Deliciously Delhi

Well.. Well..

You missed Salim Bhai`s variety of Kebabs ( especially Kakori ones).

Salim Bhai`s Corner is a very small joint at Khan Market (behind India Gate Delhi) where one has to eat street standing.

People stepping out of the neighbouring hi-fi joints are taken aback with the floating aroma of Salim Bhai`s roadside Kebabs...

``#57 Yogiraj: I was waiting for your kind of reply quite a while ago.
That is one reason why I started off with the two rupee roti. But
do not put down the appreciation of food and compare it to lack of food.
To the hungry man, a cup of Dal is more precious and delicious than any rich man’s Caviar.``

Ras,


Thanks for the response.

When hungry you become angry or desparate. Seen that. Never faced it in my tummy. So
no. I am not putting you down. I am living proof of rich man`s caviar. Very unfortunate but true, trust me on this one.

Sirjee,

I am inviting you to a very small people`s party. Not 80 rupees coffee party. Very small Hindoo/Muslim, very small Indian/Pakistani party. Hunger (You put it down at two rupees) does not change a (Wo)men here. They will still share. What ever they have. I am inviting to you to that party when you come next time.

Come and visit Mumbai. The taste will of course horrible. And yes you will smell hing. Even some pakistani muslim here use it here.

I do not know what 5 start hotels in Mumbai will offer you now. Heck Google is there to find out. Don`t you think so? Else Chowk is always there. I do not know far too many non-veg,... what do you say deli... in Mumbai. I, now, know only very small joints. They are dirty, have no ambiance (none).

Have you ever eaten in such places ever?. I do now. very rarely. But I do. Come to a very different Mumbai, where real life lives.

If interested, I could send you a list. No URL, there is none. You could visit, verify, and then eat without me being involved.

...........give me seekh kabab, tikka boti, fresh naan and karahi ghost from landikotal ............

.... and you can keep the rest .........

........ nihari is nothing but plain old baray gosht ka salan kicked up a notch with yet more shan masala and then drowned in a pao of desi ghee - the bong or mikh is nothing but sheer drama ............

...... and what the heck is so great about haleem .... what is it?...... motley grains and pulses with some garbage meat thrown in to brew a witchy concoction that has the texture of paste used to make kites (layvee)........... you can try to spruce up the insipid taste with ginger and hot green peppers, but it still pretty bad ........... and shan puts it all in one box for you ..........

............i never realized what was wrong with the 90 million biharis untill i had bihari kebab !......... cheap skirt meat drowned in six alarm spices that set your mouth on fire and explains the fire extinguishers in bihari toilets.............

......... there are folks who make a big deal about the fish from mozang or the hasanabdal ........ it really doesn`t matter that a fish hasn`t been seen in that little stream in hasanabdal since the late sixties, because regarldess of what it is, or where it comes from, it all tastes the same .......... battered in lahori fish masala (by shan, of course) it is deep fried untill it tastes like chicken .......... now compare it to medallions of lightly seared fatty tuna served with soy, wasabi and thinly sliced ginger - now, that is fish !........

....... rasam - nothing but dishwater mixed in with some spices and plain old dal .......... somthing you would serve to prisoners ......... dosa, idlee, vindaloo, - all same, same ....

......... a fish story ..... so this friend of mine, a horrible hindoo from some place down south who claims to be a yemini by descent, invites me over to his house for a kingfish fry and some 18 year old macallan ............ ``what the heck is kingfish``...... ``oh, it is a delicacy where i come from - it is a big fish ``..... ``how big?`` .......``ver very big``...... `` as big as tuna?``.........``how big is tuna?``...... ``bigger than smelt?``............ ``definitely !``............. in any case, i figure like all indians the guy has a fish story to tell but the macallan is too good to turn down ............ so we show up at his house and there they are - a bunch of indian code coolies in brand new white sneakers and their handlers in birkenstock loafers dancing around the deep frier in the garage, drinking red label and beer ........... and there is the fish - big steaks sitting in a tub soaking in what suspiciously looks like shan`s lahori fish masala ........... ``try try, it ees very very good``, a linux type says as he hands me an oily brown piece ..........``tastes like chicken, and stop shaking your head``, i want to say, but i don`t want to offend the host, who is a decent sort ............ a little later we sneak down to the basement while the janta is gorging on kingfish and guzzling budweiser .......... as we sit sipping the macallan and munching on pretzels, he says, `` i wish we had some kebabs, you know the ones with the big hole through them, that just melt in your mouth``........... ``and some lamb tikka, lamb, not goat with one piece of fat on each seekh``...........``and some fresh naan``................i rest my case - there are some good indians ...........

p.s. the karahi gosht from landi kotal is lamb (not phaydu with the tail, but the real sheep with the big fat chaki) cooked in a karahi with just salt and pepper and maybe a tomato or two .........no red pepper, no shan, no garam masala ...........

