Vijay Kumar Poennusamy is no stranger to the culinary world.
Fifteen years ago, he opened his first restaurant in South India — a restaurant called Flavors that served cuisines from different cultures.
After immigrating to the United States in 2011, he brought his passion for food with him by working as a caterer. Now, he’s returning to his restaurateur roots with a new endeavor, Chettinad’s Indian Restaurant.
Poennusamy and his wife, Kalpana Vijay Kumar — along with their two co-owners and longtime friends, Anusudha Senthilkumar and Senthilkumar Jayapalan — will open their new Overland Park restaurant on Friday.
Chettinad’s will operate at 8018 W. 151st St.
The restaurant will occupy a space at the Stanley Square shopping center, just off West 151st Street and U.S. Highway 69.
Custom sports apparel store Sportswear Etc. previously occupied that space, before relocating to the Heatherwood Village shopping center in 2018.
Once it opens, Chettinad’s will operate from 4:30 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and from 5 to 10 p.m. Friday. Saturdays and Sundays will offer a weekend breakfast, from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., as well as the same lunch and dinner hours as Friday.
Chettinad’s will serve South Indian cuisine
The menu at Chettinad’s features popular dishes like chicken vindaloo, paneer tikka masala, and vegetable biryani.
The restaurant will also serve appetizers and sides like garlic naan, samosas, coconut shrimp, and pepper baby corn.
Chettinad’s will also serve Thali meals — traditional South Indian meals that come with multiple components like rice, curries, vegetables and breads on a large banana leaf.
The restaurant’s name, Chettinad’s, comes from the name of a region in Tamil Nadu that’s well known for its cuisine, the owners said.
“We are planning to give all of our food the real flavor of India, and the real flavor of Chettinad cuisine,” Senthilkumar said. “We don’t want to compromise anything in the quality.”
The owners want to fill a gap in the local market
Though Overland Park is home to several Indian restaurants, Chettinad’s will offer cuisine specific to the state of Tamil Nadu — the southernmost state in India.
Though they’ve dined at many of the other Indian restaurants in the Kansas City metro area, the owners said they haven’t seen a lot of the dishes they plan to serve at Chettinad’s show up consistently on other restaurant menus.
By opening their new restaurant, Poennusamy said they look forward to bringing that type of cuisine to the Overland Park residents who have been waiting for it.
“What we are trying to do is satisfy the customer and be consistent with the taste,” he said. “This has been in the making for five months, and people have been asking ‘When is Chettinad’s opening? When is Chettinad’s opening?’. Now it’s opening on (Friday).”
Want more food and drink news? Lenexa’s Sierra Grill opening ‘casual’ BBQ spinoff in familiar location
