Do Rotating Menus Work? Yes, According To Idaho’s First South Indian Restaurant
Story by Ash Golangco
Four years ago, Arunkumar Annamalai received a job offer from Micron, and it brought his family (wife and then 3-year-old daughter) all the way from the city of Madurai in India to Boise.
His wife Gayathri Sankar saw another opportunity – to fulfill her lifelong dream of owning a business.
Image courtesy of Ash Golangco
“She’s passionate of two things: doing business, and cooking,” Arunkumar said with a smile during an in-person interview at the restaurant. Gayathri has always been interested in starting a business while living in India. In fact, she was interested in owning any kind of business, not just a restaurant, although her cooking has always been exceptional.
When they arrived at Boise, however, they quickly noticed that there weren’t any South Indian restaurants in the entire state of Idaho.
Most US natives may not realize that the average American Indian restaurant menu is mainly populated with North Indian and even British dishes, from naan to palak paneer to tikka masala. The city of Madurai, where Arunkumar and Gayathri grew up, is famous for its incredible South Indian cuisine – but most American customers have likely never heard of their signature breads like idli.
With Gayathri’s great passion for food, opening a restaurant became the obvious choice, and Arunkumar gave her his full support. Today, he even works at the restaurant waiting tables on top of his career at Micron. Madurai Virundhu finally opened this August in 2021.
If you’re a business owner yourself, you might be wondering: How does a new restaurant manage food costs amidst the pandemic-impacted market of 2021?
It all starts with Madurai Virundhu’s unique, seasonal rotating menu.
Yes, you read that right. Every single day, Madurai Virundhu’s entire menu changes from top to bottom. After following their website for two weeks, the only menu items that I’ve seen available everyday are the beverages, mango lassi and coffee (both wonderful!).
In talking with connections who own restaurants in California, the couple understood that freshness was the most important part to any restaurant, and they decided to take it as seriously as possible.
At Madurai Virundhu, every curry starts from scratch, “from an empty vessel.” That’s a pretty tall order for a new restaurant opening post-lockdowns, which was a historically challenging time for the industry. However, the rotating menu allows them to lower food costs without sacrificing freshness.
They researched the strategy thoroughly before creating the restaurant’s first-year business plan. Gayathri wanted to introduce numerous dishes to Boise residents – the rotating menu allows her to do so, while making it easier to manage proportions and keep up with orders.
As proud first-time business owners on both sides of their families, Gayathri and Arunkumar knew planning would be important, and it has definitely come in handy. “Anything you think may go wrong, will go wrong,” and then some, Arunkumar advised. Their research, industry connections, and close friends, including the Senior VP of Micron Nagasubramaniyan Chandrasekaran, have greatly supported their success and they couldn’t be more grateful.
Thank you so much Arunkumar and Gayathri for taking the time to talk with us! We can’t wait to drop by again and explore more authentic South Indian home cooking!
Note: You may notice that all the quotes in this article are attributed to Arunkumar. Gayathri, a superhero multitasker, had to feed their second 2-year-old Boise-born daughter during our interview. Diya, previously mentioned and now 7 years old, was also present. She is very cheerful and also proud of her family’s restaurant – she might even tell you herself during your next visit!
