The Food

OK, enough with all the travelogue and traffic jive, what about the food, for crying out loud? Berkeley-ites (and other foodie friends and family who aren't so fortunate to live in Berkeley) are surely wondering what we're eating here and how it compares to those favorite Indian establishments. Well, unlike the driving etiquette which is just mind-boggling to no end, at least we have some outstanding reference points for Indian food in Berkeley. Vik's, Uduppi Palace, Ajanta, Breads of India and even Tasty Bite are all great examples of India's gastronomic offerings in the West. The diversity and quantity of the food stalls and carts and the character of the home cooking here in India add many more dimensions. Before leaving the states, my wonderful Indian neighbors gave me advice in the form of a list of forbidden foods, hoping to save me from a dreaded bout of traveler's sickness. Somehow, in my frenzied departure, I forgot the list and all I could remember was something like avoid tap water, road side stands and anything else that looks or smells tasty. For the first week or so, I tried my best. Peter didn't help. He's been coming to India for 20 years, and had already been here for 3 weeks, so he was eating and drinking pretty much everything. And thanks to my parents, who had a passion for hunting down these kind of things in Chicago when I was growing up, I have a weakness for cheap but good hole-in-the-wall restaurants, including food stands, stalls and carts of any kind. (Street fairs, especially in Berkeley, are paralyzing for people like me... I can't decide what to eat because it all looks so good.) So, by the second or third day I was going out on a limb, having an ice tea (it was about 90°F, so we're drinking all the time and bottled water gets tiresome) and had the shock of finding a bug in my drink, which reminded me that ice was a no-no, which was followed by a queasy feeling and thought, 'Oh, shit, this is it, I'm going to be sick for the rest of the trip if I'm not careful!' So, I literally tip-toed around town, trying to avoid cravings for fresh fruit drinks, ice cream, and the endless variety of roadside stands that surrounded us everywhere, some looking questionable, but most looking really tasty and filling the air with wonderfully spicy aromas. It was torture and slowly, I caved. It started with the iced tea. Then, a day or two later, it was ice cream. Next it was fresh fruit (at one of the better looking restaurants at least). We made a habit of sticking to decent looking restaurants, some of whom know Peter and what he likes to order. Pretty much everything is eaten with the fingers and roti (various kinds of bread). In Jodhpur, we parked next to this incredible looking cart piled high with chips and chilies and all sorts of delectable looking toppings. I sat in the rikshaw waiting, trying not to look. Then I thought I'd just get out to take some pictures. It doesn't take long before the chip walla asks where I'm from and when he finds out, he says I'm the first Californian to ever stop at his stand. (The rest probably had the good sense to keep going, I'm thinking.) So he offers me a freebee and of course, I can't resist, plus it would be impolite at this point, so he whips up a super special sort of Indian nachos for me and, of course, it's fabulous.