In the second episode of our Uttarakhand food tour series, we have travelled to the two most famous tourist destinations Mussoorie and Landour. The former is a popular hill station is in the foothills of the Garhwal Himalayan range, that was discovered in 1815. The latter is a military cantonment that is considered to be part of 'Greater Mussoorie'. In this food trail, we were accompanied by Lokesh Ohri, a noted anthropologist, cultural activist and flaneur.
Before leaving for Mussoorie from Dehradun, we stopped at Sri Prakasheswar Mahadev Mandir to pray. It is the place where Anubhav used to walk up to during his school days for having the prasad.
Our first stop in Mussoorie was Lovely Omelette Centre that probably serves one of the best omelettes not only in the region. The stall is a favourite among tourists and locals alike. We tried their famous cheese omelette that was indeed an amazing omelette with bread and cheese slices. The perfectly done omelette was a perfect thing to try in the pleasant weather of the town.
The next stop was Chick Chocolate, where we had landed to try the Stick Jaw Toffees. These sugar and milk-based toffees are so sticky in nature that it just binds your teeth on eating them.
From there we went to The Rice Bowl or Amitash Restaurant, another celebrated name in the town. They are popular for Tibetan, Bhutanese and Thai cuisine. Here we tried Chicken Mokthuk and Chicken Baikrapao. Check out the details in the video. Both the dishes were quite delicious.
Our next stop was Landour, which was half an hours drive from Mussoorie. There our halt was Char Dukan, a place where there are a lot of old and new eateries. We first went to Tip-Top tea point for their fabled pancake and bun omelette. The cinnamon pancake was phenomenal while the bun omelette was decent too. We also got to hear some stories about the place from the genial owner.
Next, we went to Anil’s cafe in the same line whose Nutella Waffles are the best. The waffles were warm and crisp and the gooey and decadent Nutella on top just elevated its irresistibly.
The last stop of our trail was A Prakash & Co at Sisters Bazaar, a name that everyone in Landour reckons with when it comes to jams, preserves and some bakery items. We loved the cinnamon roll with orange ginger marmalade. Do try their products if you visit the place.
Soon it was time to wrap up this pleasant food tour that was full of international dishes and their gratifying flavours, picturesque and postcard-perfect vistas and some intriguing anecdotes from the bygone era. Heartiest gratitude to Lokesh Ohri and team BTDT for their support, insights, hospitality and enthusiasm.