When I arrived at the station in Jodhpur, I was delighted to find that the station had a cafe. I started off my day’s breakfasts (yes, breakfasts) there with a veggie omelet and buttered bread. Not very exotic, which was just fine because I knew as my trip progressed there would be no shortage of exotic (i.e., Indian) food.
The 1st breakfast of the day tasted just fine. But you can tell by the picture that the omelet was a fairly small serving–not a typical American 3-egg special. So I ordered 2nd breakfast. A had a crepe with strawberries. Yummy!
There was a roadside food stand between the station and the hotel. I knew it was unlikely that they were serving anything that would send me to food nirvana. After all, this is Indian food we’re talking about. And I was a little concerned about digestive system mishaps. But I knew I would regret not trying it out and having an “authentic experience”.
So I got one of whatever it was they were serving up. It was a piece of flatbread served with a side of sauce with things in it and another thing on the side. I bravely dipped a piece of the bread into the sauce and ate it. Once I got that over with, I ate the rest of the bread au naturel and then went on my way.
Call my roadside snack 3rd breakfast. My 4th breakfast came after I had started my sight-seeing adventure for the day. I went to an outdoor omelet shop famous for being recommended by Lonely Planet. (Yes, omelets are apparently very big in Jodhpur.) It was a highly casual affair, as you can see by my omelet plate resting on a trash can. Noticing me being my usual picky self with my food, the chef insisted I eat the serving as a sandwich. Sorry, but I don’t do egg sandwiches. So I picked up the omelet with my hands and nibble away. I ate the bread separately, which I consider to be the civilized way. By the way, I had a masala and cheddar omelet. Fantastique! (I’m not sure why I’m using French words to describe Indian food.)
I had dinner (yes, 4 breakfasts but no lunch–well really, the 2nd omelet was lunch, ok, brunch) at the hotel’s lovely rooftop restaurant with a great view of Mehrangarh. I started off with a sweet lassi. Lassi is a traditional yogurt drink, sort of like an Indian milkshake. It was refreshing and far from the last lassi of my trip.
For the 1st course, I had samosas, which are turnover type of affairs filled with potatoes and veggies. They were tasty and very filling. So I wasn’t quite hungry by the time my main course arrived.
For the main course, I ordered paneer makhani. I keep seeing paneer referred to as cottage cheese. But it’s nothing like any cottage cheese that comes out of a plastic tub that I’ve ever seen. It comes in thick chunks, and it makes for a good vegetarian (but not vegan) option in Indian cuisine. With the makhani preparation, it is “cooked in a rich herb butter flavoured tomato gravy.” It is just these “gravies” that I have a hard time with in Indian cuisine. I find that the curries have some chunks of meat–or in this case, cheese–that are drowning in a thick sauce. I really don’t find it appetizing. Nonetheless, the dish was tasty enough. With the cheese and the tomato “gravy”, it otherwise reminded me of an Italian dish.
Of course I had to get a side of garlic naan. But after those thick samosas, I really didn’t need it. You can bet, however, that I ate it all up.
All in all, a good food day. Probably my best food day so far of the trip.
Leave a Reply