street food of india – Delhi Food Walks

Posted on March 12, 2016 March 17, 2016

Poori Sabzi at Rewari Wale and Jindal Refreshment Corner

Once upon a time, my friend, Ayush, and I met for a get together. Being great foodies, the discussion soon swung to the direction of food. Starting from Fateh ki Kachori in Civil Lines (that Ayush is quite fond of), we discussed food items with enthusiasm. Then slowly we moved to the quintessential breakfast dishes- poori and bhatura, whereupon he mentioned a poori shop in Shakti Nagar, that makes kofte, but only on Sundays. As the clouds gathered in the sky last Sunday, I gave him a call and in a few minutes, we were inside the shop savouring the pooris.

The name of the shop is Rewari Wale ki Poori Sabzi. Located in Shakti Nagar, it is quite accessible- if you are coming from Roop Nagar, take the first right turn towards Gurudwara Nanak Sahib. After taking the right turn, take the first left turn; keep walking straight and the shop Rewari Lal will be on the left side. The complete address is 24/27, Shakti Nagar, Delhi- 07 ( Mobile- 9999935023). A big cauldron of oil where Halwais are frying the pooris can be spotted easily.

The pooris at Rewari Wale, were simply made of maida. The sabzi was mix of chole, aloo and methi ki chutney. A spoon of dahi is added over it to mellow down the spices, giving it a tangy taste. Gopal Sweets in Kamla Nagar also do the same. What sets it apart from other poori sabzi walas of delhi are the aloo besan ke kofte. The small balls similar to the size of badi are made only on Sundays. Being a bit spicy, it served as the perfect combination with the poori.

The shop was started 50 years back, by Sees Ram Saini, and is presently managed by father-son, Dharam Singh Saini and Vikram Saini. The shop is open till 3 pm and a plate of poori sabzi is priced at Rs 40. Very close to poori sabzi shop, the Sainis own another shop, which is famous for its khoya burfi and gajar pak.

Ayush also introduced me to another popular breakfast joint- Jindal Refreshment Corner, on roshanara road. The shop is right opposite Kunji Lal Jagdish Prasad shop, and is famous for pure milk and lassi. The address is 8438, Roshanara Road, Delhi-07 (Mobile. 9953901089). Jindal refreshment corner is owned by Brajesh Jindal, Kunji Lal’s brother. Established 40 years ago, they specialize in bedmi poori and kachoris.

Unfortunately, by the time we reached Kunji Lal, the lassis were over. The small size bedmi poori is priced at Rs 20 a plate. I found the sabzi to be better than what we get in other places. The sabzi is, again, a mix of aloo, chole, methi ki chutney, kachalu, and kofta, which keeps changing everyday- palak, urad dal, mooli. The distinctive strong taste of heeng in the sabzi makes it simply delicious.

In the evening, they make samosas. Remembering the old days, Ayush recited the story of how he used to eat Jindal’s samosas on his way back home from school days, not in plates but straight from his hands. Long live his love for kachoris and samosas!

Anubhav Sapra

Anubhav Sapra is an avid foodie! He is a Founder but proudly calls himself a Foodie-in-chief at Delhi Food Walks. He is also a street-food and Indian regional cuisine connoisseur and loves to write about street-food.

http://www.delhifoodwalks.com

Posted on February 23, 2015

Mohan Lal Bhelpuri Wala

By: Shagun Nayar

We, Delhiites have always had a soft corner for lip-smacking street food. Walking on the roads of this beautiful city, you will encounter numerous stalls serving the best of street food that Delhi has to offer. Tired college students after lectures, Children on Sunday evenings and the Diet cheaters after a tiring walk or a session at the gym are bound to find themselves being drawn to their favourite street food, if it’s even possible to pick one. I, for one can never choose.

However, a good plate of Bhelpuri always finds its way to my top 3 and so, I went on a mini Bhelpuri expedition to find my favourite plate of Bhelpuri in north campus. To my pleasant surprise, the stall/vendor serving the best is situated right in-between Hindu College and the Delhi School of Economics. It has a prime location as it always swamped with college students at any given time of the day. You are bound to bump into students walking in and out of their college gates with a plate of Mohan Bhaiya’s famous Bhelpuri in their hands.

Rumour has it that Mohan Bhaiya used to be lab assistant in one of north campus colleges but after careful consideration and the realisation that with his special green chutney and fresh produce he could serve the best Bhelpuri at campus without question, he decided to part ways with his job as a day assistant and started his own little business venture thereby earning more money and living a more relaxed life.

Situated on the same path as the bus stop stand for Hindu College, Delhi School of Economics and St. Stephan’s, students usually sit on the bus stop bench blabbering about their lectures, crushes & upcoming events while eating this divine mixture of puffed rice, peanuts, papri, green chillies, onions, boiled potatoes, coriander, tomato topped over with the special green chutney that makes Mohan Bhaiya’s Bhelpuri the best in campus. He also caters to the other lot by serving his delicious version of Sevpuri topped over with tiny pieces of red apple and a sweet red chutney which is equally delicious and popular.

Another reason for his popularity among numerous other vendors serving the exact street food item is that he makes it fresh from scratch finishing off his delicious rendition of the same by adding freshly chopped coriander and a squeeze of lemon juice to give it that extra freshness an zing. So, the next time you’re craving a plate of spicy, salty Bhelpuri make sure you look up Mohan Bhaiya for he will not disappoint.

Rate: Rs.20 for a small plate&Rs.25 for a large plate.

Timings: 11:00am-6:00pm

Anubhav Sapra

http://www.delhifoodwalks.com

Posted on January 17, 2015

Kala Burger Wala

By Simran Kaur Kainth

West Delhi is said to be the hub of amazing food joints .Every Street and corner is famous for one or the other food speciality of its own. One such fantastic street joint situated in Subhash Nagar is Kala Burger Wala. People who lives around this area has amazing memories attached to this place. KBW was started by Joginder Singh, a small vegetable seller back in 1990 who sold burger at Re 1.

Since then it has become the most well known joint in the locality. As the name suggest KBW is famous for its vegetarian burger. Priced at Rs.40, the burger served here is simple yet finger licking. As we all know, usually burger is prepared with fancy dressing and toppings but KBW likes to keep its burger authentic, rich ,tummy filling.

The round buns are fried on tawa untill crisp, a sizzling aloo tikki is stuffed in along with big slices of fresh paneer. Thinly sliced cucumber and onion is placed inside the bun and drizzled with generous amount of masala. Guess what ? your snack is ready to digg in. The moment you take the first bite, the soft paneer and aloo tikki dissolves in your mouth. The taste of veggies refreshes you and you actually forget about the calories !

The sour green chutney prepared with anardana ,mint, green chillies and coriander is mixed with sweetness of red saunth and is served along with this snack which is Singh’s wife’s own recipe. Entire joint is run by the team work of the family. One can see the family members rolling the doughs of tikkis and handling the kitchen and counters.

With time and stiff competition , KBW added vegetable rolls, spring roll, momos and noodles to its menu .But frankly , customers rarely order these dishes from the menu. The Tikki Burger is what people are fond of.

Thus, a great value for money, however, you may find parking problem but suits best as a takeaway joint. Definitely ,a great option for vegetarians that stumps you on your very first visit.

Anubhav Sapra

http://www.delhifoodwalks.com