From yesteryears, Kozhikode (in local parlance) or Qaliqut (by the Arabs) or Calicut (anglicized) or Kulifo (Chinese version), otherwise known as the City of Spices, the City of Truth and City of Sculptures, Kozhikode was a melting pot of all cultures and cuisine. The historical coastal city of Kozhikode, the
epi-centre of Malabar, were visited by the Portuguese explorer Vasco Da Gama, the Arabs, the French, the Dutch, Romans, Chinese, Jews and the British, under whom Kozhikode became the Capital of erstwhile Malabar. The Malabar cuisine is an amalgamation of these various cultures.