Ananda Bhavan Vegetarian

Ananda Bhavan Vegetarian, more than a century old, was founded in 1924 by Kulanthaivelu Muthuswamy Kaunder. The oldest surviving Indian vegetarian restaurant has been introducing innovations in its service processes and traditional dishes.  It is also involved in social philanthropy. 

Initially located in the Ellison building at 221 Selegie Road, under the name Ananda Bhavan, it opened a branch at 58 Serangoon Road in 1996. It is considered one of the first Indian restaurants in the 1990s to introduce self-service. It is also credited as the first restaurant to print receipts in Tamil and to introduce a back-office computer system in the Tamil language. The restaurants expanded to seven locations across the island but had to close the Ellison building restaurant in 2018 due to the government's redevelopment plans. The Syed Alwi Road Branch and Changi Airport Branch are open 24 hours a day. The Changi outlet features Asia's first real-time digital menu boards and tables with RFID technology.

Ananda Bhavan serves innovative vegetarian dishes that combine South Indian, North Indian, and Chinese cuisines. Its menu includes hundreds of dishes that are vegan and Jain-friendly. While reviving and popularising traditional dishes such as millet soup, the restaurant also offers new creations such as the ‘Idly Burger.' It also has a policy of not reusing oil and not adding artificial flavours.

After the demise of the founder, the restaurant was run by his sons, M K Ramachandra and M K Natarajan. Following Ramachandra's passing, his son Viren Ettikan has been the Chief Executive Officer of Ananda Bhavan since 2011. In memory of Ramachandra, the restaurant established the M K Ramachandra Book Prize in 2010, in collaboration with the Association of Singapore Tamil Writers, which is presented annually.

Ananda Bhavan entered the Singapore Book of Records in 2017 by producing the largest murukku in Singapore. It demonstrated its philanthropic spirit during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 by donating 4,000 snack packs, including murukku, to foreign workers staying at the Singapore Expo Hall. Constantly adapting to changing times, Ananda Bhavan introduced robots to serve customers in 2021.



For more information
“Ananda Bhavan,” RootsSG. Accessed on 1 August 2025. https://www.roots.gov.sg/places/places-landing/Places/landmarks/little-india-heritage-trail-shop-till-you-drop/Ananda-Bhavan
“Celebrating 100 Years Of Ananda Bhavan”. Ananda Bhavan. Accessed on 1 August 2025. https://www.anandabhavan.com/history
Tan, Denise. “100-year-old Indian vegetarian restaurant Ananda Bhavan’s unique thosai and hearty banana leaf meal,” CNA, 2 May 2025. https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/dining/ananda-bhavan-indian-vegetarian-restaurant-singapore-389326
“Makan Kakis: Heritage Food Edition,” Mediacorp, 2024. https://www.mewatch.sg/show/Makan-Kakis-Heritage-Food-Edition-446640
“Largest Murukku”. Singapore Book of Records. Accessed on 1 August 2025. https://singaporerecords.com/largest-murukku/

தமிழில் வாசிக்க

Return to home page

About the Encyclopedia

The information in this article is valid as of August 2025 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. If you have any feedback on this article, please submit here.