Vada Pav, Misal Pav and South Indian: A Travel Blogger's Food Guide For Pune!

Pune is a city which, like Mumbai, has grown to emulate a cosmic kaleidoscope of cultures, drawing influence from all over India, also the globe. Naturally then, one gets to see taste this cosmic character in its food too.

In spite of this urban influence, what I really like about this city is how it has not outgrown enough to shed its native skin. No matter the multitude of Multicuisine restaurants or the Udipi flavors springing up in the nooks and crannies of the city, Pune still very much continues to delight every visitor with its plethora of Maharashtrian flavors till date.

Rich in simple ingredients and cooked in incredibly original spices, the flavors of Maharashtrian food, ranging from mild to spicy to very spicy, are mind boggling for anyone and everyone pinning their senses on it. All you need to do is step onto its streets and let your nose lead the way. Vada Pav, Ussal, Misal Pav, Kande Pohe, Puran Poli, Modaks – the list of domestic cuisine is simply endless.

I got a taste of the traditional as well as the non-regional and ended up spending a highly appetizing day in Pune. Based on what I liked and where, here’s presenting my Food guide in Pune!

Come along, dig in, take your pick and be prepared to forget about all your diet regimes because with the insanely tasty flavors of Pune, the craving just never ends! Let’s go!!

BREAKFAST @ ABA POWAR OR SRI KALA MISAL:

Arjun Powar - The owner son of Aba Powar sports a friendly smile.

My quest "Where to have Misal in Pune?" took me to Sri Kala Misal, a shop that specializes in spicy Misal Pav – a fiery curry of moth bean sprouts cooked in a freshly ground spice blend topped with a generous helping of crispy-munchy farsaan (Indian fried savoury mixes), chopped onions, freshly cut coriander and a dash of lime eaten along with butter roasted bun breads or pavs.

Aba Powar or Sri Kala Misal Center takes pride

in serving one of the BEST versions of Misal Pav in the city.

The place stays especially active in the mornings with a lot of people heading there for their daily meal of the day. The shop is composed of a sit down eatery area and a take away push-cart area outside where 2 guys can be seen neatly doling out plates after plates of Misal incessantly. Though busy and crowded, the eatery is fairly clean and the taste of the misal incredibly good – the same reason why it’s so popular with the locals!

What to eat?

As goes the name, there’s really only one thing you should eat here – Misal Pav, topped with freshly cut onions, served with a mug of hot and spicy curry known as tarri or kut.

 

I took a plate of Misal Pav (later added extra pavs to it) and a glass of chaas (buttermilk) along. The misal fare is very very spicy so make sure you team it up with a glass of buttermilk or their home made laddoos, if you are not very spicy-friendly like me.

What caught my eye?

Best part of the restaurant is the rows of insightful posters pasted on the wall that gaze at you while you devour your food.

So much better than staring at a blank wall, isn’t it?

Rough Translation - A man loses his health to acquire money,
and then to regain his health back,
he loses off all of his earned money.
In worrying for the future he loses the present moment,
Hence, he lives neither in the future nor the present,
He lives as if he will never die,
And dies as if he has never lived.

There are fewer combinations that are better than this ‘Food for the stomach + Food for the soul!’

How to get there?

Sri Kala is located in a lane adjacent to the KEM Hospital. Once you get to the hospital, take the Jawaharlal Nehru Road and continue towards the Murlidhar Road. You will find a lot of small-makeshift thelas or pushcarts in the lane leading to Sri Kala.

Timings: Closes by 4 in the evening.

Kande Pohe or flattened rice flakes seasoned with mustard seeds, onions and lemon juice, is another popular and extremely scrumptious option for breakfast in Pune. A lot of stalls spring up in the morning to satiate the hungry palletes of Punekars serving freshly cooked puffed rice, Kande Pohe in make shift street shops that pack up as soon as their lot is over. I happened to find one on my way to Tulsibaug for a reasonable amount of Rs. 15 and I totally loved it!

LUNCH @ GARDEN VADA PAV, CAMP AREA:

You can’t travel in Maharastra and not have this quintessential and irresistible, humble man’s food often touted as the Indian styled burger, the Vada Pav. My longing for the same took me to Garden Vada Pav shop in the Camp area.

It’s located in a small older lane of the locality and when I reached there,

I saw a fair crowd of locals gathered around.

