Coastal Karnataka: A Journey through Scenic Splendor and Cuisine along the Arabian Sea Coast
This is something about my long-awaited tour of Coastal Karnataka. It's all about the Arabian Sea and the people whose livelihoods depend on it, their culture, and their food. I planned this tour with my family and relatives. Despite comfortable means of transportation like flights and trains, I wanted a road trip to coastal Karnataka from Bangalore, as crossing the Western Ghats by road itself would be an adventurous experience.
It was a long weekend. We started from Bangalore at 9 o'clock. After navigating through terrible traffic, we finally made it out of Bangalore and found an opportunity to have a delicious South Indian breakfast at Sambrama on the Bangalore-Mangalore highway. Though it has a large seating area, it was not enough to accommodate the crowd. We planned to have our lunch at the Empire restaurant at the Hassan toll gate, which was about 130 km from Sambrama. We had a great lunch experience at that restaurant during our journey to Chikmagalur. This time was no different. The staff who took our orders were very accommodating.
As our driver knew that some construction work was going on on the Bangalore-Mangalore highway near Mangalore, he took the Belur road after Hassan. Once we passed Belur, the Western Ghat range started appearing, and we began enjoying the green serenity of the Western Ghats. We had our evening tea on the way at the Nisarga Grand restaurant, located amidst the forest and surrounded by a mountain range. It was an incredible experience that is probably difficult to explain in words. It was just dusk. Once we came out of the car, we realized the need for warm clothes. The back side of the restaurant was a ravine, and the mountain stood just beside the ravine. The tea was good at the restaurant, but I would say the snacks were just average.
We reached Mangalore after 10 pm. I realized while returning from Mangalore via the Bangalore-Mangalore highway through Sakleshpur that if the driver hadn't taken the road via Belur, I couldn't have experienced the adventure of crossing the Western Ghats. We reached late, but the journey was full of exhilaration.
We went for dinner at Udupi Cafe before checking into the hotel, but due to the long waiting time, we had to leave. We had our dinner at a nicely decorated restaurant called Punjabi Dhaba, which served quality food. My son was very hungry, so I requested them to serve his food quickly. I should say the service was also good. We were the last customers at the restaurant. After dinner, we checked into the hotel, which was around 10 km from the Kerala border.
The view of the sunrise from the green grassland with occasional coconut trees from the hotel room's window was so quiet and tranquil. We had planned a trip to Udupi that day, so we started getting ready after having a cup of tea and enjoying the sunrise. After a heavy complimentary breakfast, we left for Udupi.
We passed Mangalore shipyard and the NIT Surathkal campus on the way to Malpe Beach in Udupi. After getting out of the car, I went down memory lane as I witnessed the stunning blue water of the Arabian Sea after 22 years. My grandma was alive back then, and she was unable to drag me out of the beach despite her several attempts. After spending some time at Malpe Beach, we headed towards our next destination, St. Mary's Island, an island in the Arabian Sea full of geological treasures.
The island is around 6 km away from the coast. There is a ferry service from 9 AM to 5 PM every day except during the rainy season, i.e., from June to September. The ferry ride costs Rs 300 per person.
It was a 20-minute ferry ride to the island with geological wonders. As we approached the shore, we saw a white sandy beach in a blue sea with wind-swept coconut trees. We started walking towards the northern point of the island. We sat on a bench under a coconut tree for some time to enjoy the sea breeze in the tranquil nature. The island is free from the hustle and bustle like other tourist places as there are no shops, no buildings, and very few tourists. Though the island was the perfect place to enjoy the serene nature in solitude, we couldn't fully appreciate the solitude as we were busy sharing our feelings after stepping onto this untouched island.
We reached the northern point. When I wanted to take off my shoes to walk on the beach, I noticed there was no sand, only a surface full of sea shells. We finally saw the main attraction of the island, huge basaltic columnar rocks formed from a volcanic eruption when Madagascar separated from India 88 million years ago. The lava formed multi-sided pillars 15-20 feet high. The structure found in Madagascar resembles these basaltic rocks. This island is called the piece of Madagascar in India.
After taking some snaps of the laminar lava and some of ourselves with the sea and the laminar lava rocks in the background, we returned to the shore where we had gotten off the ferry. We then came back to the coast.
We thought of going to our next destination, Mattu Beach, via a road with the sea on one side and backwater on the other side. The locality is a fisherman's colony. It is a secluded beach with very few tourists sitting on the sand to watch the sunset over the beautiful landscape. Fishermen were busy collecting fish from their nets at the end of the day after docking their boats on the shore. These fish are the only reward they get for maintaining their livelihood at the cost of ignoring the life threats in the deep sea.
It was sunset time, and we were very hungry as we hadn't had lunch. We stopped at a small restaurant run by one of the Tulu fisherman's families. I ordered snacks for everyone, but for myself, I ordered Tulu-style Bangude (Mackerel) fry. After placing the order, I went to the beach to take some photos to capture the mesmerizing beauty of the beach and the locality. Once my fish was ready, the sun was setting, and I enjoyed the view through the leaves of the coconut tree with the fresh, delicious Bangude fry.
