Eating out in Old Delhi

In 1872, when Chandni Chowk had started settling under the new governance of the British,  a young man in early twenties called Gaya Prasad, left his home in Tehsil Bah in Agra and came to Delhi in search of greener pastures. He set up shop in a lane at the entrance to Kinari Bazaar and where he began selling hot and sizzling paranthas. The popularity of Gaya's paranthas grew so quickly that he had to rope in his brothers and cousins to help him out in the business. 

By 1911, the narrow street in this area -the Chota Dariba - became known as Gali Paranthe Wali or Paranthe wali Gali (literally "the bylane of fried bread"). Gradually, a score shops,  all belonging to the extended families of Gaya Prasad filled the street which even today is noted for its row of parantha shops.

Only three shops remain today remain of the 20 parantha shops that belonged to various branches of the family - P.T Kanhaiyalal Durgaprasad Dixit (estd 1875), P.T Dayanand Shivcharan (estd 1882), and  P.T. Baburam Devidayal Paranthewale (estd 1886). The food is old fashioned, strictly vegetarian, and the cooked dishes do not include onion or garlic.

Jalebi, a sweet made by deep-frying wheat flour batter in pretzel or circular shapes and soaked in sugar syrup, is another speciality of Old Delhi. I learned a mouth watering way to savour Jalebi here. The jalebs are soaked in hot, creamy milk – and then you fish out the jalebis from the milk and devour; sip away the sweetened milk too. You will never stop with just one bowl of doodh jalebi.

Daulat ki chaat – this magical name is not for the tangy, spicy everyday ‘chaat’ that food chains like Haldiram serves. As Mayank Austin Soofi describes it, ‘this dish is an abstraction, and is more an idea than a dessert; a white froth, pop a spoonful into the mouth and it disappears. The lingering sweetness is as fleeting as an early-morning dream. Much romance is attached to the making of this fluff.’ One legend is that the milk is whisked under a full moon sky and the morning dew sets the resulting froth. I like to think of this dish as a handful of cloud, it is there, but still not there……

Kheer Benazir is a sweet dish served in Karim’s, the iconic restaurant opposite Jama Masjid. Served in small earthen pots and rich in dry fruits, many other eateries also serve this delicacy in Old Delhi, including the Al-Jawahar whose biryani is undoubtedly even better that Karim’s.

Over the years, innumerable trips to Old Delhi have created an image of the place in my mind and the aroma of street food takes me back again and again.