City Food – Motichoor Laddu, Ghantewala Halwai
Food for the gods. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is the sweet of the gods. On Tuesdays, Hindus offer Hanuman boondi laddu, made of deep-fried besan balls held together with flavoured sugar syrup. The pot-bellied Ganesha, the…
City Food – Rooh Afza, Shahjahanabad
Old Delhi’s national drink. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is not a cola and it is not endorsed by Shah Rukh Khan – it has no brand ambassador. It also lacks ready-to-drink convenience. Most people born after…
City Food – Almond Croissant, L’Opéra Pâtisserie
The French way of life. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] If it were the French, and not the English, who had colonised us, we would have had bouillabaisse instead of fish ‘n’ chips served in our Colonial-era clubs….
City Food – Sewai, Around Town
Sweet soul food. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] It is the sweet food of Ramzan, the holy month when Muslims are required to fast till the sunset to cleanse their soul. In evenings, the decorated alleys in Delhi’s…
City Food – Julia Child Makes Esü in Hauz Khas Village
The great chef’s life in Delhi. [Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi] Meet the Julia Child of Hauz Khas Village, a fashionable quarter of art galleries, studios and restaurants. Passionate about playing guitar, Aren Sanglir, 34, lives in neighbouring…
City Food – Biryani, Around Town
Fragrant treasures. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Marinated meat in layers of semi-boiled rice, the Persian import has proved more durable than the foreign dynasties that brought it to Delhi. Cooked in earthenware pots – the lids sealed…
City Food – Honey & Fig Ice Cream, India International Centre
The choice of the intellectuals. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] This is a special dish in Delhi’s most exclusive cultural space. The honey & fig ice cream is made for the members-only dining room of the Indian International…
City Food – Shikanji, Around Town
Chill of the lemon. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] The simplest things in life are the most exquisite. As you walk in the scorching heat of Connaught Place, the sun is white, and the air is still and…
City Food – Raw Vegetables, Around Town
Heat relief. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Delhi food is laden with butter gravies and tandoori meats offering no respite to the digestion. Relief is to be found in cut vegetables, served raw with a sprinkle of masala…
City Food – Egg Dosa, North Campus
A strange dish. [Text and photos by Mayank Austen Soofi] Really, it oughtn’t to be allowed, to make dosa like that. The South Indian staple is a crepelike pancake of fermented lentil-rice flour batter stuffed with mustard seed-flecked potato mush….
Recent Comments