Dakshin - Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park

Dakshin is the regional South Indian fine-dining restaurant at the Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park, 132 TTK Road in Alwarpet, South-Central Chennai. It has long been regarded as one of the city's serious addresses for southern cooking, covering the cuisines of four states: Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The menu is organised by region rather than by course alone, which lets diners compare, for example, the pepper-heavy cooking of Chettinad with the coconut-based dishes of Kerala.

Signature dishes include Chettinad pepper chicken, Malabar fish curry, appam served with stew and Hyderabadi dum biryani. The kitchen leans on regional breads and rice preparations to accompany the curries, and a tasting-style approach is possible for visitors who want to sample several states in one sitting. The restaurant is in the hotel rather than on the street, so the setting is formal and calm compared with Chennai's tiffin shops.

The dining room is upscale and quiet, with attentive service, and smart casual dress is the sensible choice. Noise is low and the mood suits business meals, family occasions and visitors who want a more polished introduction to southern food. Service is in two sittings, approximately 12:30PM-3PM for lunch and 7PM-11:30PM for dinner. Reservations are recommended and can be made through the hotel restaurant desk or the Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park website; booking a day or two ahead is sensible, and further ahead for weekends and festival periods.

A meal costs about ₹2,500-5,000 per person (roughly $26-52 USD). Beverages follow the hotel's bar and soft-drink programme, with specific wine or cocktail pairings best checked directly with the restaurant. The Alwarpet location is close to Adyar and the TTK Road corridor.