In today's episode let's take you to some popular street food stops in Kanpur for breakfast. The first stop is Pahalwan Ji Makhan Wale at Phoolbag. This place is a favourite haunt of the locals, mostly the health freak youths. Many people might differ, but homemade white butter is considered to be a healthy food item and hence has been a part of the food tradition since ancient times. The place started as a makhan and chaas stall and today it has evolved into a bun makhaan and chaas stall with a contemporary twist introduced by the current owners who are into wrestling. They have a delightful variety of buns and breads that are served with dollops of white butter and spice mix. We loved their flaxseed and sesame seeds encrusted multi grain honey bun.
The second stop was Banarasi Mishtan Bhandar on Birhana Road. This sweet shop is over 75 years old and is famous for their ladoo, peda and burfi. After speaking to the owner we tried their fabled motichoor ladoo and it was an absolute work of art. The orangish yellow ball just melted in the mouth leaving behind a subtle sweet aroma of ghee. Since Holi was round the corner, we also tried some gujiya as well.
The third stop was Dar Dum tea stall. The name of this 30 year old nondescript place has an interesting story behind it. It is a combination of two favourite movies of the owner Satish-one is Shahrukh khan starrer Dar and the other is Vivek Oberoi starrer Dum. Here we had a refreshing tandoori chai.
The fourth stop was Pappu Samose Wale. Going with the evolution, they make 20 varieties of samosa with fascinating traditional and fusion stuffings. No wonder this place is a huge hit with the locals who are always keen to relish new things. We tried their malai paneer samosa which was pretty decent except the slightly undercooked covering.
The fifth stop was Jeetu Suhaal cart. Suhaal is a traditional dish of Kanpur and it resembles the pakwaan of the Sindhi dish dal pakwan. This crisp deep fried flatbread is crushed and mixed with semi dry black chickpea and potato curry and served. We loved it's zesty taste and texture. This shop is around 50 years old.
The sixth stop was Shankar Ji ke batashe. What makes their batashe special and fun is the piquant green coloured paste made of coriander, mint and a plenty of spices among which the predominant one is the asafoetida. This masala elevates the taste of the batase to the next level. Shankar Jo's batashe are hard to resist.
The seventh stop was Shukla Ji Makhan Bhandar. They are renowned for their malai doodh, rabri and some other classic milk based desserts. The winter special malai doodh was pretty decent as the cream had a light texture and the milk too had a thin consistency. But their saffron and pistachio flavoured rabri was just top notch.
The eighth stop was Ram Prakash Chaat Wale on Mall Road. Here you can try the aalu tikki, papdi chaat, dhaniya aalu, gadbad and a few other lip smacking options. This place is a favourite of the locals who crowd it mostly during late afternoon and evening time. We loved the aalu tikki which had a crisp potato patty topped with white pea curry, chutney and spice mix. It had a great balance of flavours
The last stop was Ramesh Paan bhandar in Nayagunj. It is an old betel shop that has a loyal fan base. Over a sada paan we got to know a few anecdotes about the place and some of the ingredients that are used here.
We hope you have a scrumptious time viewing this.