It’s always a treat to come across a menu with dishes you’re unfamiliar with. The newest addition to Indiranagar’s 12th Main, The Potbelly Divine, serves up authentic Bhojpuri cuisine, which is quite a rarity in Bengaluru. We made our way there for a laid-back weekday lunch and were quite impressed.
All good meals start with some chips and dip so we ordered the Khatta Meetha Kachumbar And Marua Chips. The chips, made of finger millet, paired so well with the kachumber (chopped tomatoes and onions with just a hint of mustard oil), that we asked for a refill rather quickly. To quench our thirst, we sipped on a salty Sattu Cooler. The drink of roasted chickpea flour, is ideal for the summer months.
All their vegetarian appetisers also happen to be vegan. The Baggia Basket, steamed triangular rice flour pockets, stuffed with lentils, surprised us with its play on texture. We also highly recommend the Keema Ghugni — a spiced black gram gravy, that’s served on a bed of flattened rice. The crunchy poha and mushy gram worked really well together. Both the dishes were served with some exciting sides — parwal chokha (mashed and spiced pointed gourd), tomato chokha and a coriander chutney.
Main course offers a variety of thalis. Of course Litti Chokha is on the menu, but since we were in an adventurous mood, we tried something new. We’d heard a lot about Ahuna Mutton, a famous dish from the Champaran region of the state, so we opted for it. Slow cooked in an earthen pot (ahuna), the tender pieces of the meat paired well with the flaky parathas, poha, boondi raita and salad. Curious to try a seafood preparation, we ordered the Posta Dana Machili. The poppy seed-heavy gravy was accom-panied with rotis made of rice flour and spinach — a must-try if you’re a fan of the nutty poppy flavour.
The last dish we sampled was the Ranchi Ka Pulao. The pulao, made with eggplant, rice and lentils, was a tad bit dry for our palate, butagain, the sides made up for it — aloo parwal bhujia (a dry potato and pointed gourd preparation), spinach bachka (batter-fried spinach) and sabudana tilaurhi (akin to a sabudana vada). We skipped dessert but you can round things off with a Makhana Kheer or Raspua with Home-made Kulfi. Although slightly on the expensive side, we definitely think The Potbelly Divine is a must-visit to feast on this lesser-known cuisine of Northern India.
Rs. 1,900 for two. At Indiranagar
anagha@newindianexpress.com
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