City Landmark – Kake Da Hotel is History
The legendary eatery downs shutters.
[Text and pictures by Mayank Austen Soofi]
Opened in 1931, the legendary Kake Da Hotel in Municipal Market, Connaught Place, shut down on July 12, 2010. The next day the window face of the eatery, popular with the city’s carnivores looking for buttery, delicious and affordable non-vegetarian dishes, was showing this banner – “The shop is closed due to unfortunate circumstances.”
The calls to the owners went unanswered. The owner of a neighbouring eatery, with a similar-sounding name, hinted, on condition of anonymity, at some “family dispute.”
A necessary entry in Delhi-based food websites, one blogger, Shiva, described his Kake experience in these words: “I ordered chicken curry and rotis. The Nepali guy was serving with a smile on his face. Rotis kept appearing and the curry plate was refilled constantly… without me asking for a refill or the usual “One roti please.” The bill was just Rs 87, which also included a mineral water bottle.”
The Delhi Walla, too, once dined in Kake. But mine experience was less romantic. I had written:
“The steward finally banged the dishes down on the table. The violence splashed the gravies. As I picked the chicken legs with my fingers and licked the flesh, I knew that I had stepped into a new and difficult adventure. The first sensation was jolting – as if gallons of butter had flooded inside the mouth. The tongue became as slimy as crude oil. The hollow cavity of the rotting tooth was choked with a thick coating of butter…
… As the dinner progressed, the discomfort caused by the appalling state of the eatery, the humid heat of the evening, and the attitude of the steward could not be overcome by the meal. Nearing the end, the rude man re-emerged to enquire for a second helping. Deeply unsatisfied, I requested for the bill instead.”
Yet, Kake will be missed.
Founded in 1931
Kake will be missed
What a sorry state of affairs!
This place is history now. I used to come here often.
Also, as a good friend, I want to tell you to read some photo bloggers based in South India. I think they explain their photos better.
Your pictures are nice but your words have a hint of that infamous Dilli wala (not the Dilli Wala blogger) attitude. What’s the point if one clicks just for the sake of clicking and then sweat hard to write something meaningless, or worse take pain to write it?
Many good readers will stick around if you are humble.
alaaaaaaassssssss,so sad.visited so many times there.mast jagah thi.paseene to aa hi jaate the but food nd rates wera….waah waaaah the
been there once…was ok..but i guess it will still be missed
Can’t believe we would have to see this day. Eaten at Kake da dhaba several times and it was one of our fav place. Those naan, chicken curry with the onion salad. Nobody minded the interiors as the food and prices compensated for all of it.
KDD will be missed!
damn!!!!!!!!! how could they close this place……i had been there so many times….especially when i was studying in bharatiya vidya bhavan….used to bunk school and go to cp…..keventer’s…..kake da hotel(once in a quarter may be….due to our limited pocket money)…..the chhole bhature wala nearby….maannnn i miss those days….