B’lore’s military hotels: feasting on nostalgia
Over the last half a millennium Bangalore has feasted on the heady aromas and heavenly flavours of many a kitchen. They’ve detonated softly like poignant larders, redolent with cloves, cardamom, exotic herbs and spices, garam masala, sautéing onions, garlic, and wood fire as rulers and the ruled joyfully threw themselves on the variegated fare.
The gastronomic influences of Kempe Gowda, the Maharastrian leader Shaji Bhonsle, the austere Moghul emperor Aurangazeb, the Wodeyars, Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, the East India Company, and later the British Crown, have resulted in eclectic army of cooks and culinary experts fashioning a variety of dishes using local produce with time-honoured recipes. With aplomb, they served meals that delightfully blended tradition with occasion.
The royalty and the upper classes had their preferences, nuances and style. The significant ‘others’ — merchants, craftsmen, vendors from North Arcot, Madras, AP and other areas, soldiers, Persian and Arab horse traders, Jews, Brits — that formed the core of Bangalore Civil and Military station, and the peta or the City, had their own hardy kitchen ideas which often impinged on each other to form a delicious fusion cuisine.
With this motley congregation at work in the kitchen, one could expect enticing aromas to get salivary juices up and running. For there was the scent of steaming rice and sambars redolent with tamarind and asafoetida, spiced vegetables, and crispies frying in kadais, and the heavenly aroma of filter coffee from traditional southern homes or the exhilarating flavours of meats with tejpatta (Bay leaves), freshly ground pudina, kothmir and green chillies from ‘non-veg’ homes.
To that, in time, came ‘foreign’ flavours — the enticing aromas of baking bread, pastry — of vanilla, nutmeg, and frying of eggs and cutlets.
Bangalore’s culinary diversity constantly kept evolving and expanding as people increasingly ate out and diners became adventurous in their choice of food. Many orthodox families sampled new fare using unfamiliar ‘English’ vegetables — potato, tomato, peas, cauliflower and such. On the other, the English found joy in cooking with an overwhelming array of local herbs and spices.
In the 19th century when visitors came to the City, it was the tradition in old Bangalore to offer free shelter and food at dharmashalas and choultries. With increasing arrivals, it wasn’t long before roadside sale of snacks turned into formal restaurants. In the late 1800s, Bangalore saw the mushrooming of eateries — particularly around the Fort area. The first non-Brahmin hotel came up in 1920.
In time, eateries that served lamb and chicken but not beef or pork qualified as ‘Hindu Military Hotels’. Though they did not have lodging or boarding, the nomenclature stuck. The ‘military’ tag suggested a protein rich diet — the food of the robust kshathiraya or warrior class. Framed pictures of deities with lighted incense sticks and oil lamp ensured the place was indeed, ‘Hindu’.
‘Military hotels’ that sprung up in those early days often were hugely popular even without as much as a decent name board. Fame spread by word of mouth or the appetizing aromas of cooking.
It was the time when customers left their footwear outside the eateries, washed their feet and hands at nearby tap or well, before settling down on the floor, on reed mats or wooden boards to ‘take’ their meals. Food was served on round reed-knitted dry istri leaves, payasam in dhonnays, (cups made of the same dried leaves). Steaming hot biryani, curries and side dishes were served from metal patrays and buckets. After rice-rasam and rice-curds, meals ended with yelaki bananas and paan. All food was cooked on wood fire and had a ‘smoky, homely’ flavour.
In the 70s, there were several popular eateries. The Naidu Military Hotel in Balepet and Ramaswamy’s in Quadrant Circle near the old Palace Theatre and Seppings Road, for example attracted droves of diners. There were other more formal ‘military hotels’ that had bars. Lobo’s on Central Street turned out superb coastal fare and vindaloo.
The 70-year old Dewars on Cockburn Road, near the Cantt. station, noted for its consistently tasty and inexpensive ‘Hindu military’ dishes has been popular with many generations. Its cane furniture in the main hall is as much a hallmark of the place as are the pictures of Queen Elizabeth and the royal family behind the bar counter, sharing revered space with a pantheon of Hindu deities.
Today the City offers an impressive range of time-honoured cuisine served in modest to plush upscale settings. From upper Karnataka — jolatha rotis, akki rotis and such to coastal delicacies of the Malnad and Konkan region — kori roti, iddiappams, gussy, seafood, sorpotels, vindaloos and xacuti. Perennial favourites of the maidan area — ragi mudde, idli, dosa and rice are often served with non-veg side dishes and curries in ambiences that have shiny brass lamps, wooden pillars and the fragrance of fresh jaji, gundu and sooji mali.
