I can eat anywhere. Not anything. But anywhere is ok. So long as the food on the plate is good, I don’t care where I am standing. So, when I came across this thelawala with a small mob around it, I could not stop myself. It’s a simple thela, no names, no branding. You need to know who he is and that confidence generally comes with good food. Now, the thela serves a very different chole. It’s watery, sweet, sour and spicy at the same…Continue Reading “Awesome Nameless Cholewala, Johri Bazar, Jaipur”
Chanakyapuri is one part of the city that I have not really explored. I have been to the bhawans, written about the Tamilnadu House Canteen but one really needs to know where to go in Chanakyapuri. Not everyone loves to go to the Bhawans, there are no food courts, outlets at Yashwant Singh Place are as expensive as sit down restaurants in other areas and the restaurants here can bankrupt you. Recently, my wife took me to this lovely café close to her office. The…Continue Reading “It’s 9, Yashwant Place, Chanakyapuri”
Pedigree is a good thing. Combined with good branding, it’s recipe for success in the food business. So, when a moderately priced chain was opened by the promoters of Mamagoto, my ears were perked. Especially, when it has a name that seems to have been advised by an expensive ad agency – Speedy Chow. I am little circumspect about trying new places. For health, financial and all other possible practical considerations, I, somehow, have come to believe that I have a finite number of dining…Continue Reading “Speedy Chow, Vasant Vihar”
Old Delhi is filled with innumerable little gems. Probably why, no matter how much you want, as a food writer you can’t escape this part of the city. Now, Durga Sweets Corner is such outlet. It has all the qualities one looks for in a classic food outlet: age, quality and character. The outlet is actually two. Two stores on opposite sides of the road in Suiwallan, in Old Delhi. Literally, Suiwallan means the needle maker. The market, today, is choc-a-bloc with clothes stores and…Continue Reading “Durga Sweets Corner, Daryaganj, Old Delhi”
I was invited for a dinner. So, let me get a few things out of the way at the very beginning? Did I pay for the food: No Is this a paid review: No Was there any hidden understanding: No I have previously written about how bloggers do operate under food for work programme, but that does not extend to paid reviews. I am also known to overwhelmingly indulge in south Indian food, (Neivedyam, Tamilnadu House Canteen) So, that’s a known Achilles’ Heel. So, it…Continue Reading “Kausstubh Restaurant, Saket – Fearlessly authentic South Indian food”
What do you eat when you are in office? I have always been interested in office lunches. In fact, a couple of months back I planned on doing a series on food around office areas. Shankar road in Connaught Place, Nehru Place (I did one on rajma chawal there), a few sectors in Noida,Okhla (that horrible place), Saket court area etc. Gurgaon does not have the street vendor culture or I know nothing about it. Anyway, after having put it on ice for a long…Continue Reading “Office ke neeche kya hai”
This was probably that first restaurant in Delhi that I fell so much in love with, around a decade back, and continue to be till this day. Both the outlets have not changed in any aspect whatsoever over the years, but they are still awesome. Naivedyam at Hauz Khas Village is the more famous of the outlets, the one at Kalkaji being a lesser cousin. I have never been to the one in Gurgaon, wherever that is. Anyway, apart from décor, almost everything else is…Continue Reading “Naivedyam, Hauz Khas Village & Kalkaji”
Everyone has a golgappa favourite. From Malviya Nagar, CR Park, Kamla Nagar Market to Gole Market Bengali Market, every foodie knows of some well known or little known guy who has awesome paani or some innovative filling. Frankly, finding the best golgappa guy is like chasing the Bigfoot. Not that I have any less interest in golgappas, just that I don’t try to rank them anymore. This changed a few days back when a friend took me to this forgotten corner of Noida in Sector…Continue Reading “Maa Vaishno Chaat Bhandar, Sector 26, Noida”
When I wrote about Moti Mahal, I knew there is just one other restaurant in Delhi that could exceed it in fame, fan following and legend. There is no foodie in Delhi who has not been there, taken photos to prove his credibility or written about it. The restaurant is an icon and I have been going there since the days I used to be a vegetarian. Yes, that is the amount of craze that the place has. Two vegetarians can make the hard trip,…Continue Reading “Karim’s Hotel – Jama Masjid”
Times have changed. A decade back, when I was studying in North Campus, there were not many fancy restaurants around. Make that any. Zee restaurant in Vijay Nagar was everybody’s favorite hangout. Even the restaurant was not at all expensive, it was a treat that we could afford only once in two weeks or so. On most days, we will pile up on rickshaws and make the trip to Majnu Ka Tila. There used to be a Rosy Restaurant and a Wangden House that we…Continue Reading “Indus Flavour – Delhi University, North Campus”