There are a couple of tables (sans the chairs) spread just outside the shop where you can enjoy your crunchy, fresh hot and right out of the cauldron - Vada Pavs!

What to eat?

You get to enjoy these sights right in front of your eyes with each bite that you take!

The Vada Pav – deep fried spicy potato filled balls coated in a thick gram flour batter coupled with fresh fluffy buns - is their specialty and that’s what we took, a single costing an affordable Rs. 14 (Rs. 12 minus the pav). They also serve the masala taak or masala chaas (buttermilk) but we did not try it.

The vada pavs were spiced up with green chutney

and a few fried chillies as toppings to up that zingy quotient.

I thought these were pretty good but can’t say if these were the best I have had till date. One flipside to them was the missing red lahsun (garlic) chutney which, I think, makes for an essential companion along with the green chutney.

What caught my eye?

What I really liked about this place was the freshness quotient – the vadas are sold out just moments after coming out of the coal-hot cauldron – the place is that crowded with the local people!

How to get there?

It is located at Bootee Street in a narrow, cramped lane of the Camp area, right next to JJ garden covering 2 shops with numbers 948 and 949. Take the Dastur Meher Road and keep your eyes open for a big orange board with the name of the shop written in Hindi. The crowd outside gives a good hint too. If you still find a problem locating the place, you can always ask – the place is hugely popular with the locals. SGS Mall is another landmark situated nearby.

Timings:

The shop remains open from 9 in the morning to 9 in the night.

SUGARCANE JUICE OR GANNE KA RAS @ ROADSIDE STALLS:

Maharashtra being one of the leading manufacturers of the ultra sweet Sugarcane, sugarcane juice is one drink that is widely available in all of the state, including Pune. There are two ways of juice extraction here – automated and manual. The manual ones are really fascinating because of their wooden make and labor involved but unfortunately, in the one day trip that I was there, I did not bump in any.

Where to find?

You don’t need to find them. Rather, trust the sugarcane stalls to find you. These are scattered in the byways and streets, so you can choose to stop at one according to your liking.

What to drink?

After the heavy dose of all the spicy street food over the day and the weary travelling, a glass of naturally sweet and cool sugarcane juice refreshes me like nothing else. I asked the vendor for an extra dash of ginger and lemon for an added flavor – the cooler was so phenomenal that I couldn’t resist taking another glass full!

DINNER @ VAISHALI RESTAURANT, FC ROAD:

After getting a local-regional fill during the day, we decided to go non-regional cuisine in one of the best restaurants in Pune for the night – Vaishali – a celebrated delight for all South Indian food lovers.

It’s the Idli, Medu Vada and Dosas that they are most known for and I was extremely satisfied after filling my stomach tank here. The restaurant is nice, robust and clean, has a good seating area, is always jam packed (I had to wait for over 40 minutes to get a seat!) but if you wait your turn and grab a table (grab is the word because there is no line system!), you will love the food!

What to eat?

The first time I ate at Vaishali, I ordered a round of South Indian fare – Idli and Meduvada – the taste was so good that I almost could not believe that I was sitting in Western India!

I saw a lot of people eating the northern delight Sev Puri Chaat (crispy flat fried puris topped with an array of spicy sweet tangy chutneys assembled in a host of colorful veggies and sev) around and that got me curious. I later came to know that it is one of the hot selling items of the hotel, better known as abbreviated SPDP (Sev Potato Dahi Puri Chaat), so I ordered one for myself too and loved it!

I washed all of it down with a hot cup of coffee which was another wonderful taste-alike from the southern states of India.

What caught my eye?

It was interesting to see the waiters taking down orders on their serving tray and not on writing pads as is generally the case.

In an age where people are bunking old methods in the name of advancement and technology, I thought this was an amazing idea to go back to our roots of pencil and slate. Not only is this eco-friendly as it saves a lot of paper but it is also cost effective as it requires no techno-additives.

How to get there?

Since Vaishali’s is located at one of the most prime and posh locations of Pune - Fergusson College Road near Deccan Gymkhana - it is extremely easy to trace this eatery. The restaurant is flanked by high end shops and street shops alike that get a lot of attention by the shopaholics of the city. It was a 2 minute walk from my hotel.

Timings: 7 AM to 11 PM

Have you been to Pune?

Eaten at any of these places? If yes, how was your experience?

Any other fine dining restaurants or places to eat in Pune
that you would like to recommend, let me know and

I would love to try the next time I am in the IT city!