There was a discussion recently about where to fill you stomach in hyderabad for less than Rs. 50/- and the first place that flashed into my mind was this one. Sri Shyam Nivas is a small marwadi cuisine restaurant located in a lane at M.G.road, Secunderabad.
This place is hard to find for a newbie but I can give some directions: On the road from Paradise towards Ranigunj, after Ramgopalpet police station, keep an eye to your left.
There is a small lane with a white Jain temple at the entrance. turning into this lane and proceeding a few meters ahead wud bring you to Sri Shayam Nivas Lodge and Restaurant in a small old corner building, with an STD booth in the entrance. A narrow staircase leads you to the firt floor that houses the small restaurant. dont be fooled by the appearance. This is definitely a family joint and females in your group wud not feel out of place here.
The restaurant is small with about 8 tables in the general section and a tiny 2 table ’’family’’ section with cushioned seats. the ’’thalis’’, ’’katoris’’ and a glass for water are inverted and pre-arranged in each table. Each table also has containers for diced raw onions, chillies, pickles etc.
There is no menu card, but a black board is displayed above the kitchen door and is sure to give u the surprise of your life both at the prices and the sparseness of the items. The flat rate is 35/- per head (as of 3 months ago). and what u get is an unlimited number of rotis and curries! daily there are 4 varieties of roties on offer: Wheat, Jowar, Bajra and Besan. You may ask for anything at any time.
A boy usually walks about with hot rotis on a big plate and u can ask for one (or more) whenever u feel like it. There are 3 ’’wet’’ curries, 1 dal and 1 dry curry daily (the vegetable varies daily of course). Unlike the fare at most restaurants the curries are NOT oily masala offerings. They have a homely feel and are very tasty and won’t upset your stomachs if u gorge on them. The curries are also unlimited and u may ask for them at anytime.
If u like to, u may also ask for jaggery (gud) to go with the bajra rotis. You are offered curds (sweet or plain) for an extra 10/- and there is usually a sweet on offer for another 10/-. on sundays they serve only poories and curries for lunch. Btw, on sundays, sadly the place is closed in the evenings. This is THE place for tasty filling food that would remind you of home. because of the incredibly low price, I would say its worth much more than what you end up paying. Please make it a point to visit this place for lunch or dinner whenever you are in the vicinity.