Marina Indian takeout restaurant opens in South Glastonbury
Glastonbury’s restaurant scene seems to be rebounding from the pandemic and becoming more eclectic every day. The newest cuisine in town is Indian. Marina opened April 14 at 2249 New London Turnpike, serving primarily takeout lunch and dinner, and soon, perhaps, breakfast.
Senthil Kumar Gurunathan, one of the partners, is from Chennai, in the southern Tamil Nadu state. The restaurant, which is in South Glastonbury where Gbury to Go used to be, is named after a huge beach in Chennai.
In southern India, food tends to be spicy.
“We use them all, garam masala, chili, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, star anise, fennel, cumin, bay leaves,” Gurunathan said.
The menu at Marina is a mix of spicy and mild dishes, to suit all tastes.
“We can make spicy foods less spicy, medium, but we cannot make the spicy foods mild,” said Gurunathan, who lives in South Windsor. “We don’t want to just focus on Indian people, we want to focus on all people.”
The menu is full of what Gurunathan called “everyday food in India,” with a lot of meatless options, because up to 40% of residents of India are vegetarian.
Appetizers come in veg, chicken, goat, lamb and seafood, and range from $7.99 for a simple three-piece potato and pea samosa platter, to $17.99 for the lamb fry and mutton chukka, in which the meat is layered with spices. Other appetizers include the spicy kodi vepudu, chili chicken and chili paneer, and the milder shrimp pepper fry, baby corn Manchurian and onion padkoda fritters.
Entrees, ranging from 11.99 for a dal fry to $17.99 for a lamb tikka masala, also have spicy options such as shrimp, mutton or fish curries, vindaloos and kadai chicken. Milder options include the vegetarian Navratan korma and peanut butter masala and chicken Chettinad.
The menu also features tandoori vegetables, chicken, shrimp and fish; biryani made with egg, vegetables, chicken, goat, lamb or shrimp; desserts such as gulab jamun, kheer and rasmalai; as well as beverages and sides.
Gurunathan said Marina has applied for an outdoor dining permit to put a few dozen seats on a grassy strip to the side of the restaurant. He also hopes to eventually serve Indian breakfast foods, such as dosa, idli and medu vada, which are basically savory donuts made with coconut, herbs and spices.
Marina is open 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday, closing for 2 ½ hours daily and reopening from 5 to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 5 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday to Thursday. Closed Monday.
Susan Dunne can be reached at sdunne@courant.com.
