Revisiting Hotel Ponram, Dindigul After 4 Years – An Honest and Detailed Food Review

When a restaurant becomes a part of your travel memories, revisiting it after many years creates a sense of nostalgia mixed with curiosity. That’s exactly how our revisit to Hotel Ponram Food Square in Dindigul felt. Our previous visit, four years back, had left us with strong impressions — flavour-packed biriyani, refreshing ice creams, crowd-filled ambience and quick service even during peak season.

4 YEARS BACK PIC..

This time, our goal was simple:
Has Ponram maintained its standards in taste, service and quality?

✔ Ambience & Welcome

The restaurant felt familiar yet different. The special menu board at the entrance displayed the day’s mutton and chicken options. The spacious seating and calm atmosphere felt pleasant. On the table, a placemat displayed colourful photos of their popular dishes, something we didn’t remember from our last visit.

Even the plates looked different — previously deep and traditional, now wider and shallow. Small detail, but noticeable for someone revisiting after years.

✔ Throwback to Our Previous Visit

Four years ago, Ponram was buzzing with holiday crowds. They had separate AC and non-AC spaces, beautiful wall posters explaining the history of biriyani, and a variety-filled menu.
We tried the flavourful attukal soup loaded with pepper, garlic and cumin.
Their seeraga samba mutton biriyani had impressed us with its softness and spice balance.
We tried tawa fish fry wrapped in banana leaf which turned out disappointing with no flesh and only thick masala.
But the mutton boti omelette and curry leaf chicken were absolutely delicious.

The highlight was their ice cream parlor, offering rare flavours like gulkand, ginger, peppermint and American classic.
Their service back then was organised, friendly and quick.

✔ Food We Tried This Time

This visit, we chose to skip fish based on previous experience and tried something new — kudal egg fry.
The star of the show was again their mutton biriyani. The colour looked slightly lighter, but the flavour remained almost identical to the one we enjoyed years ago. The only difference was fewer mutton pieces compared to last time.

The kudal egg fry paired well with white rice and rasam, although the flavours did not linger like the dishes from our first visit.

We also ordered chapathi and chicken gravy. The chapathis were soft and fresh, but the gravy, though thick and well-cooked, tasted average.

✔ Service & Pricing

This was one area that showed a noticeable drop. Four years ago, the service impressed us despite heavy rush. This time, the staff felt less attentive and slower in serving dishes. Prices had increased slightly as expected.

✔ Ice Cream Corner – Still the Winner

One thing that remained unchanged was the quality of their ice creams.
We ordered the iconic peppermint ice cream, and it still tasted refreshing, cool and full of flavour.
The only change was that it was served in a cone instead of a cup.

✔ Final Verdict

Our first visit remains the best overall experience — in service, excitement and variety.
But Ponram’s biriyani and ice creams still hold their legacy and continue to be worth trying.

For anyone travelling through Dindigul, Ponram is still a good stop for biriyani lovers.