Khana Khazana at Amritsar - The Kulcha Capital of the country
Foodies are everywhere and they love to explore places where
they can satisfy their food habits. But when it comes to street food, many are
apprehensive. However, on my recent visit to Amritsar, I not only found out
that such beliefs are simply untrue but also got a chance to savor the authentic
and unforgettable taste of the Punjabi culture. The main bazaar near the golden
temple in Amritsar is filled with mind boggling arrays of local items and also known
for its age old dhabas. These dhabas serve delicious vegetarian food without
much affecting the content of the purse. Being a strict vegetarian, I was
hardly starved of choices and couldn’t have asked for more.
Punjab is known for its bhangra
and during this visit I realized where do they get all the energy from. Needless
to say, most of the items are prepared in desi
ghee. The Missi Roti and Palak Paneer can inspire anyone’s avaricious
instincts for sure. And the crispy kulchas
and paranthas, the unforgettable
taste of chole bhatura and the delicious raita can easily tempt you to break free from a strict fitness
regimen.
The Golden temple attracts more visitors than even the Taj
Mahal. And in the narrow lanes around the temple, we came across a Lassi centre and right across there was
another shop selling aloo pinnis and papad’s.
After gulping a couple of glasses of Kesar
and Mango Lassi, we attacked the pinnis
and the papads. Junk food never
tasted so good, I told myself. A little later, we reached the Gian Halwai shop famous for its lassi and phirni. After couple of plates of the amazing phirni later, we poured
in a couple of glasses of lassi full
of froth in our nearly filled stomachs yet again, pretty sure that we were done
for lunch.
In the last hour of daylight, we returned for the dinner
quite convinced that amazing food filled
our stomachs but not our heart. This time we walked into the famous Kesar da dhaba which is frequented by
top Bollywood personalities and have also been recommended by many travel magazines.
Apart from other offerings we also called for a thali which had plain
paranthas, dal fry, sabzi and raita and ate to our hearts content. Later, the
gajar ka halwa was an icing on the
cake.
After a good night’s sleep, the craving for Amritsari food had
returned next morning. We had a flight to catch that afternoon but we returned yet
again, for a lovely brunch. This time we decided to ear at another famous
eatery - Bharawan da dhaba which has
been serving amazing food since decades. The options were beyond imagination. The
warmly hospitable staff brought Missi
roti, butter naan, paneer sabzi,
baingan ka bhartha and kheer fairly quickly, which soon disappeared at the
same speed as well. The irresistible
food would have made even discerning connoisseur’s lick their fingers.
The locals love the Jallebis
and Gulab Jamuns and one can see the scattered evidence of this obsession
with the presence of sweet shops at every nook and corner. There are many
hotels which offer international cuisines as well and which attracts a fair
share of the tourists coming to this sacred city. McDonald’s has recently
announced that it would start its only vegetarian outlet near the Golden Temple
soon and the government too is planning to dedicate a khau galli especially for
food.
Before my visit, I was told by a friend that in Amritsar no
one stays hungry because the poor and needy tend to eat at the langar in the golden temple and the locals
do not cook food in their kitchens rather get it from the ubiquitous dhabas. Hence, with the eating
experience at Amritsar we were quite convinced that Amritsar can be the only Kulcha capital of our country.
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