Albin Sunny recalls a fond memory from his university days when his friend, Jack, came over to his place try south Indian food for the first time. It's a cuisine the 25-year-old graduate had eaten his whole life, but for Jack it was a joyful revelation. "He just absolutely loved it. He was having three different portions," Albin says, laughing. "It was a surprise for him, because he wasn't struggling after - he said we could go to the gym after and we'd be fine. He was like, 'What is this type of food?'"
Jack's reaction to the light and flavoursome homecooked dishes was "good feedback" for Albin - so promising, in fact, that it gave him the idea of opening his very own restaurant in Cardiff specialising in south Indian cuisine. Months later, and Albin's dream has come to fruition: he is busy preparing to welcome customers next week through the doors of Little Kochi, named after a city in the state of Kerala where his family is originally from.
Hospitality wasn't always the goal for the business-minded 25-year-old, who graduated last year with a masters from Cardiff University. Working full time for a start-up tech company in London, Albin says he wanted to experience something other than the conventional 9 to 5 grind. But it was only when he met his close friend and the restaurant's future general manager, Melvin Salimon Mathew, that the idea began to become more of a reality. You can read all our latest Cardiff stories here.
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Melvin, 24, moved from a small village in Kerala just over a year ago to study an MBA in Cardiff Metropolitan University and started working in Albin's dad's shop. "Literally the second week he started working with my dad, we just started chatting," recalls Albin. "It was during the lockdown period as well, so we were sat around chatting all the time." Their talks were initially about starting a business to import spices from India, because Melvin's family owns farms there.
But after Albin's friends gave such glowing reviews of his homecooked meals, their conversations soon centred around selling them to the public. "We were like: 'We should probably try and open a restaurant like this,'" he says. And so Little Kochi was born. It is both his and Melvin's first foray into the food service and hospitality industry - a complete leap into the unknown, which Albin admits it is "absolutely risky as hell", especially as he has invested his savings into the venture.
But the two of them have tread confidently through the unfamiliar territory and immersed themselves into the challenge from the get-go. They started off by visiting all Indian restaurants in Cardiff and Bristol to taste test what was already on the market. "We went to a lot of restaurants and we ate a lot of food from there - we had almost all of their menu. We went somewhere and the waitress asked: 'Is this all for you guys?'" says Melvin, laughing.
What they discovered was mostly a fusion of north and south Indian cuisine - not the flavours they are both familiar with at home and want to sell at Little Kochi. "There's actually a big difference between north India and south India - the food, the culture, the people, the religion. Not many people are aware," says Albin, adding: "Even though I was raised here, I go back a lot [to south India], so I'm very used to the food. Melvin was brought up there. So we were like, 'We need something in Cardiff that actually has the taste, and people can actually try south Indian food.'"
Next came the location. A spot on Albany Road appeared at the end of last year, and they jumped at the opportunity, signing the lease in January. "We were like, that is the spot - we have to get it. I don't know if it was meant to be. I hope so anyway," says Albin. They've got some big shoes to fill: the place was previously occupied for decades by Bo Zan, a family-run Chinese restaurant and long-standing Cathays favourite.
The last four months have seen the two of them, with the help of builders, transform the space beyond recognition. It's been a monumental task, with virtually everything - from the wiring to the kitchen - having been "stripped away" and replaced. Now, the only remnants of the previous restaurant are the glass front and a few floor tiles.
But the effort and investment has been entirely worth it, says Albin. When customers enter for the first time next week, it's not just the food that will transport them to straight to south India. The interior emulates the houseboats that glide majestically along the backwaters of Kerala. Boards have been installed to mimic the curvature of vessels, while bamboo mats plaster every inch of the walls and ceiling. Pointing to them, Albin says: "We imported all of these - these are bamboo mats. That's what they use for the houseboats. We had them made in a specific tribal area where we're from."
And the food and drink will be as authentic as it gets. The chefs are all from Kerala - one of them even hails from the kitchens that cook for the Indian Premier League. They'll serve up dosas made on a specific cast-iron griddle that Albin and Melvin "hunted for ages" to find, before they discovered one in Birmingham and travelled all the way there to pick it up. Meanwhile, south Indian whiskeys and brandies will be stocked in the bar at the front of the restaurant.
"All the spices we will use for cooking will have come directly from Kerala - directly collected from the farmers, not from any wholesale sellers or retail sellers," Melvin adds. "The majority of them are from my own property. We've got cardamom plantations, pepper plantations, ginger, cinnamon, and bay leaves. They're directly grinded on the mill, so there are no artificial ingredients in between - we get 100% purity."
If you're used to getting your fix of Indian food in the form of a chicken tikka or korma takeaway, like Jack, you may be surprised when you visit Little Kochi to find the food defies your expectations. It's light and incorporates simple, wholesome ingredients, like vegetables and coconut-milk. Albin even estimates there are only five things on the menu that are not gluten free.
"South Indian food is very healthy," he says. "I'm really into my health and fitness, so I want to get that across to people as well. Because there is a bit of a stigma that Indian food in general is like takeaway food - it's not good for you, you should only eat it on a weekend or you shouldn't eat it on a diet. But I want to get across that the food is good for you - it's pure and you will feel great after it. To get more stories like this sent straight to your inbox every single day, you can sign up for our CardiffOnline newsletter here.
