Now Open: Woman-Owned Madurai Kitchen & Bar Brings South Indian Cuisine to Glenview

Madurai Kitchen, the family-run South Indian restaurant brand with a location in Warrenville, is bringing its concept to Chicago’s North Shore. Opening on Tuesday, June 23 at Glen Town Center, Madurai Kitchen & Bar (1831 Tower Dr, Glenview, IL 60026) introduces the brand’s first full-service, bar-forward restaurant featuring signature cocktails, regional South Indian specialties and family recipes dating back nearly fifty years.

Founded in 2022 by husband-and-wife team Hemalatha Ravishankar and Karthikeyan Srirangarajan, Madurai Kitchen was created to bring the home-style flavors of Madurai, one of South India’s culinary capitals, to American diners exactly as they grew up eating them.

Family Recipes from Madurai

At the heart of Madurai Kitchen is the cooking of Hemalatha Ravishankar’s mother, Revathi Ravishankar, whose family recipes date back to 1975. Built on traditional South Indian techniques and spice blends, the menu reflects the flavors Hemalatha and co-founder Karthikeyan Srirangarajan grew up eating in Madurai, Tamil Nadu.

To preserve that consistency across locations, Madurai Kitchen produces its proprietary masalas through a dedicated facility in Chennai, where spice blends are ground and prepared specifically for the restaurant’s recipes before being shipped to the United States.

While North Indian cuisine has long dominated Indian restaurant menus in the United States, Madurai Kitchen focuses specifically on the spice-driven dishes and layered flavors of South India.

“Madurai Kitchen was never just about opening restaurants,” said Hemalatha Ravishankar, co-founder and President & CEO. “It was about bringing a piece of home and our family’s roots from Madurai to the community. What means the most to us is when customers say the food and the experience feel like home.”

A Menu Rooted in South India

The Glenview location marks an evolution for Madurai Kitchen. While the brand’s Arlington Heights and Warrenville restaurants introduced suburban diners to the spice-driven flavors of South Indian cuisine, the Glen Town Center opening is designed as a more immersive full-service dining and bar experience suited to date nights, celebrations and group gatherings while staying true to the authentic cooking that built the brand’s following.

The menu spans the breadth of South Indian cuisine, featuring regional specialties still rarely found in the Chicago suburbs. Signature dishes include:

• Parotta Chicken Salana: flaky South Indian parotta served with pepper chicken, street-style curry and coconut rice ($22)
• Eggplant Kara Kuzhambu: eggplant simmered in a tangy tamarind gravy, served with rice and papad ($17)
• Chettinad Chicken: chicken prepared in an aromatic Chettinad-style gravy with coconut rice and parotta ($20)
• Madurai Kitchen Special Fish Curry: pompano fish in a traditional South Indian curry, served with idiyappam rice noodles ($22)
• MK Special Goat Thokku Biryani: seeraga samba rice cooked with goat, herbs, spices, coconut milk and ghee, served with raita ($25)
• Masala Dosa: crisp fermented rice-and-lentil crepe filled with spiced potatoes and served with traditional accompaniments ($20)

The menu also features a wide selection of dosas, biryanis, kebabs, South Indian curries, seafood specialties and regional breads, alongside a dedicated children's menu. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options are available throughout the menu.

A Cocktail Program Rooted in South Indian Flavors

Madurai Kitchen & Bar’s debut as a full-service concept also introduces the brand’s first dedicated cocktail program, built around many of the same ingredients and spice profiles found throughout the kitchen. Curry leaves, cardamom, ginger, mango, jalapeño and rose water appear throughout the beverage menu in cocktails designed to complement the flavors of South Indian cuisine.

Highlights include the Curry Leaf Martini with vodka, curry leaves and dry vermouth; the Maharaja Old Fashioned with Indian spices, cinnamon and blended scotch; and the Blushing Lotus with gin, watermelon, lemon and rose water.

The beverage program also features Indian beers including Kingfisher and Taj Mahal, alongside a curated selection of wines, whiskey and spirits.

A daily happy hour will run from 3 to 5 p.m., featuring twenty percent off select cocktails and starters along with rotating BOGO offerings.

The Founders Behind Madurai Kitchen

Born and raised in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, co-founders Hemalatha Ravishankar and Karthikeyan Srirangarajan launched Madurai Kitchen in 2022 with the goal of bringing the regional flavors of South India to suburban Chicago without compromise.

What began in Arlington Heights quickly developed a following for its home-style cooking, house-ground masalas and hospitality-driven approach. The Glenview opening pairs traditional South Indian cuisine with a more elevated full-service dining and cocktail experience.

“The food we serve is the food we grew up with; the masalas, the spice work and the techniques that make South Indian cooking so distinctive,” said Karthikeyan Srirangarajan, co-founder and Chief of Strategy & Finance. “With Glenview, we wanted to create a larger, more immersive experience around that cuisine while still staying true to the recipes and flavors at the heart of Madurai Kitchen.”

The Space

Designed as both a neighborhood gathering place and destination dining experience, Madurai Kitchen & Bar blends warm textures, color and contemporary design influences inspired by South India.

The restaurant features a main dining room anchored by orange banquettes, alongside a lounge area centered around a full-service bar and oversized statement LED Wall. A seasonal sidewalk café will offer additional outdoor seating during warmer months.

The restaurant will be open daily for lunch (11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.) and dinner (5 to 10 p.m.) with happy hour from 3 to 5 p.m.