Supermarkets in small towns in Rajasthan and Madya Pradesh

BenV

Perhaps I am overly naive, but are there any supermarkets in small(er) towns in Rajasthan and Madya Pradesh? Or do Indians buy their groceries on the market? If so, are these markets held every day or does that vary per town?

We of course want to get bottled water, soda drinks and beer, but also small snacks and light food (fruit, chips, candybars, breadrolls, chocolate et cetera) for late at night, in the bus et cetera..
We do not want to carry around too much bottles so I just want to know how often we will have the chance to replenish our supplies..

Any info is greatly appreciated!

BenV

Thanks for your info!

Apparently much of the bottled water you buy on the street actually is ordinary tap water, i.e. detrimental to your health due to the fact that it is infested with E-coli bacteria. Furthermore, even the renown brands are unsafe, e.g. read this:
Buy water, drink bacteria
Is it really _that_ bad? Perhaps it is indeed best to buy soda water or soft drinks instead? I am not interested in beer per se, but I have read a travelogue in which the guys go out to buy beer in liquor stores particularly because it is very safe to drink. Do you know whether either Radjasthan or Madya Pradesh has those liquor stores? Or is selling/buying/drinking alcohol prohibited there?

Another question. Of course we are very much interested in local vegetarian cuisine, but we are afraid to buy something on the street or even local restaurants (we do not want to contract food poisoning or Delhi Belly). We reckon it is best to stick with fried snacks and dishes from the oven, but that would go at the expense of not being able to taste the many great curries et cetera. Does anyone have a tip where to actually buy such snacks? Is it safe to buy snacks on the market, from "7-11 stores" and on the corner of the street? What is and what is not safe for our Western tummies? How can we tell?

Thanks in advance!

thirdreel

If you check the seal on bottled water, and buy reputable brands, you shouldn't have trouble, even if you buy them from roadside stands. If you're not sure if something is a reputable brand, taste it. Cold clean water will have a slightly sweet aftertaste.

That said, I promise you, you WILL experience an upset stomach at some point. It's pretty much inevitable. Don't let paranoia about food stop you from enjoying it. Of course, you want to eat at places that are clean and popular, and for your health it's best to eat the food when it's hot.

LilyB

We drank gallons of bottled water of all brands (do check the seal) and never suffered any ill effects. I would be more worried about the water soft drinks are made with, although we drank those, too.

IMO, much stomach upset is caused by unfamiliarity with the spices and methods of cooking rather than disease/bacteria. If you do come down with something there are lots of pharmacies to help you out.

Nick-H

I think that is absolutely right, LilyB.

Perhaps also worrying about it makes one more susceptible!

There have been scandals about bottled water, even big brands have been measured and found wanting. What to do? It is still be best bet to drink only bottled water! As Luckywoman says, avoid salads, eat only raw fruit which you can peel, etc.

Take basic precautions, and don't worry. If it happens then you can't curse youself for being careless.

No stomach upset is welcome on a holiday, and the shorter the trip the less welcome it is, but going down with something really debilitating is unlikely. Much more likely that you just spend a day or three making sure you know where the nearest toilet is!

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BenV

Good info!

Sorry if I sound overly concerned, but I just want us to enjoy our (well deserved) holiday to the max. From your words I take it that the usual precautionary measures are sufficient. That is sure comforting.

We were wondering, as lassi is dairy-based and is not heated nor pasteurized, lassi actually seems very unsafe to us! Do you disagree then? Do you have a rational explanation for that? I have read somewhere that especially dairy-based deserts are dangerous!
I have also read about the fantastic fruit-juices for Rs10.. That sounds like heaven to me!

As far as snacks go we can just walk around and if we see some crowding near a stand, booth or restaurant, the food is likely to be safe (as locals think it is good, there is sufficient throughput and a short shelf-time).
Then again, if we go by train, is the food sold at stations we pass by safe, or can we better bring along something we picked up at a take-away restaurant (does this exist at all?)?

Perhaps we should bring along some containers for light meals and cups with lids for fruit juices?

Thanks for your feedback!

aadil

Generally icecreams that have been stored in the refrigerator which has experienced power break downs in the smaller towns usually is unsafe as the melted icecream is not always safe to eat after it is re refrigerated after the melt down. All dairy products kept in the fridge are unsafe if there has been a long power cut which may spoil the contents of the refridgerated items. A freshly made lassi should not be a problem but one which is kept in the fridge is always suspect!!! The same with icecream and other dairy products. Now have a safe and pleasant journey wherever you travel and enjoy your trip in India!!! Take care.

Cheers,
Aadil.

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BenV

Thanks Aadil. We will be heading for India early November, so there is still some time for us to orientate..

1. Supermarket. If most is sold on the street or the market, where can we get
- toiletpaper, tissues, tampons, deodorant and toothpaste.
- asperine, DEET/ mosquito repellant
- mosquito net
- t-shirts, slippers

Do even the smaller cities have a fruit/vegetable market every day?

I have read about having tailors there make pants et cetera. Is that a good idea?




[
Off-topic:
2. Snacks/ beverages
We will stick with unrefridgerated/ fresh lassi, fruit juice or chai then!
What sort of Rajasthan/ Madya Pradesh snacks are a must-try?

3. Dinner/ restaurant
At home I often make daal, saag and paneer (home-grown receipes ). What do vegetarians -fond of such suppers- definitely need to try in North-India? (not raw/ uncooked). I am interested in local cuisine, of course..

Is it btw impolite to ask the waiter to (re)heat some food?
]

thirdreel

You mention toothpaste, so I need to tell you my story. I'd heard that consumer products like toothpaste were much cheaper in India--and it turned out to be completely true--so I didn't pack a few essentials, including toothpaste, thinking I'd buy it there. I'm not sure if I pictured it like stopping in an American Walgreen's store or the like; I just thought it would be pretty easy.

