The food served here is good”, “Please increase the quantity ” and “Kindly consider serving food at night also” are some of the remarks that find their way into the feedback notebook maintained by Coimbatore Corporation at the ‘Amma Canteen’ in Coimbatore Medical College Hospital.
And, the feedback has helped as the Coimbatore Corporation, at its recent council meeting, resolved to open one more low cost Amma eatery at the CMCH.
In the mornings, the existing eatery begins sale of tokens for idlis at 7.15 a.m. and all the 1,250 idlies are sold out by 8.45 a.m. It is the same with the 600 plates of curd rice and sambar rice sold for lunch. Tokens are sold from 12.15 p.m. to 1.30 p.m. Often people have to turn away disappointed and go to other eateries nearby that are much more expensive than it is at the Amma Canteen. The canteen staffs and hospital authorities say that even 2,500 idlis would easily sell out in the mornings.
Most of the visitors to the Amma Canteen in CMCH are attendants and patients. There are outsiders too who frequent the canteen. Staff recalls that the response for the canteen here was so overwhelming that the entrance facing Tiruchy Road had to be closed as the crowds affected movement of vehicles.
An additional canteen will help in avoiding long queues. Another requirement at the canteen is to have ramps for elderly to enter the canteen. Now they have to negotiate a few steps at present.
