ZEE JLF 2019: A lowdown on eat street – A mouthful of Rajasthani delicacies

With just a few days to go for the Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF), the city is ready to welcome people from all over the world. And, when you style yourself as the best in hospitality business, with your tourism hinged around the Padhao Mhare Des (Come over to my country) campaign, the one thing that has to be par excellence is food that covers the whole spectrum of the indigenous Asian cuisine to a continental spread that caters to the cultivated tastes of a global audience in attendance at the five-day fest. 

To make your stay memorable and for you to explore authentic food that combines the best of both worlds – Rajasthan’s staple and popular food from beyond our shores – AfterHrs guides you to the go-to places to eat, taking you through the menus of the hottest and the most sought-after joints, those that offer the best of traditional spread and the ones specializing in a more exhaustive platter that brings the Mexican and Chinese world of food on the same table along with the and universal English breakfast. Don’t google for the best. Here’s what you should be looking out for, when in Jaipur. 

When you are in the Pink City, there are a few things that one just cannot afford to miss, like the famous pyaaz ki kachori (Fried Indian bread with onion filling), lassi (butter milk), ghevar (traditional sweet dish), laal maans (mutton cooked in red chilli curry) and dal baati choorma (Baked wheat balls served with lentil). 

City’s known food connoisseur, Dharmendar Kanwar suggested that tourists visiting the city for the literature festival should not miss out on the Rajasthani cuisine as well as street food. “They should taste Rajasthani food like the dal bati choorma. Talking about street food, one cannot miss the pyaaz ki kachori, lassi, aloo tikki and samosa. For non-vegetarians, there’s laal maans — the much talked about dish. Also, there are many eateries in C-Scheme if one wishes to have other cuisines,” she added. 

The pyaaz ki kachori of Jaipur is to die for, and the best of kachoris are found at the Rawat Mishthan Bhandar located at Sindhi Camp. If you are short on time and don’t wish to spend your time in a queue outside the sweetshop near the central bus stand in Sindhi Camp, you can check out similar offerings at the outlets of Sodhani Sweets and Jodhpur Mishthan Bhandar, which can be found next to the place of your lodging as these have multiple outlets in the city. 

The other must-have is the lassi. There are several on the Mirza Ismail Road, the central spine segregating the Walled City from the new. But the original one is housed in a corner outlet opposite the iconic restaurant, Niros. Ask for the regular kullhad (earthen glass) cause it’s going to be heavy and topped with cream. 

One thing you should not have trouble hunting down is the famous sweet Ghevar. This is an out-and-out Jaipur specialty that finds its way in the market around this time and the festive season. It looks like a bird nest made from all-purpose flour and dipped in sugar syrup. If you are in Jaipur you won’t be short of options on ghevar purchase. But your trip isn’t complete if you haven’t had the chance to taste the delectable sweet dish from the Laxmi Mishthan Bhandar aka LMB inside the Walled City. The sweet and crispy jalebis with hot milk or rabri is irresistible.

You can also take in the rustic aroma of the hot kulhad chai at any of the outlets inside the Old City. Kulhad Chai is also served on the premises of the Diggi Palace, the festival venue, where you can indulge in the milk tea if you don’t have the time to hop out for a while.  

Apart from these popular snacks, there are eateries you can pay a visit to for satiating your appetite. After finishing the hectic day at the fest, you can pamper yourself with mouth-watering dishes of Rajasthan like dal baati with sugary churma and missi roti cooked in pure ghee with the flavour of traditional spices at Virasat Hotel. If one wants to try the authentic laal maans, one needs to check into  the Spice Court restaurant situated at Civil Lines, Jammie’s Kitchen in Vaishali Nagar or the good old Niros.

Apart from the local delicacies, if you want to gorge on some firangi (foreign) food, you can visit cafes that are all not very far from the venue. These include the Anokhi cafe, OTH (On The House) which serves only continental, Home Cafe, Cafe Bae, and Tapri (tea house) among others. 

For a relaxed evening with drinks and a nice vibe, after you’re exhausted from a day full of literature, one can check into Bar Palladio, Shikaar Bagh, Asteria and Nayla Bagh among others. We hope you have a yummy time at JLF!

LAL MAAS, KACHORI & GHEWAR

• Talking about street food, one cannot miss the pyaaz ki kachori, lassi, aloo tikki and samosa. For non-vegetarians, there’s laal maans — the much talked about dish, which is a Rajasthani legend.
   
• One thing you should not have trouble hunting down is the famous sweet Ghevar. This is an out-and-out Jaipur specialty that finds its way in the market around this time.
   
• Apart from the local delicacies, if you want to gorge on some firangi (foreign) food, you can visit cafes that are all not very far from the venue.