Naidu Hotel

Naidu Hotel is at number 13 in the Balepet area near Sakinaka. It isn't really a hotel in the way people think of big buildings with pools. It’s more of a place where you sit down and get a meal. We start early, usually before the sun is even up, to get the fires going. There’s a lot of steam in the air from the big pots of rice and sambar. The tables are stainless steel and they’ve seen a lot of use over the years. We have a couple of benches that wobble a bit if you sit on the end. It’s a fast-paced place during lunch. People are usually in a hurry to get back to work, so we have to move quick. We don't have a printed menu. You just look at what’s cooking and tell us what you want. The walls have a few old calendars on them and not much else. It gets pretty hot in the kitchen, and that heat spills out into the seating area. We’ve had the same dishwasher for five years, and he’s the fastest I’ve ever seen. We don't do anything fancy. It’s just simple cooking like you’d find in a kitchen at home. Sometimes we run out of spoons and have to wash them fast. The floor is tile and it gets a bit slippery if we aren't careful. It’s just a small, busy spot in a crowded part of town where everyone is welcome to sit and eat.