Satya South Indian Restaurant and Chai Lounge

17 Great North Road (Restaurant); 515 Sandringham Road (Restaurant and Chai Lounge); 57 Mt Eden Road (Restaurant); 271 Karangahape Road (Chai Lounge)

Swamy and Padmaja Akuthota opened the first Satya on Hobson Street in 1999 as a means of survival. Having moved to New Zealand three years earlier, they had no hospitality experience but were well known as good cooks in the Indian community here.

“It was your typical migrant story,” explains son Sammy Akuthota, who now runs the handful of Satya restaurants scattered across Auckland’s central suburbs. “Dad was in a really highly speciaised engineering job and there were none available in that field for him here, so they decided to open a restaurant.”

As word spread – and to combat a demolition clause – Swamy and Padmaja opened additional Satya restaurants in Sandringham, Grafton, Ponsonby and eventually Mt Eden

(the latter has now changed hands). In 2016, while his parents were away, Sammy cheekily opened Satya Chai Lounge Sandringham on a shoestring budget in the space behind his parents’ Sandringham Road restaurant; a second Chai Lounge is now open on Karangahape Road. The Satya family has never been thriving more.

True to the Akuthota family’s South Indian heritage (Sammy, his younger brother and both parents were all born in the southeastern Indian province of Andhra Pradesh), Satya serves South Indian food in a variety of styles. The restaurant specialises in dishes traditionally eaten in the morning, including its famous masala dosa, as well as a range of curries, parathas and condiments, from coconut chutney to cooling raitha.

Although carnivores will love the array of chicken, lamb, goat and seafood options, Satya is also one of the best places in Auckland for a vegetarian or vegan feed that doesn’t feel like a compromise.

Additionally, Satya is known for its Indian street food. From yoghurt-and-tamarinddolloped samosas to vanishingly crisp onion bhaaji, Satya offers plenty of snacks perfect for sharing over drinks. But Sammy admits it’s the dahi puri that steal the show. “Almost every single table orders it – we reckon we’ve sold over four million pieces in total,” he says.

It’s a busy job with long hours, but even after two decades in business, Sammy sees great value in sharing his family’s food traditions with multicutural Auckland.

“Indian food just has infinite flavour combinations, and it varies so much from region to region,” he explains. “The contrasting flavours and textures you get are just phenomenal – everything from creamy mild dishes to really spicy, high acid, high heat kind of food. It excites me that you can aways keep discovering more about Indian cuisine.”

What’s special about being able to serve the South Indian cuisine he grew up with to Aucklanders from all backgrounds? “That’s easy,” says Sammy. “It’s about creating that sense of community brought together through flavours at the dining table.” satya.co.nz