After having evening tea at the restaurant, we all spent some time on the beach, enjoying conversations about the tranquil beach and the lives of the local people. We then headed towards Kapu Beach. We reached the beach when it was completely dark. We went near the lighthouse but did not ascend it. While returning to the car from the beach, we enjoyed having local Matka soda served with green chili in a clay pot.
We returned to the hotel in Mangalore around 8:30 PM. We had our dinner. Though my husband was not willing to go back to Bangalore the next morning, he returned by flight from Mangalore airport. According to his description, the route to the airport and the surrounding scenic view from the airport are ineffable.
The third day's itinerary mainly included experiencing Mangalorean food and a city tour. The city tour included Sultan Battery, Sasihitlu Beach, and Our Lady of Rosary Cathedral.
We started our third day in Mangalore with breakfast of Mangalore buns at New Tajmahal Cafe. It was the first time I tried Mangalore buns, and they were so soft with a savory taste. The combination of Mangalore buns with coconut chutney was excellent. We placed the same order again and had more buns with a cup of tea. Later on, we tried Mangalore buns in Malleswaram, a neighborhood in Bangalore, but we were disappointed as we had expected the same taste as at New Tajmahal Cafe in Mangalore.
Our first destination was the historical monument in Mangalore, Sultan Battery. It is a watchtower built by Tipu Sultan in 1784. This watchtower with cannon mounts was built on the bank of the Gurupura River to obstruct British invasion through the sea at Mangalore, a major route of invasion. We climbed the tower and had a panoramic view of the nature and the local fishing village with many fishing boats on the opposite side of the river. There is a jetty adjacent to the tower where a ferry service takes people to Tannir Bhavi Beach. Instead of taking the boat ride, we decided to explore Mangalorean food at Giri Manjas.
Giri Manjas is an authentic seafood restaurant that has been around for over 40 years. The restaurant is simple, not a fine dining establishment. It is located in a by-lane off the main road, which is very narrow and makes finding parking difficult. However, all the inconveniences are overlooked when a fish lover enters this fish paradise.
Entering the restaurant felt like entering a house. Since it was a weekend, it was very crowded, and the waiting time was long, but the ambiance was amazing. The restaurant attracts food lovers from all age groups. It was nice to see three generations of a family enjoying lunch together on a Sunday noon. We ordered a fish thali with Anjal Tawa fry, prawn ghee roast, and Kokum rasam. The food was super delicious, especially the prawn ghee roast, and reasonably priced.
After lunch, we headed to Sasihitlu Beach, which took almost an hour to reach. The beach is a confluence of two rivers, the Sambhavi and Nandini, with the Arabian Sea. It is located in Sasihitlu village. The last half-hour journey to the beach through the village was remarkable, full of greenery and lakes. Once we reached the beach, we were spellbound by the breathtaking view of the vast beach with blue-green shades of water and the meeting point of the two rivers. The beach is surrounded by dense forest and was untouched by the human crowd, at least when we arrived. We hardly saw any tourists on the beach. Only a lady was selling fresh kokum juice and chaat from a temporary stall. I was very excited to get fresh kokum juice after such a big lunch. No other food stalls were available except a boiled corn seller with a wheelbarrow.
We walked on the white sand beach for about an hour, each of us enjoying in our own way. We spotted cranes and birds of different varieties. Suddenly, a group of surfers arrived, and a coach was giving surfing training. We talked to one of the guys from the group and learned that this beach is known as a surfers' paradise. In the evening, tourist buses started arriving, and we began walking back to our vehicle, packing up all the memories of this heavenly beach near Mangalore.
On our way back from the beach, we noticed a temple and decided to visit it as it looked unique. It was the Bhagavathi Temple dedicated to the goddess Bhagavathi. The garbha griha of the temple was surrounded by sand all around. Some of us took darshan and bought laddu prasad from the temple.
Returning to Mangalore, we reached our last destination, Our Lady of Rosary Cathedral. It was dark, and the church was closed. It is the first Roman Catholic Church in coastal Karnataka. We took some photos from outside and returned to the hotel. We had an early dinner and went to bed as the next day we had to leave beautiful coastal Karnataka and return to the hustle and bustle of city life.
The next morning, we bid adieu to the Arabian Sea at Ullal Beach. Though the road was rough due to ongoing construction, we took NH75 Bangalore-Mangalore Highway via Sakleshpur.
We stopped at a waterfall in Sakleshpur and enjoyed some pomelo fruit. We had our lunch also at a restaurant surrounded by coffee plantations in Sakleshpur. We had our evening tea near Bangalore and reached home around 8 PM.
As we departed, we carried with us not just souvenirs, but a renewed appreciation for the region's rich culture and natural wonders. Until we return again, the allure of coastal Karnataka will linger in our hearts, calling us back to its shores