Inherently South Indian Texan
Deepa Shridhar (she/her) is a chef, writer, podcaster and TV & Digital personality residing in Austin, Texas. She is the founder of Thali Omakase;
a private monthly dinner experience with a completely custom menu, complimentary beverage program, and playlist.
And runs Sicc Palette; a Substack that houses her podcast, newsletter and a variety of video content that focuses on personal narratives, the definitions of fine dining, immigrant, third culture cuisine and recipes flavored by her South Indian Texan perspective.
It all started with a supper club, beyonce, & rasam.
Thali Omakase’s origin story starts in 2019, with an industry supper club called Wine Wednesday, the spirit of which was all about creating the best menu based on what chefs get excited about: sourcing & on the fly decisions with slow cooking methods. The menu would change every week and was a creative collaboration between Deepa and some of the best chefs in Austin. It also featured a playlist that felt as curated as the menu.
She wanted to capture that dinner-party-meets-back-of-house-kitchen-energy in a supper club and her collaboration with Alex (Fromage For You) called Rasam & Cheese, yielded immense impact and possibility through rasam podi (spice mix). During this time, she realized an omakase experience is a perfect medium for creating this dinner.
She decided to focus exclusively on the incredibly niche yet accessible concept of Rasam & Cheese and what rasam is and could be, and with that profile, was able to give the omakase experience a clear backbone.
For that reason, Thali Omakase brings you South Indian Fine Dining and of course, gives you chance to party before & after dinner.
“It’s our connection with ourselves along with party goers that makes our method to fine dining singular in its South Indian Texan menu along with our style of hospitality; which we proudly exude as down home luxury.'“
- Chef Deepa
