Food streets of Amritsar

Puneetinder Kaur Sidhu

Advertisement

The dash to Amritsar last weekend was made for the Batalvi Baithak at Majha House. A perfectly fine reason in itself to be there, soul food, should you ask me. But this unabashed foodie’s mind works in somewhat different ways. For, always lurking in its gluttonous recesses is an irrepressible hankering for yet another encounter of the gastronomic kind, especially when it is in a city that seems to have an inexhaustible reserve.  I’ve stumbled upon some of these thanks to Amritsar Walking Tours, a one-man effort at dredging up drool worthy places anew in lively old neighbourhoods. Deepak Kumar’s engaging manner and informative videos lead to memorable experiences that seekers of the delicious would wish to revisit with unfailing regularity.

Being one myself, I hungered to return for more of the crisp, buttery kulchas at Pehalwan Kulcha Shop, a cramped old eatery that the residents around Chattiwind Gate have been frequenting for their most preferred breakfast for last 60 years. Paucity of time regrettably led to the mid-stride abortion of that plan, and my friends and I ended up instead at the 106-year-old Bharawan Da Dhaba, a short walk from the Golden Temple. Having started as a modest tent in 1912, it has today billowed into a 3-branch brand, synonymous with traditional Punjabi fare. Teeming with tourists, it looks little like a quintessential dhaba, having acquired all the trappings of a restaurant–uniformed staff, air-conditioned environs, and resultant prices. The stuffed kulchas and slow-cooked maah di daal were exceptional, the phirni I’ve had better, certainly bigger than the markedly measly portions served. 

Economising generally comes at the cost of experience, which, in my opinion, a true-blue dhaba would rarely subject its customers to. Certainly not in Amritsar! This is why I am usually drawn to those cosy spaces that continue to retain their character and take enormous pride in their product, often times just the one, and have yet to succumb to the compelling nature of commerce. They are uncompromisingly focused on excellence, around which they have built their loyal yet demanding clientele. They are easily identifiable by the number of discerning locals patiently crowding them, and the near absence of leisure visitors. Just as you’re likely to find around the Sharma Tea Stall near DAV College at Hathi Gate; most of these are and once were constantly hungry students. The avuncular owner specialises in cardamom-flavoured tea and samosas sandwiched in buttered buns; he has been around for 50 years.

Expect to find similar scenes at Budhe Mal’s at Gate Hakiman. Their vegetable pakodas and aloo da shora (thickly sliced potato pokoras), served with a bhijja kulcha, have brought cheer to regulars since 1949. Tara Chand’s butter-oozing paneer bhurji and sliced bread combination may be of recent vintage but is no less popular for its flavourful quality than sundry stalwarts. The seasonal fruit cream at Rana’s in Lohgarh and the creamy kulfi at Mahajan Refreshment House in Hall Bazaar are equally worthy mentions. Then there’s Prem Nath Sharma and his version of bhelpuri, to be found across the road from Nirankari Samarak near Ram Bagh. Purists in the know will perhaps cringe at the Punjabification of a distinctly non-Punjabi street treat. That the octogenarian has doled out plate after paneer-topped plate of bhelpuri for 35 long years is clearly the Ambarsariya’s way of saying: saanu ki?