Farm-to-Fork Sojourn

Red Hills in the Nilgiris offers a stunning, natural backdrop and a legacy of generational farming. Just a short distance from Ooty, this location is known for its serene beauty.

The farms of the Red Hills Estate have a long history lasting 140 years as a tea plantation, with Vishanth Kumar’s family cultivating the tea farmlands for over 80 years now. Each tea harvest of these farmlands is produced from genetically unique tea plants originally sown only by seed. Each tea plant is as old as the plantation, producing exceptional notes you cannot replicate as most brews are harvested from plants of tea clones.

Before Vishanth started maintaining their estate’s vegetable garden, now Kikui Farms, his mother tended to its roots, and before her, his grandmother had nursed its beds. As descendants of the Nilgiris’ local group of Badagas, having a “green thumb” has been passed down and cultivated within Vishanth’s family to maintain a unique culinary and cultural landscape of the Red Hills.

The family’s long history of food production has been said to be merely a byproduct of tending the soils of their land. The family continuously has worked the soil to nurture a healthy ecosystem, which, in turn, welcomes fertility, grows produce, and yields their esteemed tea and farm produce. Their family’s practices for production imitate their agricultural processes, with methods utilized enforcing a deeper connection to the soils and creating new forms of nourishment through fermentation.

Here, Vishanth and his family invite you to explore their organic farm, Kikui. Discover sustainable farming, delve into a true farm-to-table experience featuring super fresh farm produce and artisanal specialties. The farm's ecosystem and commitment to farm-to-fork principles are evident throughout your visit.

Vishanth's culinary skills, influenced by his global travels, are showcased in meals that combine woodfire cooking with fresh farm produce, offering a unique taste of world cuisine.

Photo courtesy: Kikui Farms