#63 Sridhar ``It is of course not as urbane as Bombay but it has its own charm``
Urbane as Mumbai? Actually Dactar saab Delhi is not the same hicksville as it was 20 years ago, especially in terms of arts and culture. It is a much more happening place than it used to be, plus sorry to inject a note of commercialism, but there is more money being pumped in here. In fact the next time you are in Delhi make a trip to the India Habitat Center`s arts gallery.

Something that I always wanted to know. It may be a little “naughty” but do they make as good “kapporay” as they do in Karachi, in the Jama Masjid area?

What about brain masala or Gurday?

My cholesterol level has never gone down since those naughty nights in Karachi.

I doubt that nihari in Delhi is authentic. Considering that all cows have been sequestered in air-conditioned Cow Asharams around Delhi.

Ras, I also love desi food. My position is different than hamidm and mantolives.. they seem to hate desi food by default where as I love desi food as long as it is authentic and not Baluchi`s or Jackson Heights variety

#63 rsridar: no slum competitions here please, we are Desis.....

#62 Veeresh: Tea did taste a little different in India, especially at the Dhabas. But since
I happen to be a tea addict, the choice between any tea and no tea, is not a choice at all.
I am not a “Pukki Huwi Chai” fan but my Indian hosts did change their standards for me.
But I am glad that tea is equally appreciated on both sides of the border.

# 61: Anything beyond Fish and Chips? English food is torture. Kidney Pie anyone?

#60: Try Shalimar in San Francisco or Tumerik in Mountain View for great Pakistani and Indian Food.

#59 Jang: Spicy Kababs after a cold one and Heaven can Wait….

# 58 Kaurasach: Kashmiri food can be divine…
Try Shalimar in San Francisco or Tumerik in Mountain View for great Pakistani and Indian Food.

#57 Yogiraj: I was waiting for your kind of reply quite a while ago.
That is one reason why I started off with the two rupee roti. But
do not put down the appreciation of food and compare it to lack of food.
To the hungry man, a cup of Dal is more precious and delicious than any rich man’s Caviar.

#56 John Galt: I do not agree with you, Mantolives or hamidm. I love Desi food period.

#55: The best English food is that that has originated from outside England.

#54 Ansari: Try Ghaffar’s at Riaz Masjid. My childhood favorite.

#51, 52,53: Manto: When was the last time you visited Delhi? If you do, go to NOIDA.
I know what Veeresh is trying to say. Actually Lahore is clean like Jaipur but Mughal
History and Mughlai food is what Lahore and Delhi have in common.

#51 Veeresh: I hope to be back soon. Kabab’s yes, Jalebi’s maybe…
Next time you are in Lahore, try the Mei Kong for Chinese….
I repeat from my earlier reply to Manto: Delhi and Lahore
are similar in Mughal History and Mughlai food….

#49 & #50: It is a matter of the taste you grow up with. I cannot appreciate Idli or Sambar, but gol guppas are great....

#47 rsridhar: Try Shalimar in San Francisco or Tumerik in Mountain View for great Pakistani and Indian Food.

#45 & 46: Dum Pukth and tonic?

#44 nazarhayatkhan: Toynbee “Kam Bakht”

#43 Mantolives: Desi food rules. Pepper Steak in Lahore?

#42 hamidm2: Shan rules!

#41 rsridhar: who cares about ambiance?
Try Shalimar in San Francisco or Tumerik in Mountain View for great Pakistani and Indian Food.

#40 dost-mittar: Burns Road is very much like the Jama Masjid area in Delhi minus the Masjid. I am not usually a jalebi fan and like Bengali sweets the best. But hot jalebis
are difficult to turn down.

#39 madpolkadot: Gulab Jamuns are a family favorite.

#38 vivek: I think that the French exaggerate about their food.

#37 FV: Too bad about the drinking part. Several great Thai here places in Northern California. Thanks for the description of kakori kebabs AND sharing the trip with me
via email. I have developed a certain fondness for India after this trip. It is not just the food but I got a chance to meet some wonderful people.

#36 hamidmtoo: What is wrong with Shan masala? Do you know how we spent our college days without it? After a couple of tall “rooh afzas” ones and the smoke from “miniature hookahs”, tears of longing for a decent spicy tikka or kabab/roti were not rare.
Nearest desi restaurant was 25 miles and I did not have a car.

#35 Subroto: Thanks. Any friend of KS is alright with me…

ali_1 & HP thanks for the info. At least friend arjun_m is actually trying
to express his views on an article which had no mention of Kashmir in it.
There is hope for us after all…

re:#52 by Mantolives
Manto mian,
why don`t u post a link to the report about Delhi being the biggest slum in future and i will believe you?
I think u are just biased. I can`t compare New Delhi to Lahore because i have not visited the latter. But there is a lot more to Delhi than the Golf Links. It is of course not as urbane as Bombay but it has its own charm. I miss that city quite a lot.
Sridhar

Ras, just another question which a lurker friend at chowk who is also a Muslim with plenty of family all over the world jas a view on and also asked me to place here - and that is:- did you find any differences in the way tea is made/served/drunk/appreciated etc . . . between your Indian family/friends and Pakistani family/friends?

