The never-ending joys of simple street food

The never-ending joys of simple street food
S Kushala | TNN


The aroma of ghee wafts through to the end of the road, and draws you into the choked, not-soclean lane of Nagarathpet. After 8 pm, it’s a different world out here. In front of the downed shutters of gold, silver and saree shops in the popular business district of Chickpet and Avenue Road, the dosa gaadi springs to life.
“Chatnipudi roast, ondu ghee massaaale...’’ the boy screams the order to the cook. And on the swiftly-drawn batter, the cook sprinkles chatnipudi and pours ghee generously. Once the dosa gets its brown tinge and is done, it just melts in the mouth.
FINEST DOSAS IN CITY
Undoubtedly, Nagaraj, the chef-cum-owner, tosses up one of the finest dosas in the city. His chatnipudi ghee-roast dosa is awesome. Just forget your calorie count while treating your tastebuds here! Nagaraj has been on the Nagarathpet main road since 25 years, and is following the family tradition. His father, who was also into the dosa-idli business, introduced the South Indian delicacies to the Marwadi families living around.
Nagaraj’s cart chugs in after 8 pm and he serves food up to 11 pm. In the narrow lane, one finds it tough to negotiate on certain days when families come in swanky cars and park on either side. The other dosa varieties — ghee masala, onion dosa and chitranna dosa, and fluffy idlis are Nagaraj’s USP.
Chitranna dosa — a peculiar combination with lime rice filling in the dosa — is also a favourite among late eaters. It makes for a full dinner, and is also cost-effective.
Street food does not necessarily mean cheap food. Nagaraj’s prices are no lower than a hotel’s — a plain dosa starts at Rs 13 and chatnipudi-ghee roast is Rs 25 upwards.
How to reach the place: take the lane next to KR Market into Avenue Road. After Raja Market is a small junction, take a right. You will see several dosa carts. The most-crowded one is Nagaraj’s. If you are coming from Hudson Circle, take the road behind the LIC building and you will hit the dosa cart.
What to eat: don’t miss chatnipudi-ghee roast. Taste steaming, soft idlis.
If you are looking at a complete meal, once the dosa-idlis are done, check out the adjacent carts for Bombay sandwich, golgappa, jalebi or badam milk. The beeda can be the finale. Avoid when it rains. If you can still hop over the slush, venture forward for great food and time...