aka Om Routray
I don’t care what you call it. In different parts of the country, people call it by different names. The only name that’s correct is the one grandma used when she took the sputtering grains out of a sand filled earthen pot. That’s the origin story for me, it never came out of a packet. Ma would put the pot on fire with a little sand at the bottom and thrown in rice. We watched them puff and it was the best magic tricl for…Continue Reading “The thing about Mudhi”
Shahid Nagar, Bhubaneswar. In a market crowded with golgappas, chaats, rolls and roadside grilled sandwiches, I kept looking at this guy. During the half an hour I took to try everything else, he just stood there, arranging, rearranging stuff, I may have been the second guy in all that duration. Finally, gingerly, I approached. A plate came for 20 bucks. He made it with fingertip precision and it was tasteful. Should he do better? Ideally, yes. Do we generaly avoid food that’s healthy? Yes, nless…Continue Reading “Sprout chaat, Bhubaneswar”
Mutton Ghugni. Only a Bengali can come up with an idea like that. Take a simple veg dish and put some meat into it. I cursed my way to the stall as we turned the bend in the market number 1 in CR Park. The vegetarian one was for 20 bucks per plate, the meat one came for 30. How can he give mutton for 10 bucks? Must be beef, sorry, buff. Must be the sort of mutton that many unsuspecting foodies eat on the…Continue Reading “Mutton Ghugni, CR Park”
So, where do you get Swedish food in Delhi? Only at the Embassy, it seems. Fortunately, they mistook me for a food writer and invited me over to eat some. The chef was one with lethal humour and a beautiful Japanese knife – Nobel chef Mark Phoenix. He didn’t win the Nobel, he has been selected as a chef on the panel for Nobel Memorial Week. In between nuggets about Swedish food and life, he cooked a few simple dishes that hardly needed any cooking….Continue Reading “Lunch with Nobel chef Mark Phoenix at Swedish Embassy”
I have done my best to avoid public transport all my life. Too many people, too long queues, too much risk of claustrophobia, too much sweat, flesh and foul breath. But there are times when one needs to do the unthinkable – ride the metro. I had to, a couple of times few days back. I remember one morning – I had to take the early morning shuttle from Noida City Center to Sector 16. Thankfully, that day all token counters were operational, the token…Continue Reading “One morning on the metro”
I had never been there in my 14 years in Delhi. Something about the whole market screamed Hyped Hyped Hyped. And, I stayed clear. Then a few evenings back, I became larger than my small biases, overcame the ego that hissed in my ears that you are better than butter chicken craving dilliwallas. So, like any other dilli ka aam admi, I smiled at the reservation staff outside, made a sad face which begged for his kindness and got a table, not out of turn,…Continue Reading “Havemore, Pandara Road”
I am all for food styling, but style over substance? Just does not work. The latest drive to make things quirky is already showing in presentations across restaurants. Last evening, we were at the Artful Baker and tried a few things. The lemon cheesecake was brilliant – light, not too sweet and the cheesy in all the right ways. There was a layer of lemon curd on top which beautifully balanced the sweetness of the cake. Then, we had the lemon tart. The lemon curd…Continue Reading “The Artful Baker, Khan Market”
Akele hone ke vaham se Akele hone ki saccchai tak Yuhin beperwah zindagi se Laparwah ees lamhe tak Us waqt ke gumaan se Ees ghadi ki guroor tak Kabhi na kahi soch se Kabhi na sochi soch tak Kya jaane kya kya dhunda Kya jaane kyon kuch na paya Har dhaage ke ant tak dekha Har rekha ko padh ke dekha Maqsad aur matlab ke chasmon se dekha Taqdeer ko thoda suljha ke dekha Zindagi ko thoda uljha ke dekha Kya jaane kyon kuch na…Continue Reading “Dhool”
There is a kalibari temple in CR Park. I was there for the first time few days back, nothing surprising given my attitude towards temples. Nothing remarkable about the temple, apart from the massive grounds it sits on and the wonderful breeze that blows across. Hmmm…the halwa bhog that you get after the puja is awesome, for that I can go back. Anyway, the temple business apart, Durga puja is only less than a month away. These guys make the idols in the temple campus…Continue Reading “Goddess in the making”
That’s Japanese. Grilled food. Good to know Japanese learnt the use of fire. I was really getting tired of the sushis and sashimis. Anyway, Robatayaki originated in some fishing communities and was overwhelmingly about seafood. To my knowledge, in Delhi only places serve this – Akira Back and B Bar, Saket. B Bar just launched their Robatayaki menu with a fest that’s on till 30th September. Coming to the food, as is the case with such minimal cuisines, the meat is not marinated and is…Continue Reading “Robatayaki Festival, B Bar, Saket”
What do you expect when you order a chicken kali mirch? Something biting and spicy, no? What if it is mild, borderline sweet and the pepper is only a gentle, mischievous hint? This dish at Al Jawahar is one of my most favourite chicken dishes ever. It has tender meat, white gravy and none of the generic arrogance of a butter chicken. This dish is like that star performer who silently goes back to crease after scoring a century.
