennai:

#1 Haunted

The Haunted restaurant in Chennai is themed around the concept of love horror. The exceptional groovy themed décor will make you  want to eat more. The combination of skeletons, ghosts, bats, spiders, and all the spookiness is here to welcome you.

#2 The Flying Elephant

The Flying Elephant in Park Hyatt Chennai offers you a variety of cuisines like North Indian and Italian. The food is cooked in its five live kitchens that are designed by designer George Wong. At Flying Elephant, expect a wonderful and lively ambience, DJs on weekends and brunch on Sundays. It is for sure one of Chennai’s sassiest dining locations.

#3 Sunset Grill

Sunset Grill is another romantic restaurant in Chennai on the rooftop. The restaurant serves a variety of dishes with Arabic influence. Have a full fine dining experience in the mystique aura of the restaurant. Relish a candlelight dinner at Sunset Grill with your loved one.

#4 Kaidi Kitchen

Kaidi Kitchen is an excellent vegetarian restaurant in Chennai. The ambience of the restaurant is of a prison cell. It gives the diners the experience of eating in Tihar Jail. Waiters are dressed up as prison inmates and their supervisors as police.

#5 Madras Pavilion

Madras Pavilion is an opulent multi-cuisine restaurant that won the Times Food Award in 2017. The table seating at the place is differentiated in thematic zones like Love Seats, The Crown, The High Table, and The Private Zone.

South Indian Food Seafood

#6 China XO

The restaurant overlooks the city’s picturesque Bay of Bengal. The decor of the restaurant is inspired by traditional Chinese furnishing. Devour specialties native to Canton and Sichuan like Beijing-style Noodles, Peking Duck, Chilean Sea Bass, Pine Nut & Pumpkin, and Truffle & Edamame.

#7 Basil With A Twist

Basil With A Twist is one of the romantic restaurants of Chennai. The restaurant serves a fantastic nine-course meal and has a counter for Italian cuisines. It also serves authentic European and Asian dishes. The restaurant has a candlelight dinner room for your special nights.

#8 Jamavar

Jamavar celebrates the royal kitchen of India’s past. The award-winning restaurant is located in The Leela Palace hotel. It serves traditional dishes from all over India. Main dishes of the restaurant include Kumarakom Fish Curry and Raan-e-Jamavaar leg of lamb. The interiors of the restaurant have grand chandeliers, chic jaali-work, and soft lighting.

#9 The Rain Forest

Rain Forest is another theme-based restaurant in Chennai with the theme of forest. The decor provides a feeling of eating amidst nature to the diners. Rain Forest offers a nice ambience and great tastes in food. You can indulge in a variety of cuisine options at The Rain Forest. It serves North Indian, Mughlai, Chinese, Continental, and also various seafood items. You can also have various Tandoori grilled food items.

#10 Southern Spice

The award-winning restaurant celebrates cuisines of South India. The restaurant serves classic plates like Mirapakaya Pitala (Chilli Spiked Crab Cutlets) and Adai (Spiced Lentil Pancakes). Southern Spice has chic interiors reflecting the grandeur of historic palaces of India.

#11 Rasoee

Rasoee serves delectable North Indian food and chat items. It is a lunch hotspot as it is affordable enough. During lunchtime, the service is mostly busy so you might need to wait for a bit.

#12 Pan Asian

Pan Asian has a reputation as one of India’s best Far East Asian restaurants. The award-winning eatery represents cuisines from Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, China, Malaysia and Indonesia. The restaurant has open kitchens where the delicious food is cooked. You won’t find dishes like sushi and sashimi platter, and Chinese simmered prawns anywhere else.

#13 The Waterfall Restaurant

The casual dining restaurant has a wonderful theme-based ambience. The stunning carvings on the wall and comfy seating are its trademark. You will be served Chinese, South Indian and North Indian dishes. The attentive staff makes additional efforts in servicing with perfection.

Conclusion

The capital of Tamil Nadu, Chennai lying on the Coromandel Coast is one of South India’s greatest hubs. The excellent cultural of the city makes Chennai tourism more desirable. Chennai pulls crowd for its art and culture. Apart from the religious sites, the beaches and the food of Chennai is a reason you should visit the city at least once in your life.

About Mahindra Holidays

Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Limited (MHRIL), India’s leading player in the leisure hospitality industry, offers quality family holidays as also stated by Club Mahindra Resort Reviews, primarily through vacation ownership memberships. While Club Mahindra Membership Fees gives you an opportunity to explore your holidays across the world, the other brands offered by the company are – Club Mahindra Resorts Fundays and Svaastha Spa. As on Mar 31, 2019, MHRIL has 100+ resorts across India and abroad and its subsidiary, Holiday Club Resorts Oy, Finland, a leading vacation ownership company in Europe has 33 resorts across Finland, Sweden and Spain. Visit us at www.clubmahindra.com

About Club Mahindra

Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Ltd. (MHRIL), a part of Leisure and Hospitality sector of the Mahindra Group, offers quality family holidays primarily through vacation ownership memberships and brings to the industry values such as reliability, trust and customer satisfaction. Started in 1996, the company's flagship brand ‘Club Mahindra’, today has over 250,000 members , who can holiday at 100+ resorts in India and abroad.

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