With this special dish, a city hotel pays tribute to the U.S. President-elect

Donald Trump’s win might still raise eyebrows in the U.S., but the President-elect is hugely popular at Suprabaa, a modest hotel located at Valluvar Salai in Ramapuram. So much that C.P. Mukund Das, restaurant owner and self-confessed Trump fan, has introduced a ‘White Dosa’, “with respect to the tremendous victory of Donald Trump”, as a banner outside the joint sums it up.

Priced at Rs. 50, it is the hot favourite at the restaurant currently, with most customers referring to it as the ‘white dosa’. “I’m a huge fan of Trump, especially his speeches and facial expressions, and have always wanted him to win the U.S. elections.

I decided that if he won, I’d come up with a tribute to him in my restaurant,” says Mukund. The ‘tribute’, as he calls it, arrives hot and steaming on a traditional banana leaf and is accompanied by a host of special chutneys and sambar. There’s also a cup-full of butter to go with it. “Since we announced it with a banner outside our restaurant, many curious onlookers come in, specifically for the Trump special,” beams Vippin Purushothaman, marketing manager, adding that about 130 Trump dosas are being dished out every day to customers.

The decade-old hotel chain, which has six branches across the city, initially faced a backlash when it advertised the ‘Trump dosa’ outside its premises. Some well-wishers said it would be ‘controversial’. But Mukund Das is determined to keep it rolling for the next few days.

“If an artist likes a celebrity, he could paint him/her as a tribute. But, as a hotelier, all I can do is introduce a new dish and name it after the person, right?” Try out the dosa at Suprabaa, No.2, Valluvar Salai, KPR Garden, Ramapuram, between 7a.m. and 11 p.m. till this weekend. For details, contact 89399 93054.

TRUMP DOSA DEMYSTIFIED

You cannot miss out on the Donald Trump connection at Suprabaa — a huge poster of the President-elect stares at you when you enter. Inside, I look around, and every table has a leaflet proudly announcing the special dosa that the restaurant has been offering for the past few days. “Oru white dosa, master,” shouts the attendant, as I order myself a Trump. A predominantly-white dosa, with a generous inside coating of Thousand Island Dressing (used mostly for salads) and chilli flakes, this dish is served hot and is accompanied by sambar, four types of chutney and butter. Once I devour it, I ask for one more… this time, a little muru-muru (roasted). The chef declines my request. “If it’s roasted, it changes colour,” he insists, “The Trump dosa has to be white.”