When it comes to restaurants, I, generally, try not to go overboard. Same way, that a bad experience does not motivate me to trash the place. It is good to be moderate and rational about experiences. But I am a human after all and it is natural to go overboard at times. Especially, given how badly those interested in the arts and crafts have been fed in Delhi. Triveni Kala Sangam canteen or the Mandi House chinese truck, a roadside burger patties guy – there…Continue Reading “Café Lota – National Crafts Museum, Pragati Maidan”
Food is a great indicator of the seasons. Watermelon slices and kakdi on push carts announces summer and moong dal vada with mooli and chutney whispers that its winters. These days, you get all the fruits and food items year round. Seasonal bingeing used to be fun and I hate cold storage. In Delhi, Moong dal vada can be found on every street corner these days. But the most famous ones are in Lajpat Nagar. If anyone is willing to contest that, let’s settle it…Continue Reading “Moong Dal Vada / Pakoda and Mooli”
For most people, the state bhavans are limited to the Andhra Bhavan. Everyone raves about the food, the hospitality, the price and how many times they have been there. But there are quite a few others that are worth a visit. Not the Maharashtra one, they don’t have good food. The Oriya one is good. I have heard good things about the Assam and Goa one. I can’t eat anything at the North Eastern ones and I have had enough litti chokha. Jammu Kashmir used…Continue Reading “Tamilnadu House Canteen, Chanakyapuri”
Greed and gluttony are two cardinal sins. It’s apparent why. But, you know, they are not that bad. I don’t know about greed, but there are so many antidotes to gluttony that it is hardly an issue – Hajmola, anar dana goli, Limca with rock salt. Technically, so long as you are eating to satiate hunger, it’s not gluttony. And, thus, you may escape hell sentence on a technicality. Sitting on the banks of Ganga, many such thoughts crossed our minds. There was the mighty…Continue Reading “What we ate on the banks of Ganges in Rishikesh”
My parents think pizza is some freak food. When I was young, my mother used to take stale bread, put leftover vegetables or curry on it and leave it on the tawa for a while. On the days we were served that as breakfast, we knew something had gone terribly wrong. May be, she is unwell, she woke up late, someone skipped dinner so there is too much leftover food – it was never good news. Pizzas reminded her of those desperate mornings. My father…Continue Reading “Amici – Defence Colony”
In one my earlier rants about why all bloggers should go on a strike, I had mentioned how most bloggers are ready to work for food and why every blogger should go on a strike. I was ashamed of the fact at that time. Now, it sounds like a motto I can live by. Few days back, I got the lonely perk of being a reviewer on Zomato – an invitation to one of their meet ups. The event was to be held at Pirates…Continue Reading “Pirates of the Grill – Zomato Meet Up”
For good or bad, we all are a few “types”. We are either the Allen Solly or the Fab India type, the slip or the lace shoe type, the restro bar or the family restaurant type… there can be a zillion more. I am not the Indian thali in a faux ethnic setting type. I never went to Chokhi Dhani despite being to Jaipur so many times. I strictly avoid the Rajasthan stall at Delhi Haat and all other such made up places. What if…Continue Reading “Rajdhani Thali Restaurant – Saket & CP”
Eons back, when I was studying at Delhi University, I had been to the Karim’s at Kamla Nagar. The memory is distant and faded. Apart from that, I have been to any of their branches. Whenever I craved meat, I will join a few friends and take the long road down to the original near Jama Masjid. But when a branch opened a stone’s throw away from my house, I had to do the honours. This time I was accompanied by a friend’s father who…Continue Reading “Karim’s, Lajpat Nagar”
Apple does not make lower end phones. Maruti does not make luxury cars. There is overwhelming marketing logic why brands stick to their target segments. So, when we saw Bikanervala fine dining, our first reaction was to laugh and the second one was of sympathy. Food business is extremely image conscious and this Indian fast food chain is known for self service, simplistic interiors and reasonably priced food. In fact, there is no precedent for any other Indian chain having transformed and upgraded under the…Continue Reading “Bikanervala Bliss – Fine Dining in Rajouri Garden”
I am the worst guy to write about South Indian food. It’s like asking a teenager to write a critical review of the Twilight series. I would rather write hymns and sing bhakti sangeet about dosa and rasam than write a review. Part of the reason why, even after frequenting almost all the South Indian places in Delhi, I have never written about them. Oh wait, I have written about one – the South Indian stall at Jantar Mantar. DiscIosure: I am not from South…Continue Reading “Sarvana Bhavan, Connaught Place ( CP )”