Breakfast at Vohuman's

19^th February was a Maharashtrian holiday (Shivaji’s b’day, what else?), so we decided to `breakfast out’. Sid was away at Bangalore, so missal-pav it was – that being the one Maharashtrian staple he normally gives a wide berth to.

Missal-pav

For the uninitiated, missal (meaning `mixture’ in Marathi) is a mix of sev, farsan, chopped oninions, coriander and a lentil mix of sprouted `matki’ called usal. It is topped by a fiery, watery curry, called, for some inexplicable reason, sample! The piping hot mix is then served with pav, the Indian version of the burger bun.

The mixture, if conjured in the correct proportions, is simply to die for! Now the meanest missal-pav in Poona is served in a hole-in-the-wall outlet called `Shree Uphaar Grah’ off Laxmi Road. There’s no way you can take your car there, so the ubiquitous auto is your best bet.

We reached there only to find the shutters down. Apparently, it opens only after 10! Now what’s with these Maharashtrians, how can they expect to popularize their cuisine if they serve what is essentially a breakfast dish only after 10?

So we quickly had to switch options. The butter masala dosa at Vaishali’s was tempting, as was the prospect of an Irani breakfast at Café Good Luck, both on Fergusson College Road, about 10 minutes away.

But we decide to head back to Camp, and settled for Vohuman’s Café, a popular if slightly down-market joint next to Jehangir Hospital. I was born there, remember? At Jehangir, not at Vohuman’s..

Bun-maska-cheese omelette!

The problem at Vohuman’s is that they still haven’t heard of the cholesterol scare, and the butter and cheese they serve in such copious quantities is enough to make your arteries scream in protest! No wonder they are located so close to both Jehangir Hospital and Ruby Hall Clinic, just opposite the road!.

Of course you have to ignore the cringe worthy custom of its patrons, of dunking their heavily buttered buns in steaming mugs of sweet Irani chai. What can I say, my brother Satish does it, my niece C2 does it, and now Sowmya proves that she’s a Puri at heart after all!

Breakfast in India is what makes India what it is. In Punjab, have your aloo-ka-paratha swimming in butter, in Delhi head to Sadar Bazaar for the best chana-bhatura on the planet, in Bangalore try the steaming idlis off Commercial Street (or MTR), In Hyderabad try the haleem or the nihari near the Charminar, on the Bombay-Poona Expressway the wada-pav rules the roost!

And if it’s a true-blue English breakfast that you hanker for, there’s nothing like `Flury’s’ on Calcutta’s Park Street, complete with the most delicious Darjeeling tea!

Gaymer wa dibis

In Iraq too there’s contrast aplenty. Kurdistan in Northern Iraq has what they call `No-kao’ – chickpea (Kabuli chana) stuffed in buns, served with the chana gravy. Baghdad has what is called `gaymer’, a very thick white cream made from buffalo milk. Iraqi bread, similar to our naan, is dipped into this cream, along with some date syrup, to make `Gaymer Wa Dibis’ – truly superlative!

In USA, there’s the iHop chain of course. My one visit there, and I had to be dragged out physically – another half an hour, and they’d have needed a gurney..

In the end, at my age, and with the not-so-great digestive system that the Puri genes have blessed me with, I’m content to settle for an `oats and muesli’ porridge for my daily brekker.

Dunkin' bun-maska! 

But it’s Shivaji’s birthday, and since the Maharashtrians have shut shop, it’s `Breakfast at Vohuman’s’ for the Puris.

The maska (butter) is everything the doctor ordered you not to eat, the cheese slices on the `cheese toast' are as thick as the toasts themselves, the tea is as sweet and as milky as any Irani chai can be, and even if Sowmya threatens to dunk the bun-maska in her chai, it’s a small price to pay..