One reason for this question is that at a lot of wayside eateries, especially in the rural areas, the ``milk`` used to colour the tea is often not really milk. It could be the local euivalent of non-dairy corn/grain based creamer OR worse it could be reconstituted with urea. This has changed the way tea tastes in much of ``public`` India.

Just curious, thanks.

Yasser:- please forgive me, I did not know LaHore was trying to be Delhi again, I thought it was right there with Singapore. Never mind, I am told that Singapore Airlines SIN-ATQ flight is going to accept economy class passengers from Lahore again, very soon, but they will have to do the Amritsar-Lahore leg by a Tata-Daewoo bus.

jang, I will take yours and Farzana`s word about English cuisine, though I did not know that such a bird existed,discounting the fish and chips. Italian and French use too much cheese.The gripe I have with most of the european cuisines is that they are not very filling.A full course meal in Spanish and Romanian are more like breakfast. Greek is another matter.
Talking about desi cuisine, i assume it cannot be appreciated after a certain age; and I fully agree that pakistani non veg places are much better than indian places also for vegetarian dishes like chhole etc. Probably the indian places cater more towards the goras,once a turkish friend accompanied us to a pakistani restaurant, and he was unable to walk for about half an hour after he finished the meal. Talking about vegetarian food, excepting South Indian,I have never had better food in any restaurant than what is cooked at home. Vegetarian food doesnt lend that well to excess of oil and fat.

kaurasach #58,
Agreed 100% with you, Indian restaurants in USA are pretty bad in quality. No way comparable to India.

Manto, are you trying to immitate Jinnah by dispising indian food?
FV, i dont recall the names of bandra thi eateries, one i remember was 4 tables, run by a Mac who would pretty much make food to order and bring you the beer from across the street. I liky Lucky on the main road as well. Lings Pvillion is shunned by many (esp Jains)since it serves beef and pork.

Since its a holiday today, i shall attempt to make Creme Brulee.

Mumbai Trishna is really classy. The mutant prawns they serve are truely awsome..never seen a 1 lb libe prawn anywhere. Ravas with salt-n-pepper and butter in trishna has NO SHAN or BEDEKAR or MTR or other masals i swear. And when i get 2 drinks of any kind + food, i dont have any further expectations about any friday...cest la vie.

English food is not bad, e.g. bread an butter with a pint in london is never bad. French food rocks ..except Champage.. its hight of marketing. Foul testing carbonated wine hyped-up. Give me a nice Toddy any day.

American or gora sikhs at the gurudwara would pile all the dishes together and mix and eat the `gutava`. They would put raita, daal, kheer, pilaaf, jalebi, sabzi....mix it and after uttering Waheguru, dig in with all fervor.

Our Kashmiri Pandit friends made excellent bakra and fish dishes.

The aim of 99.99% Indian restaurants in US is to make money. They are not there to churn out delicacies or take pride in their dishes....at least in my city. Most of the restaurant owners are former dish washers who pooled money to open a restaurant. After 6 mos, they drive Hummers that they bought with cash.

Ras Siddiqui

Next time you come, come not as muslim or hindu.

Next time you come, remember your host can only give you what they have.

Next time you come, come and visit Balasaheb`s area called Mumbai. Come and share what is Sonia place as Mumbai. Next time you come, come and share what was Jinha`s place as Mumbai. Which FV will never know even in her dreams. She knows what oppulence is.

Then you will find what FV will never give you. Bhook. And then a tookda. Yes Ferz who will never know Patuadi played for Haid... Not only that, the woman never will in her dream will say I am sorry, I did not know. I just shoot my mouth off as usual. Saying sorry.... well it is so much honesty.. Is there any school in Pakistan it is taught? None in India will teach FV.

Then you will get what food is eaten in place called Hiduo/Paki/stan. We share. We`ll share. Not fillling. Never tasty. Spice is too costly. Cant afford.

Do not flaunt your pocket. Never be Ferz in your life. I do not like liers.

My food will never taste good. It will be simply .... Better

Indian food != north indian / punjabi food.
All this masala ladden north indian dishes make me sick. I recently moved to Jackson Heights thinking that although the area is filthy, at least I will get to eat good, wholesome, desi food there. BIG MISTAKE ! I agree 100% with hamidm as far as the so called ``indian cuisine`` as available in places like Kabab King, Baluchis and Haandi is concerned. I guess the definition of good indian food outside india is chunk of meat slapped with a grease, masala and then some. If you eat it once in a while, it tastes pretty good but if you eat it everyday, you will end up dead by 40. Unfortunately, real indian food is not available in the run of the mill indian eateries at least in New York. I have been looking for stuff like Porial, Chettinad Chicken, Bakarwadi and Pooran Poli all over the city in vain.

Subroto, Farzana se daant khane ke baad bhi u are not behaving?
Farzana, what is English cuisine?