How do you look at food? Most kids these days see it as something that’s ordered from a restaurant. Having been raised in a village by grandparents with agricultural land, we were taken to the fields, made to dig out potatoes, smell fresh moong and bite a chunk of raw cauliflower. We were taught which vegetable is good when soft and which one is past its prime. On the weekly haats, I remember pointing fingers and asking what every one of these sacks contained. A…Continue Reading “Where does food come from?”
Doubt is a good thing. Sometime back, we had agreed that jealousy is a good thing. No going back on that now. Doubt looks like a rabid dog standing next to jealousy, which can be a troublesome cat at best. But trust me, it’s a good thing. Imagine the ancient man. His friend fell in love with his wife, wanted to get him out of the way. The friend called him into a dark cave one evening, not that they had not done it before,…Continue Reading “Doubt is a good thing”
Since childhood, we are raised on a certain set of ideas. Most of the parents insist on a product that passes the social test, some try to create a unique brand of ‘be yourselves.’ The parents love it, the kids boast of it, the brands pick up the idea and create amazing campaigns around it. Some thousand years of evolution based on sheep behavior combined with individuality that could not be suppressed is suddenly pulled by the nose with a “Be yourself.’ Now, be yourself…Continue Reading “Be yourself. May be, not!”
Dear Pranab dada, Sad to hear that dadi passed away. I had no knowledge of the same. By the time I knew, it was too late. Yesterday, I was right across the road from you at Maurya hotel. You may not have seen me, I didn’t see you either. But I saw your cavalcade, as impressive as any I have seen. That massive SUV with jammers in the front is my favorite. Anyway, I am digressing. If I knew about your tragedy, I won’t have…Continue Reading “Open Letter to Pranab Da”
Yeh seher Kiska hai Kuch raaston pe teri yaad beechi hai Kuch asmanon pe mera naam likha hai Kahin tera naam liya tha Kahin gusse main Yun hi tera haath choda tha Yeh seher Kiska hai Kuch ped jinke saye main khade the Kat Gaye hai Kuch dukanon pe jahan chai Ki chuski li thi Band ho chuke hai Ees badle maanchitra main kitna hamara tha Kitna mera hai Aur kitna hai tera Seher ke kone main woh chidiaghar yaad hoga tumko Woh mota aalsi…Continue Reading “Yeh seher kiska hai”
Now, this is an urgent post. Because, they will stop selling Khajla after Eid. I don’t like it with milk the way people from Old Delhi do. This is no cereal. The khajla from here are made in desi ghee, smell brilliant and are slightly expensive at 480 rupees per kilo. You can buy whole round disc ones or these chips type broken fragments. But you will have to hurry.
We don’t live in Delhi. The city is too big and heterogenous. We all live in little pockets of Delhi and navigate the city via narrow corridors. Coming to the point of the post, how many of you have been to Shadi Khampur? Why would you be, really? I had not been there, I dreaded going there. Less than seven kilometers from Connaught Place, it is the kind of working class neighbourhood that one works all his life to get out of. So, why get…Continue Reading “Studio Safdar – the adda, theater, cultural space”
This is one of the strongest recommendations that I have made in a long time. I am not usually the order in types. No matter what the situation is, I believe either it is eating out or home cooked food. Anyway, I wanted to try this place so bad that I ordered in. The best thing about the place is they have starters, meals in bowls, Thai, Chinese and what not…all at affordable bachelors can eat on most days price range. Before I come to…Continue Reading “Happy Hakka, Lajpat Nagar 1”