Street Food- what is the safest?

Uncle_Martin

Here is my dirty 2/- worth

On our first family visit to india my partner religiously avoided streets food and we ate 'veggie' in 'proper' restaurants at our pre-booked hotels until my eldest daughter made up this little ditty .... to the tune of the fruit and veg song ... ev'ry body sing ...

"One Two Three Four Five a a Day
Doing a poo the Indian way"

After that I was allowed to try the 'eggie bread' from a stall outside Agra Station and joy of joys the non-veg option on a train.
If one could justify a prejudice it would be against the food served at middle to upper class hotels and buffets ... some of these can outflank loperamide or "arse concrete" as my friend Eileen calls it. This caution does not just apply to India.

Whilst accepting it don't have to be that often. just avoid the egg curry, unless you have forgiving friends/companions (snurk snurk)

Prashant.M

Sorry Shashank, have to disagree with you. It depends. Very good food is available at all price points but it's rare. For example you will get decent Biriyani in a lot of places but excellent Biriyani will be available in maybe two or three places in the whole city.

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AwayFromHome

Hey dlesli,
Take it from me that the Richardson Taj Imports Chaat shop is not only completely authentic, but is as good or better than anything you will get in India, The ladies who make it (I've had some absolutely delightfully charming conversations with them) are Sardarnis (female Sikhs) and don't Americanize anything.
The one thing that makes street food special in India, though, is that its street food. The ambience can not be duplicated and is an essential part of the experience. Hard to describe, but you'll know what I mean when you get there.

Does anyone know if Taj Imports will ship stuff (to Austin)? I would love to get a gallon of their Pani once a fortnight.

machadinha

It really isn't. Other than y'r average mild tummy upsets (or simply some discomfort owing to last night's chillies), for many of the serious diseases we're talking about there is no immunity, period. You either get them, or you don't. The same goes for straightforward food poisoning or salmonella infections.

So it's a matter of luck more.

The usual advice applies: Check if the cook and staff look healthy and reasonably clean (and bearing in mind neither condition will necessarily live up to your standards at home. I remember the chef in one of my first hole-in-the-wall joints, in Pushkar of all places -- mostly overrun by "western"/backpacker-style places as it is --, dressed in a greasy shirt over his bulging tummy and his big bottom peeking out of his sagging pants, calling for the occasional scratching. Best food I had on several nights there.) Check if the place is popular; this not only gives a good indication that people don't fall sick there by the dozens, it also means food has a high overturn rate & doesn't have a chance to stand around for long. For the same reason, you may want to show up at common eating times, not inbetween when it may be quiet for a few hours, and food may be left to stand again.

Be wary of uncooked or unpeeled food like salads and stuff; more easily said than done in fact, again, who can resist a good vegetable raita or delicious bhelpuri, sprinkled with freshly chopped greens.

Other than that, one may fall sick from eating at a roadside stand or at a 5-star establishment. Some would argue at the simpler eateries (and certainly at a roadside vendor's) you can at least observe the condition of and proceedings in the kitchen and make up your mind and leave if so inspired, whereas in a fancier place there's usually no telling what goes on there.

In any case and as the classic travelers' yarns will tell you: Some people eat and drink tap water everywhere and never get ill; others eat only at the best of places and avoid anything that could be remotely iffy and strike up lord knows what. Of course neither proves anything (and never forget the converse holds true just as much), and most of us will want to manoeuvre somewhere inbetween, going by their instinct and common sense and pretty much hoping for the best.

Bon appetit!

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PeakXV

Hydration or lack there of is a major cause of the minor upset stomach in India. The only time I tried Street Food was the Gajar Halwa(personal favourite) at Nehru Place in Delhi and got Delhi Belly without too much delay.

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Don't go to India ~ Pre-trip Warnings & Misconceptions?

chAos

Thanks Capt. Do you have any favorite places? Are there areas better known for some things than others?

katysays

I couldn’t resist the street food in India, it’s just too good! I was super sick a couple of times (once from sun stroke though I think and another time from a quite unclean looking restaurant in Haridwar.. but, had eaten in other similar ones with no problems!

The worst food poisoning I have had was in Thailand, we were ‘splashing out’ going to a posh pizza restaurant with cloth napkins and candles in the loo (you know the type and how luxurious it feels after backpacking for a while!) and.. so sick, had to spend the night in hospital on a drip! So.. it’s not just street food.. you could have a lovely looking restaurant with dodgy food or as I experienced in Goa, some of the best food I have ever eaten at a beach shack (Greg's Cafe, Calungute) with sand for a floor.

Try and use your judgment, but sometimes, it’s just not possible!

Enjoy!

katysays

On the subject of street food, just must mention the amazing corn on the cobs, roasted on a little coal stove then rubbed down with some sort of brown salt sold on stalls on Chowpatty Beach, Bombay.. Anyone else had one? SO good.. Ooh, what I wouldn’t give to have one right now!

capt_mahajan

Gokul is known for it's chaat, but was bombed by terrorists. Am told it has reopened/is reopening.

Mirchi Bhaji is often a neighbourhood thing.

The Food Court on Necklace road is not too bad to sample different food, but not so authentic and avoidable on weekends as huge crowd.

For dosas, usually go to Minerva Coffee Shop Himayatnagar or Rajbhavan road (first one is better), Or Chutney's at Banjara Hills, and new outlet in Himayatnagar.

Biryani.. Hyderabad house has a lot of outlets, the famous one is Paradise in Secunderabad, though recently other names crop up. Particularly Shadab.

More of Hyderabad food at
Hyderabad Best Wine n Dine.........

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shashank.aggarwal

But in Delhi..most of the best comes from Roadside shops OR stalls..!!

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Random Reviews

Nattusbs

Prashant

Please no Paradise. I had their Biryani last year - sorry - terrible. maybe they used to be good, not anymore.

Cheers

Nattusbs

chAos

Thanks again, Captain.

That's a shame.

Those anti-chaat terrorists...

dlesli

AwayFromHome:
thank you for making me feel some authenticity - all this talk means I'm going to have stop by on my way home from work! Those ladies are sooooooo nice - but we have a real language barrier. Thanks for the info!

kristinm

The Chowpatty corn cobs are mouth watering!!! THere is something in that masala they put on them..

Hyderabadi

That is disappointing to hear! Was it dry? Was it a 'parcel'?
I've always had the feeling that their 'parcel' biryani tastes different than the fresh one when you have it on location.

BTW, I was never a fan of 'Paradise Biryani'.

Shadab's biryani is great, as of June '06 when had many artery clogging doses of it. Not to be missed here is is Paaya, and Bheja Curry.

For a different experience, try:

Andhra type:

Abhiruchi (Secunderabad, near Paradaise)
Indu Deluxe (Near RBI)
Rajdoot (Near Telephone Bhavan)

Also as if/or you venture into the old city of Hyderabad, and you eat beef, look out for 'Kalyani Biryani' - Beef Biryani, though I cannot recommend nor vouch for any of those 'hotels'. Never even figured out why it's called 'Kalyani' too!

My absolute favorite used to Narmada Bar & Restaurant, on Himayathnagar Road, completely different tasting everything and a 'hole-in-the-wall' to boot.

Most of my recommendations are slanted towards taste and not 'fine dining' so please don't blame me if you find people peeing in sinks there.