Then my flight touched down at Delhi airport. I won't go into the details of my first couple hours in India, just say that I was shell-shocked. My flight arrived in the late evening, so I checked into my hotel well after dark. I prepared for bed. I was shell-shocked, and I didn't have any toothpaste.

I slept horribly; my body was on US time, expecting it to be bright, but it was dark, and unfamiliar, and I didn't want to go outside. I got up in the morning, and took a shower, brushing my teeth with only a brush. I was shell-shocked, and jet-lagged, and I still didn't have any toothpaste.

My hotel provided me with a driver for sightseeing, so I went out for the first day. On the way back to the hotel, I commented to the driver that I needed to buy some things--toothpaste, a notebook, etc. He said, "Oh! Department store." And I figured, sure, department store. He pulled up to a store, where I was mobbed by salesmen trying to sell me wood carvings, silk saris, other handcrafted souvenirs. Nothing like toothpaste anywhere.
I knew, of course, that this was the kind of place commissions agents deal in, and that the driver had taken me there in hopes of making more money off me. I was shell-shocked, jet-lagged, irritated, and I still didn't have any toothpaste.

So after a few more days, it probably wouldn't be so much trouble. I'd have gotten comfortable enough to go into a shop on the Main Bazaar and say, "Do you know where I can buy some toothpaste?" But most things in India are a little more complicated, and a simple task can become a complicated quest pretty easily. So especially if you've never been traveling in India before, bring toothpaste with you.

(Toilet paper, on the other hand, was never a problem. I stayed in mid-range hotels, say, 500-1000 INR/night, and all of them provided it for me.)

aadil

I don't think it will be impolite if you ask the waiter to reheat the food as long as it is in the bowl it was served in and not on your plate.

About the fruit juices it is advisable not to have the ten rupee ones as they are not made with only fruits but mixed with water of unknown quality so you may fall ill due to that and also ask them not to add any ice in any of your drinks even in some of the smaller restaurants where they do not have ice cubes available and just have a big block of ice broken with an ice pick as the water with which it is made is unhygeinic. So be careful whenever you have anything with ice!!!

Toiletries are best bought at chemist's shops available all over the main market areas or even smaller areas in small towns. They will stock all that you need (like you mentioned in your post) and it will be available in different varieties as well. Some of these items will also be available at the local groceries shop too so not much of a problem in getting what you want here. You may not get the best (soft / absorbant) type of tissue paper or toilet paper rolls or the brand of tampons or deodorants but toothpastes should not be too much of a problem. Hope this helps.

Cheers,
Aadil.

BenV

Aadil, thanks for the information! Glad to hear there is something like a drugstore! Strangely enough I have found very little about stores, markets and shops in the travelogues I have read!

Thirdreel, thanks for the laughs!

mani

BenV, Hi,

Rajasthan is a tourist state so every village store stocks these tourist staples.

Bottled water - always check the seal.

Eat at places where you see locals eat. Most towns have market places where there are small local eatries where you can sample the local specialities.

Do not have anything that may have Ice added to it.

For that fried snack - buy from a local sweet shop / "Halwai" in hindi where most well to do indians buy . the price difference is not much but the quality of oil used is better. If you have any allergies check the ingredients before you buy/eat. You can also buy HALDIRAMS indian snacks packed similar to chips like LAYS

Always ask the local people / hotel reception to recommend a good place for you to eat - in hindi
Khane ke liye aachi jagah konsi hai - which is a good place to eat.
Saaf suthri jagah hai ? - Is it a neat/ clean place?

at the restaurant -
Aaj kya banaya hai - what is the menu for today ( usually in a small place where there may be no written menu)

Taza Hai - is it fresh?

For the train journey, where pantry car is available you can ask the attendent for simple things like an omlet made to order. be careful of buying from the platform check if the food is hot/ fresh. most restaurants/ sweet shops/ Halwai will pack a take away packet for you at no or small extra cost.

Have a great trip
Mani

BenV

Great reply! Thanks Mani!

We just saw an episode of Barry Vera's "Feast India" ( http://www.feast-tv.com/ ), a culinary program about India. In this episode, Barry visited such a 'sweet store' in Delhi.
The previous episode was also great. Barry visited the Bishnoi people. Wow!

About those sentences in Hindi, I will give it shot

PortieOwner

I have also never had a problem with bottled water in India. The "big name" brands always have a "Meets WHO standards" sticker on them. We always buy at the same local store where all the locals in the neighborhood shop.

Also with the local water, I think I sometimes have a problem with the filtered stuff because the minerals (like sulfer) that are present in high amounts in Indian groundwater also irritate a stomach which isn't used to it. I think this is an issue in Rajastan too.

Portie

BenV

As a follow up to my own post..

Getting mineral water in sealed bottles was not at all difficult, not even in the smallest town we have been. There are many, many stores selling this kind of stuff. In those same stores you can often also get sweets, chocolate and chips. Breadrolls however are slightly more rare, and one usually gets them at so-called 'german bakeries'.
Toilet-paper, tampons, et cetera are expensive and are rarely bought by locals. Toothpaste and clothing are (very) cheap! Be careful with buying clothes though, as a Western tourist you are very likely to be asked waaaay too much (e.g. Rs600 for a Rs100 blouse).

We tried all kinds of different snacks sold on the street, just relying on our eyes and ears and common sense. Especially after a couple of weeks, such small portions should cause you no harm.

We furthermore ate in dozens of various (but still the better) restaurants and we enjoyed it a great deal. As far as eating goes, India is a heaven for vegetarians!

My partner and myself did not get ill, nor suffered Delhi Belly during our 6+ weeks holiday.