Ponram, a restaurant founded in 1973 by Ponram Yadav, has launched a special dinner menu called Dindigul Nights. Mani Ram, the 27-year-old great-grandson of the founder, curated the menu. Each of the 10 dishes brings back memories of his childhood and family. Mani says, “I vividly remember accompanying my thatha to Natham, about 20 kilometres from Dindigul.” There, quarry workers ate poricha parotta from small eateries early in the morning. This local favorite is now part of the new menu. Mani explains, "In Dindigul, poricha parotta is shallow-fried, unlike in Virudhunagar where it is deep-fried." The menu highlights regional twists, like set parotta — parotta torn into chunks with meat and thin salna poured atop, unique to Dindigul. Seafood dishes include idiyappam with prawn sodhi and ilandosa with nethili karuvadu thokku. Meat lovers can enjoy kothu kari with mini poori or idli. Mani recalls his grandmother Jaya Ramachandran’s home cooking, maintaining mini-sized portions to recreate that experience. Special mention goes to karipaniyaaram, made carefully with black gram and fenugreek, stuffed with minced meat and served with a simple but flavorful chutney. Mani says, "We wanted to pass on that experience, so we retained the size." Dindigul Nights aims to highlight Dindigul’s culinary spirit beyond the famous biryani. Ponram is located in Ashok Nagar. Phone: 7824008301.