More than a restaurant
Mahabelly began as a craving for home and grew into a mission to give Kerala cuisine the larger stage it deserves.
Some ideas do not begin as business plans. They begin as cravings.
For Mahabelly, the journey began with a feeling every Malayali living away from home knows well: missing appam and stew, fish curry and red rice, the crackle of curry leaves in coconut oil, and food that can take you home with a single bite.
Founded in Delhi in 2015 by childhood friends Zachariah Jacob, Thomas Fenn and Dr Prem Kiran, Mahabelly grew from a college dream into a larger purpose: to give Kerala’s cuisine and culture the stage they deserve. Beyond dosa, idli and sambar lies a rich culinary world shaped by the coast, Syrian Christian homes, Malabar’s Mappila kitchens, temple traditions, toddy shops, festive Sadhyas and Kerala’s long relationship with the Gulf.
The first Mahabelly outlet was inaugurated by Dr Shashi Tharoor in 2015. Nearly a decade later, in 2024, he returned to relaunch Mahabelly in Saket. It was a meaningful full circle moment that reflected how far the brand had come and marked the beginning of a new chapter.
Today, Zachariah runs Mahabelly with his family and a team of around 160 people. The mission is bigger than running restaurants. It is about celebrating Kerala through food, festivals, stories, experiences and community. It is also about creating opportunities for the people building Mahabelly and sharing the warmth and depth of Kerala’s culture with people from every background.
For Malayalis, Mahabelly is a taste of home. For those discovering Kerala for the first time, it is an invitation to pull up a chair and explore, one honest and generous meal at a time.
One story, many milestones
2006
A craving for home
School friends Zachariah Jacob and Thomas Fenn move from Kerala to Delhi to study at St. Stephen’s College. Like most Malayalis living away from home, they soon begin missing the food they grew up eating. During college, they often joke that if their careers do not work out, they can always open a small “Mallu dhaba” outside the campus. Thankfully, neither of them drops out. The idea, however, stays with them.
2014
The old idea returns
By 2014, Zachariah was practising law in Delhi, while Thomas was leading a children’s museum in Gurgaon. During one of their usual catch ups, the old college idea comes up again. Delhi still does not have enough places serving the Kerala food they miss. What began as a joke slowly starts sounding like something worth attempting. Eventually, they decide to take the plunge.
2015
Mahabelly is born
After months of searching, they finally find a space behind DLF Place Mall in Saket, tucked away in a back alley. Their school friend Dr Prem Kiran joins them on the journey. None of the three has any formal restaurant experience. What they do have is a deep love for Kerala food, plenty of determination and the support of friends and family. Mahabelly opens with a simple belief: Kerala’s cuisine and culture deserve a much larger stage. Dr Shashi Tharoor launched the first outlet on 23 March 2015. His tweet about Mahabelly travels quickly, and before long, the little restaurant hidden behind the mall becomes the talk of the town.
2016 – 2019
Word begins to travel
Customers return with their friends and families. More Malayalis discover a familiar taste of home, while many others experience Kerala food for the first time. A Gurgaon kitchen follows, helping Mahabelly reach more homes and more tables. Slowly, the college dream begins to grow into a real brand.
2020
The year everything stopped
When the pandemic arrives, the restaurant business comes to an almost complete standstill. It became one of the most difficult periods in Mahabelly’s journey. Customers and the wider community stand by the brand, particularly through deliveries. With their support and the commitment of the team, Mahabelly makes it through. It is support that Mahabelly has never forgotten.
2023
A new community
Mahabelly opens at O.P. Jindal Global University in Sonipat. It is the brand’s first campus outlet and an opportunity to serve a completely new audience. The team also introduces a menu inspired by Kerala’s deep connection with the Gulf, featuring favourites such as Al Faham, Shawaya and Shawarma. The response is immediate, and the menu soon becomes a favourite within the Jindal community.
2024
Our craziest year yet
Mahabelly opens four new locations and also says goodbye to Mahabelly GK2. It is a year filled with excitement, difficult decisions and constant learning. Sleep is in short supply. In other words, it is a fairly typical year in the restaurant business, only much busier.
October 2024
Mahabelly Canteen and the base kitchen
Mahabelly Canteen launches as a younger and more casual expression of the brand. Its menu brings together comforting Kerala meals and Kerala’s much loved versions of Gulf favourites. Mahabelly also opened a base kitchen and central store in Lado Sarai. This helps the team improve food production, consistency and standardisation as the business grows.
December 2024
Back where it all began
Mahabelly Saket moves from its original back alley location into a new home inside DLF Avenue Mall. Nearly ten years after launching the first outlet, Dr Shashi Tharoor returns to inaugurate Mahabelly Saket once again. It is an emotional full circle moment and a reminder of how far the journey has come.
2025
Canteen comes to Vasant Kunj
Mahabelly Canteen opens inside The Kunj Mall in Vasant Kunj, bringing its everyday Kerala format to another neighbourhood and a new community.
Today
One story, many tables
Today, Mahabelly is run by Zachariah Jacob and his family, including Yacoob Jacob, Jacob Kelachadra and Sarah Mohan. Together, they oversee a growing family of restaurants and kitchens across Saket, Saidulajab, Vasant Kunj, Lado Sarai, Gurgaon and Sonipat. But the number Mahabelly is proudest of is not the number of outlets. It is the family of around 160 people who cook, serve, manage, deliver and carry this story forward every day.
Zachariah Jacob · Thomas Fenn · Dr Prem Kiran
Mahabelly was founded in Delhi in 2015 by three childhood friends who shared a love for Kerala food and a belief that its story deserved a larger stage. Today the brand is run by Zachariah Jacob and his family — Yacoob Jacob, Jacob Kelachadra and Sarah Mohan — who continue to carry its original purpose forward: to serve Kerala with honesty, warmth and soul.
To make Kerala cuisine better understood, and more widely celebrated — beyond the familiar shorthand of ‘South Indian food’.
The people behind the plates
Mahabelly is built by chefs, servers, stewards, managers and delivery teams whose care is felt in every meal.
The founders
Zachariah Jacob, Thomas Fenn and Dr Prem Kiran — three friends from Kerala who turned a craving for home into a restaurant brand.
Present stewardship
Mahabelly is now run by Zachariah Jacob and his family, supported by a growing team across every kitchen and outlet.
The Mahabelly family
Around 160 people cook, serve, manage, deliver and carry the story forward every day, many of whom have grown with the brand, from steward to captain, from cook to kitchen leader.
≈ 160
One Mahabelly family.
Around 160 people cook, serve, manage, deliver and carry the story forward every day — many of whom have grown with the brand, from steward to captain, from cook to kitchen leader.
