The family behind Big Fella Briyani: sisters Nandhini Sri Manogar and Bhuvanee Manogar flank Vignesh Ravi. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Indian food is a catch-all term that describes a continent of hugely diverse cuisines. From the rich, tandoor-driven dishes of the Punjab in the north to the seafood and coconut-rich diets of Kerala in the south: there’s so much more to Indian food than butter chicken.
A new, family-run food truck in Gungahlin, Big Fella Briyani specialises in the foods of Tamil Nadu, a large state in India’s southwest.
Head chef and owner Vignesh Ravi runs the business with his wife Nandhini Sri Manogar, her sister Bhuvanee Mangar and Bhuvanee’s husband Arivoli VB.
The family started the food truck after Vignesh was made redundant from his office job. He decided to use the opportunity to follow his passion for cooking. Nandhini supports him in the kitchen after she finishes her full-time job as an early childhood educator and Bhuvanee travels down from Sydney weekly to help serve on the weekends.
It’s a labour of love and the family hopes to one day open a permanent restaurant serving South Indian food.
The vegetarian briyani is packed with cardamon pods and made with a long grain rice. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Bhuvanee told Region that even within the state of Tamil Nadu, there was lots of local cuisine variation.
“Each of our briyanis is made in a different way, all using traditional processes from different cities in Tamil Nadu,” she said.
“Our dindugal mutton briyani is made by soaking and grinding red chillies, while other styles dry roast their spices. Our chef follows traditional recipes so each dish has an individual taste.”
As the name suggests, briyani (often spelled biryani) is the main feature of the menu here. On separate visits I tried the vegetarian briyani made using long basmati rice and the dingdugal mutton briyani made with an aromatic, shorter grain seeraga samba rice.
The two dishes have distinct flavours (aside from the obvious meat/veg difference). I particularly enjoy the abundance of whole cardamom pods in the vegetarian dish. Mop it all up with a rich eggplant and tomato chutney and refreshing raita.
Try the kuzhi paniyaram (front) and sambhar vadai (back). Photo: Lucy Ridge.
In addition to the delicious briyanis, there’s also a range of vegetarian and meat starters – excellent to share. We chose kuzhi paniyaram and sambhar vadai.
Bhuvanee said the kuzhi paniyaram were cooked in a similar way to Dutch pancakes. These savoury, panfried rice dumplings are studded with mustard seeds and served with a super moreish, nutty chutney.
The sambhar vadai are deep-fried lentil patties served in a richly spiced sauce. I’d tasted similar vadai before as a dry fried snack, but soaking them in the sambhar sauce picked up so much extra flavour. The textures ranged from a crisp exterior, soft inside and delicious soupy sambhar.
Another dish we enjoyed was parotta – a flaky flatbread – served with salna, a rich, slow-cooked stew.
“Salna is known for its aromatic and rich gravy: ground onions, tomatoes, coconut, coconut milk and medley of spices,” Bhuvanee said.
You can find Big Fella Briyani parked outside the Good Year Tyre store in Gungahlin. One day the family hopes to open a permanent restaurant. Photo: Lucy Ridge.
Even visiting the food truck on a cold, rainy day, a steady flow of folks picked up their takeaway orders and ducked back to their cars. On a nice day, you can enjoy your food onsite at the tables provided.
The dishes coming out of the colourful Big Fella Briyani truck are unlike anything else in Canberra. Check them out!
Big Fella Briyani at 1 O’Brien Place, Gungahlin, outside Good Year Tyres, opens 5 – 10 pm Friday, 1 – 10 pm Saturday and Sunday. Follow Big Fella Briyani on Facebook or Instagram.