Has the ‘fine dining’, international cuisine, hep new cafés and the dining culture of the hi-tech megapolis pushed the good old ‘Hindu military hotels’ in their original form, style and nostalgic history to obscure parts of the City if not dustbin of history? Take a second look. Just about everywhere in the city, like pizza-delivery boys, two-wheelers riders with hot cases make home deliveries of biryanis. Glitzy neon-lit restaurants with veena music put out traditional spicy hot meals prompting the question: Is this the new avatar of the old Bangalore Hindu Military Hotel?
Janardhan Roye
Goli maaro
What is round, light as air and addictive? This is no tough riddle for those who hail from Udupi. “What else but goli bajji” they’ll say without batting a lid! This deep-fried maida preparation with a hint of coriander, onions, chillies and a dash of salt is the favourite evening snack of many who have had a stint of any kind with Udupi or its neighbouring areas.
“I still remember those days when my friends and I would gather at a chai shop near my college at the end of each day and snack on countless goli bajjis over mindless conversations,” reminisces an ex-student of Manipal Institute of Communication, Manipal.
On a humourous note, “I love goli bajjis because you can pop in any number of them into your mouth without feeling full, the chutney that comes with them is so yummy and they are good for food fights!” jokes Avinash Ramchander, content manager, Worldspace.
But Krishnakumar, partner, Adigas Fast Food, Jayanager, is very serious about how popular this food item is with Bangaloreans. “We offer goli bajjis on just one day of the week. People really look forward to it. We sell as many as 1200 goli bajjis on that day,” he reveals.
“My father late N Gopal Holla ‘invented’ the goli bajji in 1949. He was a good cook himself and was in charge of the food catering in the Mutt during the Paryaya festival where there would be as many as 25,000 people present for the temple meal. That is when he created this munchy. It was loved so much, that he decided to make it a regular feature in our hotel,” says Achuth Holla, proprietor, Mitra Samaj, Udupi.
According to Holla, Mitra Samaj sells a thousand plates of goli bajjis a day. A plate of goli bajji there will cost Rs 7. Holla mentions how others have tried to replicate the goli bajjis of Mitra Samaj, only in vain “This food item is a favourite all over Karnataka and is available in a lot of places here, but no one makes it like we do,” he smiles.
The goli bajji made in Mitra Samaj was devoid of onion and garlic for religious reasons, since the hotel is located in the vicinity of the Udupi Mutts. But there are variations of it available in other places where these two ingredients are very much a part of the recipe. Goli bajji is available in most eateries in Bangalore. Best eaten hot, they are a happy solution for the woes that sometimes accompany the rainy weather.
Goli bajjis are also known as ‘Mangalore bajjis’ by those outside of Udupi. Coconut chutney, mint chutney or even tomato ketchup go well with them apart from a piping hot cup of coffee or tea, and a palate that’s craving for it like crazy!
Priyanka Haldipur
Mysore’s melting moments
Showcasing the city of palaces along with the Mysore silk, mallige, sandalwood and Dasara is the famous Mysore Pak.
The sweet which has made a place for itself in the popularity charts throughout the country and abroad, was first prepared in the kitchen of the Mysore Maharaja.
Says Nataraj, the great grandson of Kakasura Madappa, proud founder of this sweet meat, “Mysore Pak was prepared during festivals to please the taste buds of the then King Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar. It was almost 90 years ago that the Mysore Pak was first prepared.”
The king who relished the taste of the sweet felt the need for it to be made available to his people and thus insisted that it be sold outside. Following this, Madappa set up Deshikendra Sweets, a shop on Ashoka Road, through which the Dasara procession used to pass, and people gathered in large numbers to watch the same.
Following the popularity and increase in the demand for the sweet, Madappa’s son Basavanna set up Guru Sweet Mart — now synonymous with the ghee soaked sweet — in 1957 on Sayajji Rao Road. “Mysore Pak is something I dote on. Be it Dasara or Deepavali, Mysore Pak is the preferred sweet. And from generations my family has been buying the sweet from Guru Sweets. They were the founders of the sweet and but natural that they are the best,” says Kusuma, a regular at the shop.
“Quality is our USP,” says Kumar, who along with his three brothers, is running the establishment. We have three expert cooks preparing the sweet everyday at our home kitchen. What adds to the taste is that we prepare the sweet using coal for fire and not gas.
Nataraj, one of the owners, elaborates on the making process. “We first boil water and add sugar to it. Once the desired amount of thickness is reached or the pak is formed, turmeric powder is added to give the colour. Then gram flour prepared in our mill is added along with ghee. Last comes elaichi for that extra flavour.” To prepare six kgs of Myosre Pak, they use one litre of sugar, one kg of flour, three-and-a-half to four kgs of ghee. The process takes about 45 minutes. “Once the sweet is made it is poured into a tray. We take it to the shop and serve it in blocks,” he adds.
