Inspired by Akhil's this post, I have finally decided to come out of the closet and declare my love for Bangalore's variegated South Indian eating joints.Bangalore has this concept of Darshinis-which are small eating joints where one would usually have a quick breakfast or a cup of coffee for very nominal prices.Darshinis are optimized for the morning rush hour crowd and you would usually find everyone from college students to Business execs jostling for a bite of that crisp Vada and a swig of that hot aromatic South Indian coffee.Because of the low cost model of such places,there are usually tables at which people stand and eat.You pay for your order beforehand.I have seen Darshinins only in South Indian cities and this is one 0f the things I would like to see in North Indian cities- a place where you could have breakfast on the fly without spending a lot of moolah and wasting a lot of time.In my 5 years in Bangalore,I have been to numerous such places but my favourite would always be-Brahmin's Coffee Bar in Shankarapuram.This easily beats other also-rans in this category by a mile.BCB is basically a garage converted in to a kitchen at the back and an open area at the front with a counter just in front of the kitchen.It was started by two bored engineers in the 70's who realized that they could make a profitable business out of this sort of an enterprise.BCB opens at 7AM and closes at 12PM.It then again opens at 4PM and closes by 7PM.These are the timings from Monday to Saturday and BCB is ( very famously) closed on Sundays.So either you make BCB a part of your daily routine or you make time for it on Saturday evenings.BCB's menu consists of six items:
1.Idli
2.Vade/Vada
3.Kharabath
4.Kesaribath
5.Coffee
6.Tea
7.Butter(optional with your idlis)
Because it is usually very crowded,you have to make sure that you have made up your mind when you go up to the guy sitting just outside who hands out the tokens.Then you step inside the shop which would usually be choc-a-bloc with(if its in the morning)joggers,people carrying large bags for parcels,college students(usually NHS and Jain college students-who have deserted Food street in droves and chow down here these days) and lots of people in safari suits.I have seen many a swanky car parked near BCB-just gets to prove that BCB is popular not only among us lesser mortals but also among moneyed folks.When you reach the counter,you are supposed to state clearly what your order is when handing over the token to the guy over the counter.This is to make sure that the order is dispatched as quickly as possible and no time is wasted in reading and interpreting the order.As soon as you get your order,you trudge out carefully,trying not to spill the contents of your plate and go outside and set your plate on one of the tables or hold it in your hand.If you run out of chutney,you don't have to go back all the way to the counter again as there is 'uncle' with cups of chutney waiting for you under the tree near the shop.Once you are done with the mouth-watering idlis or whatever you are having,you go inside once again to get the coffee.The coffee is brewed from a copper decocotion filter which looks pretty antique but serves the purpose and you usually ask for two glasses as the glass is too hot to be held.You can have all kinds of combinations depending upon the number of people for whom the order is meant including the ubiquitous By-2(which literally means one standard size coffee in two glasses).I have heard pretty complicated orders like 4 by 7 and have never seen the coffee guy bat an eyelid!The only caveat is that BCB is priced a bit on the higher side,with one coffee costing Rs. 8 but in the end the taste just makes up for the assault on the pocket.I vouch that nobody can make Vadas like BCB.
I discovered BCB when I was in final year and the moment I tasted the idli,I was hooked.Usually BCB would be the first stop in the long rambling walks that I would take in college days.I would head out from college on KR Road and walk pass the BAC(Basvangudi Aquatic Centre) and reach BCB where I would have a leisurely coffee and finaces permitting,a plate of idli vada.Then I would take a walk around the shop lined with opulent houses and quiet streets that makes Shankarapuram one my favourite places in Bangalore.I would walk for about an hour and muse about a lot of things and many happy memories of college times are tied with these walks.Always used to give me a lot of solace.
So now you people know what you are missing if you are in Bangalore and what to look out for when you are next here.Here is a pic of the place on a very crowded Saturday morning.
