JOIN USHow many of us really know Bengaluru; the nooks and crannies of the city? It takes a tremendous amount of time to explore the best spots in an space so the city has seen a significant rise in food and heritage walks that take you around and make you well-versed with your city.
‘Best of Bangalore’ is a Facebook group started with the intention of connecting members to a bunch of interesting places in the city. They also conduct events that connect you to local food. One of their food walks was the ‘Nagrathpet Dosa Walk’, which took members to Nagrathpet. Located in old Bengaluru, Nagrathpet comes alive at night. There are street vendors selling idli, dosas, various varieties of rice, sandwiches, fruit plates, masala papad, fruit juice and a multitude of dishes that will make your mouth water.
Shiva Hatti, a member of the group, says, “It was an occasion for members of the group with varied backgrounds to come together because of one common interest — food. It was also an occasion to learn about the dosas of old Bengaluru.” They tried the ‘Pudi Bath Dosa’, which is a speciality of Nagrathpet and a few other preparations in Nagrathpet like ‘Dry Fruit Milkshakes’, ‘Badam Milk’, ‘Pudi Plain Dosa’ and ‘Idli with ghee’. “The main idea is to explore the lesser known food havens.” he says.
‘Unhurried’ is an organisation which conducts various city walks for Bengalureans. Some of their popular walks include the Russell Market Walk, Fraser Town Walk, Lalbagh Walk and Malleswaram Walk. ‘Bangalore Magic’ also conducts various walks in the city, including a Malleswaram Walk and a Vidhana Soudha Walk.
Hina B has been part of the Malleswaram Food Walk and shares her experience, “It was a two-hour walk that took us around the city and we explored the various parts of the area. I have been living here for the past 17 years and yet, I had not explored it. So I took up this walk to understand my city. We stopped at some restaurants where we ate typical Kannadiga food. Our guide explained what we were seeing and the historical significance behind all the places we went to.”
Some people are skeptical to join these food walks due to health and hygiene concerns. “Since some people cannot stomach street food we gave them an option to eat at Lakshmi Natraja Refreshments which serves the quintessential Nagrathpet dosas in a restaurant kind of ambience. The rest ate off the carts,” Shiva says. These food walks cater to the food enthusiasts while taking care of their health needs.
‘Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage’ also holds a few heritage walks like Ramzan Food Parichay and Architecture in Cubbon Park Parichay. ‘Mason’s Ink’, an architectural firm, also holds ‘Heritage Hunts’ that enlighten participants about the heritage in a fun and interactive way. Rosie Paul, principal architect of ‘Mason’s Ink’, says, “Our last heritage hunt was in Cubbon Park, in which the clues to the next destination on the hunt were actually a fun piece of information about them. This made them aware of the places they were exploring.”
So register yourself for a fun walk down the lanes of Bengaluru today and explore the rich heritage and indulge in mouth-watering food of your city.