A Foodie's Day Out!

The charm of India lies in the fact that its unity shines amidst a plethora of diversities. Be it a thousand religions or a million Gods, be it a bountiful of beliefs and practices or a billion dreams, India has always come up with a lot of surprises. Not much different is its food habits as well.

“Thou shouldst eat to live; not live to eat.” – Socrates.

That saying doesn’t hold true anymore with the taste buds craving for more and hence it wouldn’t be wrong to claim, that many of us, including many of you – our readers, want to wear the best, possess the best and eat the best too, so much so that we at times can actually “Live to Eat.” The obsession is so much so that when matrimonial offers come across, the first question that the son’s mom asks is, “Does she know how to cook?” When the man returns exhausted from his workplace, the first question he asks is, “What’s there for dinner, tonight?” The finicky Gen Next kids can just ignore food that they don’t like and go on a fast. We’re pretty particular about what we eat, aren’t we? So, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to actually look at how India looks from the Foodie’s eyes.

If one keenly looks at India, every piece of land would spring up a different culture, a different lifestyle and a different food habit too. Variety is the spice of life and India, the land of spices, adds that spice to life too. The tourists from abroad have more often than not expressed their appreciation for the Indian food, despite succumbing to a Delhi Belly. The Indian Food Map is such that it urges one to dive into a fantasy of travelling throughout India and possibly enjoy the best meal at specific places for specific time of the day.

Statutory Warning: Travelling to all the mentioned parts of India for specific meals in a single day is completely fictitious. Any resemblance to the characters like Mr.India, Krrish, Ra.One is co-incidental.

Disclaimer: We’re not responsible for Delhi Belly (Diarrhea experienced by travellers in a foreign land for not being accustomed to local food and water.)

We start off the day with a hope to gobble up the best food in our breakfast and the Southern belt of India (especially Tamil Nadu and Karnataka) doesn’t disappoint us. Wake up with the special coffee made from the plantations in Chikmagalur and expect to have the same aroma in life too. You can order for a sumptuous plate of Masala Dosai with the perfect blend of taste and appetite. For those who don’t quite favour the Dosai can go for a plate of Idlis with Sambar.

A fresh morning now makes way for some strenuous work at office and after all the hard work, one looks to have a heavy meal for lunch. The East is believed to have a heavy lunch and what more would one ask for if he is served with a spicy, yes a little oily bowl of fish (Ilish maach, better known as the King of fish) with a plate of steamed rice. You can choose your favourite dish of fish though, be it Bhaapa Ilish or Doi Maach. After satiating your hunger, the perfect thing that can light up your mood and sweeten your talks for the next few hours would be Rossogolla.

Rossogolla and West Bengal are synonymous, so much so that it is often called the Land of Rossogollas. The Bengalis have mastered the art of preparing this special dessert and keeping in mind that the diabetics can’t have it, they have this Sugar Free Rossogollas too.

Third on our list is the evening snacks and after having covered the Southern and Eastern India, it is time to move to the West. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to amalgamate the best of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra on our thali. The Gujarati snack bread known as Thepla and the tea time snack in the form of Khandvi make for luscious snacks. One can opt for the Vada Paos as well which is the most popular dish from Maharashtra or order for a plate of Batata Vada and Kandi Bhaaji. The list doesn’t end here with the Royal Rajasthanis dishing out the ever so tasty Pyaaz Kachoris. Wow! Food is like.. heaven, isn’t it ?

Now, last but no way is the least, our supper. All is well that ends well and here too, we have prepared for the best to round off a day which has been a “A Foodie’s Day Out!”  We now move towards North for what promises to be a mouthwatering dinner. While the veggies can enjoy the Delhi special Chhole Bhature/Masala Kulcha (which often is found on the To-do-list), the non-vegetarians have a lot to choose from. They can go for an out and out Punjabi meal like a Makke di Roti, Sarson da Saag or have the authentic Tandoori Chicken with Paranthe. Butter Chicken is among the other specialties here and still sells out the most in any restaurant located in any area of the nation. If it was Rossogollas in West Bengal, it is the ever so famous Chaach-Lassi served in a towering glass which rounds off a highly sumptuous meal.

After having gorged on a never ending variety of food, any foodie would be filled to the heart as well as stomach. Sometimes, diversities are welcome, especially when they offer such a wide array of dishes. Amidst all these diversities, the Indian food has managed to be a source of unity and hence, sends out a statement to all the tourists (who complain about the rich and high on cholesterol food) that, “Love me or hate me but you simply can’t resist me.”

Here’s wishing all our readers, Happy Munching.

This article was written in the month of May and was first published in P3.. Not Just Page 3 before being published on different other websites.