From: 9063iyerm@vms.csd.mu.edu (Murali Iyer)
Newsgroups: alt.culture.karnataka
Subject: Re: Re : Bangalore - A nostalgic retrospective
Date: 6 Nov 1992 16:37:11 GMT
Organization: Marquette University - Computer Services
Reply-To: 9063iyerm@vms.csd.mu.edu
NNTP-Posting-Host: vmsd.csd.mu.edu

In article <1992Nov5.212728.28704@seas.smu.edu>, krishna@seas.smu.edu (Sanjay Krishna) writes:
>I am by no means a conossieur of karnataka or Bangalore "hotel" oota or cuisine. 
>However my ranking of restaurants in Bangalore by individual items is as 
>follows - 
>
>       Sapna ( near Rex) - Tops for Rave idli.

Sanjay, the days of Sapna's "Tops for Rave idli" are gone, I am sad to say.
They were gone as far back as 1990, when I used to work quite close to it. I
would recommend the restaurant near Kino theatre on Platform Road for good Rave
Idlies. Also, MTR is best and is the example followed by all others. 

>       Janata ( 8th cross and Sampige, Malleswaram) - this is the best for 
>                                                  vades.

And masale dosey?

>       There is some new restaurant on Residency road - I have forgotten 
>       the name ( what's happening to me !) - masala dosa. 

Shanbhag? There are two Shanbhags there, almost next to each other near Hotel
Imperial. 

>       Trupthi  - ( behind good ole UVCE on Nrupathunga road) - Puris. 

Never had the privilege of eating there often enough to remark on that.

>
>       MTR - good in everything ?

You betcha, though I don't like their Khara Bhath (Uppittu kaNrayya) unless I
am terribly hungry.

>
>I am hoping to hear what others have to say. 
>

There used to be a highly popular cafe called "Bharat Cafe" in Jayanagar IV
block. We could get items like Pav-Bhaji, Bhel Puri, Ragda, etc., for a very
reasonable price. Later, they closed and re-opened and closed and re-opened 
and closed and re-opened..... People from my generation (1981 B.Sc - howdappa,
vayassAgi hOyithu) and from Jayanagar would perhaps remember. 

There are many restaurants which have cropped up with marble floors, tables,
etc., which have become highly popular. There is one air-conditioned,
standing-room-only "canteen" on Dr. DVG Road, called  "Upahara Darshini" which
was so busy I could never step in there. Luckily for me, my friend was the
architect-civil engineer who designed and built it, and he used his "influence"
to order some delicious kesari bhath, iDli-chaTni, uddina vaDe... everything
was tops! We had to eat it in the Nettakallappa circle bus-stop protecting our
food from the "kaagepiyya" and envious looks from bystanders!

As I said, there are many such hotels which are patronised by thousands of
people each day. I could not believe the figures when someone told me how much
their turnover per day was. 

>I would like to ask Satish Rao et al who posted about Uppinasaru etc to 
>please post the recipes and directions ( whatever way they do it). 

I second it.

>
>Sanjay 
>
>ps - Rahul, my dad tells me that the IISc canteen has apparently improved-
>     I can't believe it !. I also heard that the UVCE canteen has improved
>     This is too much !

The last I *had* to eat in the IISc canteen was when my cousin was doing his MS
there, and oh! yes, when we ventured in there during some of our cricket
matches at IISc. Not after mid-80's though, I think. We started going to one of
the hotels at the Yeshwantpur Circle, nothing worth writing home about. They
still used aluminium plates and cups which were not exactly shining. And it was
with great difficulty that we drank anything there at all. A Thums-up or Torino
or Limca was too expensive, but what the heck? We would order a soft drink. 
"loTadalli hakkoDla saar?", the waiter would ask...........

Our experiences at hotels were even more enjoyable because of the cricket team
gangs. Any game in HMT, BEL, ITI was cause enough for some of our more "lunch
oriented" colleagues to call off! "Seena, eevathu nange barakkagalla, saar.
naaLey test idhey......" daDi-Satya would be the first to whine. As his anme
suggests, food came first as fas daDi-Satya was concerned. 

Ahh! Those were the good old days. But enough rambling. 

-Murali