Southern Chinese could well claim to be the oldest Chinese restaurant in town, the pioneer that brought to Madras one of the most popular cuisines in the world. It is an unprepossessing, 28 seat establishment on Mount Road, sandwiched between newer, glitzier establishments and a bus stop. Parking space can be found with a little difficulty in the lane next to Anand cinema, but once inside the restaurant, one is charmed by the old-fashioned decor (almost unchanged since 1969), with wall panelling of dark wood and linoleum-topped tables, that combines elegance and simplicity. Immediately at hand to guide one to a table is Nelson, the friendly, well-mannered waiter who has been serving guests here for fifteen years.

The food is cooked to appeal to the South Indian palate, and so is far more spicy than Chinese food is meant to be. When the restaurant first opened, the food was cooked in an authentic manner but customers were few, largely non-Indian students, expatriates, and sailors from ships docked in Madras. Then the owner and cook, the father of the present proprietors, experimented with Indian spices and chilly, and slowly, but surely, the local population took to the food. The success of that culinary experiment has made Indian-spicy Chinese food almost as popular as Indian food. Every multi-cuisine restaurant worth the name serves Chinese food, and some that do not actually list Chinese food on their menus do offer a Manchurian or Szechwan curry or dry dish.

The menu has grown through the years, and lists 123 items, including Chinese tea. There are some unique preparations; prawns or sliced chicken with capsicum, pork spring rolls and pakoras of vegetables, gobi, prawns and chicken. There is also Chicken Lollipop, which Thomas Chang, proprietor, claims was invented by the family and imitated by other restaurants. The most popular dishes are fried rice, fried noodles and Chilly Chicken, but people stick to familiar dishes; they don't like to experiment with new preparations, laments Thomas. The pork dishes are very well-known. There are thirteen of them: roasted, crisped, fried, balled, sliced and shredded and served with mushrooms and vegetables, and made Manchurian- and Szechwan-style. There are similar preparations for fish, prawns, chicken, beef and vegetables, in fact, just about any dish or noodle - crisp chop suey, fried, soft - that one could have heard of is served here, as well as soups of vegetable, meat and noodle. The food is well-cooked, tender, and non-greasy, and the portions are generous; a plate of rice or noodles is sufficient to fill a hungry diner. The noodles are fresh; made every morning on a noodle-making machine imported from China. Vegetable dishes cost Rs.35-50, Meat dishes Rs.50-65, rice and noodles Rs.30-55, curries (meat, egg and vegetable) Rs.40-50. The affordability of their food has always been important to the Changs, and Thomas recalls that in 1969 a plate of Chicken Noodles cost Rs.2!

Southern Chinese is at 683 Mount Road, 600 006. Phone 852-2515. It is open from 11:30 am till 3 pm and from 6 pm till 10:30 pm. 

Arun Masilamoni

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