Streetfood: Babu Bhai Kabab Wale (1465B near Masjid Sayed Rafai, Chitli Qabar, Jama Masjid, Delhi)

In a nutshell:

Superb unstoppable chatpata dhaga kababs in a neat & clean tiny ‘hole in the wall’- something that is not worth a miss – my tastebuds gave the kababs a standing ovation.

YUMM dhaga kabab – streetfood near jama masjid, Delhi

Address & other Details: Get into the lane perpendicular to Gate no. 1 of Jama Masjid. Keep walking till u reach a ‘y’ point. Take the road on the left – almost in the same direction as u were walking. U will find Mohd. Shakir, the current owner of the stall, making kababs on ur right hand side from a neat & clean white ‘hole in the wall’. U may also call 01123244205, 9899362993 – I am not confident though that someone will respond.

The smartest thing to do is to take a rickshaw & entrust him with all the above details. U shud be there in not much time.

Meal for 2: Rs. 60 onwards (each kabab for Rs. 6)

Cuisine Type: Nonvegetarian

Short Description – In case u r in a hurry:

Its a ‘one man show’ – Shakir Bhai, as he is known here, sits on a low platform with a neat & clean metal sigri (barbeque) & sells what he calls ‘dhaga kababs’ (dhaga means thread). When he is not around, his brother is the solo guy.

He has a thick bunch of leaves that look like paan leaves stacked on one side. On the other, he has a ‘gumla’ (vessel) full of spiced up meat paste. Almost mechanically he picks up some paste, rolls it around the sheekh, wraps it up with a cotton thread & tears off the thread with such ease & speed as if it were no thread, puts it on the barbeque, adjusts the coal, fans the barbeque, rotates the kababs so that they cook uniformly, served the same on a plate, takes the money, returns the change & also takes back the ‘used plate’ !!!!!!!

He uses charcoal to fire the barbeque & the ‘sheekhs’ (metal rods) used by him for making the kabab are thick & made of steel.

He also caters to Marriages & parties in which case the offering widens – sheekh kabab, shami kabab, chicken, fish & paneer tikka, chicken & fish fry & also rumali roti. I am sure those are made at his home & delivered.

He told us very casually that the shop has been around since ‘before 1947’ but I spotted maybe the sense of ‘accomplishment’ in his eyes. As we started chatting up with him, we found that he has been doing this himself for last 22 years (he was in school then) – started with assisting his father.

Needless to say, the kabab was outstanding.

Detailed description – In case u have the time to njoy reading:

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yummrajJuly 9, 2012December 8, 201218 Comments

Indian, Mughlai, streetfood

Chatori Gali, Bhopal – Street food

In a nutshell:

Utopia for meat lovers , this gali (street) is full of tiny shops selling fish & meat dishes with strong & rustic flavors & taste at prices that u wud have heard ur grandfather talk about.

Address & other details: Just get into an autorickshaw & ask for Chatori Gali. U will b transported there. It seemed as easy as asking any public transport driver in Agra to take u to Taj Mahal !!!!

There is a small parking that can accomodate 10 – 12 cars just opposite Chatori Gali – In case u prefer to take a car.

Meal for 2: Rs. 70 onwards

prices so low that even ur Grandfather wud compare with his college days.

Cuisine Type: Nonvegetarian

Short Description – In case u r in a hurry:

This place is just a road on which there are small shops on both sides that sell YUMM meat & fish products at very low price & high volumes. Everything here is very chatpata in taste – rustic, robust.

For those of u who go by the hygiene displayed by the Restaurant / the shop, u will b disappointed. Its different that in the kitchen of many (not all) Restaurants, it is not very neat & clean – the only difference is that u do not get to see that.

For those of u who r frightened to eat fried food or food with fat in them, this is not the right place. BUT, if u r one of those who believe in pampering ur tastebuds & then work out harder to burn those extra calories, then this is the place.

the corner shop with a rotating chicken roasting machine

The people at the counters are quite friendly & ‘to the point’. But as I always say, they do not undergo modern day ‘Retail Management Training ‘ that preaches ‘Customer is the King’ etc. So they behave with u in a one to one basis & treat u as another person they r dealing with & not a ‘Customer’. So if u r friendly, that is reciprocated & vice versa.

Marinated meats & fishes are displayed in front of u & are made on request right in front of u. So there is almost nothing that is made & stored.