Food with no frills
Mona
They say in India you always find the best food where the truckers eat. ML Mansarover lives up to it, totally.
A small dhaba that has been shifted twice has carried on the tradition of taste, established way back in 1952. First opened at Bajwara (what now is better known as place around Kisan Bhawan), then in Attawa (Sector 42 now), it’s now next to the office of truckers’ union in Phase 1 Mohali, right next to another with the same name as the business split between brothers.
Mutton at this place is to die for as is their kadhahi paneer. The cooks come and go, but the taste has been maintained as Darshan Kumar Pappu, the third generation owner, who is keeping the recipes standard and the taste uniform.
The entry to it is through a chaos of traffic, from all directions, but there many regulars who risk it for the taste. And, no, it’s not just the truck drivers who frequent the place but also many doctors, officers and students. The food – the mainstay of this place, is always fresh, and unlike most food joints where all dals taste the same, surely not the case here. The dal fry brings out the flavour of lentils, rajmah sure are rasila, chana masala live up to their name. While the non-vegetarians can dig into mutton or keema, for their melt in mouth taste, their lachcha paranthas have quite a fan following. As for a dhaba, the place is rather bare and ‘quickly satisfy your food cravings and leave’ kind of a place offering nothing in terms of ambience and stay. But still a motley crowd, one wouldn’t feel awkward enjoying a tummy full.
There is relatively little use of oil or spices. Darshan Kumar Pappu, who carries the legacy, spills the beans, “One got to adapt tastes according to the times, earlier everyone ate spicy food, so our dishes were teekha. Now, everyone is health conscious and that made our food milder and less oily over a period of time.”
For a dhaba, the price is pocket friendly – a paneer/ mutton meal is available at around Rs 180. And, the taste and prompt service make up for a hearty meal. While mutton, keema, kadai paneer make for the most sought after dishes, as is baigan ka bhartha; polish it all off with kheer that makes dining a wholesome meal!
