Biryani club resumes meetups and walks

Started by three friends five years ago, the Bengaluru group has members across age groups

Launched in 2017, Bengaluru Biryani Club (BBiC) conducts walks and meetups in and around Bengaluru. Today, it has over 64,000 members on Facebook and 37,000 on Instagram.

Bengaluru’s love for biryani isn’t a secret and this shared love brought Vinay Nagaraju, Renukesh Bingeri and Navneeth T together, to start the club.

From Kolkata’s famous biryani with potatoes to Andhra’s extra spicy biryani, you will find varieties of this mixed rice dish in the city. “In addition, locally, biryani changes every 50 km. Even though the changes are minute, every community tends to have their own version,” says Vinay.

The group aims to build a community and bring together biryani lovers. “We noticed there was no group dedicated to the dish. A group dedicated to biryani makes it easier to filter out all the recommendations. This way, people can find a list of good biryani spots in one search. We have a rule — only discussions about biryani are allowed on the group. Discussions about other food items and dishes will automatically get filtered out,” he tells Metrolife.

In addition to Facebook and Instagram groups, BBiC is also active on WhatsApp. It has members across all age groups — from eight to 80-year-olds.

“As the club grew, so did the members’ enthusiasm. We actively post across platforms, where our members share recommendations, interesting facts about eateries, and unexplored places. We also have admins who encourage and moderate discussions online,” adds the 38-year-old.

The focus lies on the heritage of the biryani and local eateries, which is seen even in the walks conducted by the group.

“So far, we’ve conducted over 15 biryani walks and meetups for large groups. We try to not repeat restaurants,” he says. Each meetup consists of 50 to 200 members, and costs between Rs 250 and Rs 450 per individual. “We try to have a closed event at the restaurant,” Vinay adds. So far, some of the places BBiC has visited include Shivaji Military Hotel, Naati Cafe, Nandhini Restaurant, and Sharief Bhai.

Naati (country-style) cuisine is a fan favourite in Bengaluru, informs Vinay. “Due to increased requests, our next biryani walk will probably be to one of the Naati style restaurants. We are also planning a trip to one of the 6 am biryani joints on the city outskirts. The early morning drives are another favourite,” he says.

In addition to these meetups, the group has also conducted fundraisers for relief projects in Kodagu and Kerala in the past.

Due to the pandemic, the walks became less frequent. However, they will be more regular in 2023, he adds.

*For details about the group, check Bengaluru Biryani Club on Facebook and Instagram.

Meet Beer and Biryani, the newest drool club in town

Akash Devaraju, founder of Local Ferment Co and an ardent biryani lover, organised an impromptu biryani walk in January. He set it up with the help of a fellow Twitter user and friend (@_waabi_saabi_). “When we put up the biryani walk post on Twitter, the response was tremendous. In just 48 hours, we had over 90 people who were interested. But we could only accomodate 15-20 people,” he tells Metrolife.

Encouraged by the enthusiasm of Bengalureans, Akash has decided to organise more biryani walks. Called ‘Beer and Biryani’, he has started a WhatsApp group for the rapidly growing group of biryani lovers.

“The walk includes two secret biryani locations that are a surprise for all participants. I try to choose biryani joints that are hidden gems or are offering something different from the typical naati or Meghana’s style biryani,” says Akash.

In addition, the walk also includes an informative walk through the lanes of Russell Market, and it ends with a round of beer at a nearby pub.

He plans to organise more biryani walks in February and March.

*For details, contact 96117 79901, or message @SkyKOG on Twitter.