Vadodara, a city in Gujarat is known for its very high-spirited culture. It is visible through the innovations done by locals eventually making the people of this land big time foodies!
Vadodara, a city in Gujarat is known for its very high-spirited culture. It is visible through the innovations done by locals eventually making the people of this land big time foodies!
Vadodara is both peaceful and rushed amidst some old buildings, high rising trees, chirping people and colourful markets. To be in this place is an experience of its own.
Kudos to how clean and developed the city looks!
Now, let's explore the wide variety of lip-smacking foods Vadodara has to offer!
Kathiyawadi Dishes at Kathiyawadi Khadki- You could try a huge Kathiyawadi Thali. This has three different sabjis, two chutneys, two sweet dishes, chopped onions, two rotis (breads) lathered with ghee and one glass of buttermilk. It is a very bulky meal but a reminder of a typical Indian food that you eat either during afternoon or at night.
One ‘Sabji’ is of potatoes, the other of eggplant and the third one of ‘Sev’ in tomato gravy. All are worth the time with corn and millet rotis. There’s an additional sweet ‘sabji’ called ‘Tur’. ‘Tur’ is very special to the entire Gujarat for both gravy based form and snacking form of it.
To mention, Sri Khand, a sweet dish, is found in literally every household of Gujarat. It is curd basically. The one served at Kathiyawadi Khadki has a Kesari (Saffron) and cardamom flavour to it. It is very delicious! Second one is the Atta (Wheat Flour) Ladoo. It is very nutty and grainy in texture and is sprinkled with poppy seeds.
We doubt you'll be left with any space in your stomach after eating all this!
* ‘Sev’ is long, thin strands of gram flour deep fried. Some 20 to 25 years back from now, Gujarat used to be a very dry state with vegetables taking time to grow. So, ‘Sev’ ki sabji was an alternative to it. Usually, Indian sabjis have vegetables and gravy in them, so this is something new!
Price- Approximately INR 700 for 2 people.
Samosa Sandwich at Vishal Samosa Sandwich- A Samosa is a deep fried triangular patty with a filling of spicy potatoes. Here, it is crushed between two white breads and topped with some green chutney, roughly chopped onions and sev. The sev and the shell of samosa (which is made from refined flour or maida) adds to the crispiness of this sandwich. It is not chewy and spicy like the rest of the sandwiches. This one has that crunch in it!
Price- INR 30- 100 per plate.
Sev Usal at Mahakali Sev Usal Shop- Sev Usal at this shop is very flavourful! It is all spicy, tangy and sweet. It is a bowl which has boiled chickpeas, stew of dal and thick sev in it. It is topped with curd and chopped beans known as ‘Sem’.
To your liking, there are additional red and green chutneys with lemon water to moderate or enhance the flavours.
It is eaten with puffed bread shallow fried with or without butter.
Price- INR 60- 80 per plate.
Ice Creams at Rajasthani Ice Cream Parlour- It is funny how this shop has got nothing to do with Rajasthan but has still kept the name! It is probably because it is inspired by all Rajasthan’s flavours and colours. This shop looks very simple but it has some really good innovations!
They have jackfruit flavour, mawa flavour, ‘paan’ flavour, ginger- honey, modak (a sweet served to Ganesha in Maharashtra), blackberry flavour ice cream and the list goes on.
If we get into the flavours, Modak and Guava are definitely a must try! The guava ice cream has red chilly powder sprinkled over it. It just tastes like the fruit itself! Modak again, if you have tried them, you’ll know the ice cream is heaven!
The Mawa one has a very nutty texture, the Indian blackberry one is sprinkled with black salt and you can feel very tiny chunks of it in the ice cream. The paan flavour is to try at the last. It is going to give you the best feeling ever!
You really can’t get enough of these! It is like a rich, diverse ice cream platter.
Price- INR 60 per scoop.
Butter Crush Omelette at Raju Omelette- This omelette for anyone will be butter, loads of butter and butter with egg, hahaha! But it is definitely something to drool for! It has the right blend of spices in it, there is chopped garlic, tomatoes, chilly and some shredded cheese. It is served with two soft, butter (again hahaha!) fried buns.
Fun Fact- Raju Omelette is an international chain. The owner started with selling 13 varieties of omelette on a cart and now it has reached the USA, Thailand, Dubai and Japan.
Price- 150- 200 per item.
Ragda Pattice at Dayal Pattice Shop- This is more like a ‘Chaat’. It has a fried patty made up of bread and mashed potatoes and the filling has gram flour mixed with spices. On top of it, a gravy of spicy chickpeas is poured. To add to the colours and decoration, some chutney and chopped onions are put.
Gujaratis like to have a light meal at night, so this is one of their go to dishes. It could be a little spicy for some people but it is yum (in big bold letters)!
Price- INR 30 per plate.
Lilo Chevdo at Jagdish Farshan- Gujarat in no underestimation whatsoever is the land of snacks or ‘Farsan’. Farsan is the Gujarati term for dry snacks. Every meal here is incomplete without it!
You could try a range of dry snacks from bhakarwadi to a variety of chevdos, but you will find Lilo Chevdo to be the best. It is also the most popular in Gujarat. It is something which is crunchy yet it melts in the mouth. Definitely a must try namkeen (salty) snack!
*Jagdish Farshan is the only owner of Lilo Chevdo and the whole of Gujarat knows it!
Price- INR 160 for 500 gms of Lilo Chevdo.
Mann Shanti Handvo and Dhokla House- Handvo is like a fluffy pancake made up of multi grain flour and has a very batter- like consistency to it. It is tampered with sesame seeds and mustard seeds.
There are masalas, some vegetables and peanuts. Its base ingredient is all kinds of dals and rice fermented with curd.
It is served in a compartmentalized steel plate with three chutneys- one sweet, the other spicy and the third one tangy.
It is very interesting to watch ‘A One Man Army Show’. The reference here is to the way it is cooked. There’s one man making 21 handvos at one time, mixing, flipping and doing everything. Might as well learn some multi-tasking!
Price- INR 50-80 per plate.
There’s obviously more to Vadodara's innovative and authentic foods. Explore our entire Vadodara Food Guide.