“The pak available here is awesome. It just melts in your mouth and the taste lingers on for a while. It is your money’s worth,” says Ajay. Neena, who has her own firm in Mysore, prefers to order this sweet during her board meets as the sweet is an integral part of Mysore’s tradition and culture and she wishes to showcase the same to her clients from other parts of the country.
“The sweet is the first choice during marriages and other important social ceremonies. It is one of the richest sweets and something that needs to be served during special occasions, so what if it means extra calories,” says Akshaya, another Mysore Pak loyalist. While, it is about melting moments for these people, it is the satisfaction of being a part of happy times of the lives of people for Gunda, a cook, who takes private orders.
Nandini’s neatly packed Mysore Pak, butter and ordinary paks (made using dalda and is a little harder) available at Bombay Tiffany’s, Indra Café or with private cooks at Agrahara — next time you are in Mysore and want to carry back the ‘sweet’ moments, you know where to go.
Shruti I L
Belgaum’s sweet success story
Traditionally known as the ‘sugar bowl’ of Karnataka, Belgaum has been one of biggest producers of sugarcane. The sugar produced in abundance is exported to several countries. Perhaps, this ‘sweet production’ must have prompted many businessmen in the region to prepare various kinds of sweet products over the years.
Besides its sweets, Belgaum is also known for its biryani. The sweet products prepared by several North Indian families for over six decades are in great demand worldover, so much so that orders are placed over the Internet!
Kardant and Kunda are two delicious sweets produced in large quantities everyday in Belgaum district. At least 27 sweet marts are owned by the Purohit family alone in Belgaum. The Purohits hail from parts of Rajasthan and migrated to Belgaum decades ago.
Belgaum kunda, a sweet prepared from milk and khowa, is a clear favourite and is produced by several local sweet merchants besides the Purohits.
Belgaum kunda also has an interesting history that can be traced back to the times of Gajanan Mithaiwala, who set up his sweet shop six decades ago in Belgaum. Referred to as Jakku Marwadi Mithaiwala, he came from Rajasthan and set up a sweet shop at Shahpur area.
Kunda is prepared purely from milk and khowa. A correct quantity of khowa and sugar has to be mixed in milk before boiling it. Once the mixture starts boiling, it has to be continuously stirred until it takes a solid form.
According to members of the Purhoit family, the discovery of this sweet was quite incidental. Once Jakku Marwadi was boiling milk in his kitchen. In a hurry, he forgot to switch the stove off and the milk continued boiling for a long time. Gradually, the milk had taken a solid form by the time Jakku Marwadi came back to switch the stove off.
When he tasted the solid form of milk, it tasted sweet. Then, he mixed some khowa into the milk and started boiling it for long hours. This time the taste was even better. A happy Marwadi gave the sweet a name — calling it kunda.
Atul Purohit, owner of Atul Purohit Sweet Mart, sells at least 150 kgs of kunda everyday. “My kunda has been popular among several Bollywood stars as well, including Jaya Bachchan. Many people across Mumbai are my regular customers,” he claims.
Kardant, a vitamin-rich sweet made from jaggery and dry fruits, took shape in Gokak town, 60 km from Belgaum, at least a hundred years ago. A high quality kardant of Gokak is also exported to several parts of Europe, America, and the Gulf nations. Sadanand Sweets, one of the noted names in Gokak, has created statewide counters for kardant, with at least 10 outlets in Bangalore alone. The high-quality kardant of Gokak is sold at Rs 300 a kg.
About 100 years ago, noted sweet merchants from Gokak — Kalburgi and Hagargi families — introduced this sweet, which only a few could afford to eat. Earlier, kardant was prepared mostly as a nutritious diet for new mothers. Over the years, these families started experimenting with it and added more ingredients to make kardant more popular.
Besides a variety of dry fruits like cashew, badam, pista, dry grapes and other ingredients, pure jaggery is a must to prepare good quality kardant.
The Gokak kardant gained wide popularity only after Sadanand Sweets Mart was opened by Devarmani family a few decades ago. The manual processing took a pause as Sadanand Sweets introduced electronically-operated machines to prepare kardant. At present, at least two quintals of kardant is prepared by the Devarmani family every alternate day. “The production of kardant largely depends on demand. At times, we have to produce more than the usual amount,” says Shankar Devarmani, owner of Sadanand Sweet Mart.
Naushad Bijapur in Belgaum and R M Kalyanshetti in Gokak
