Republic of Chicken -- Going Strong

The Processed Food & Ready to Eat Food Market is witnessing a Sea Change..With rising disposable Incomes, Rise of Nuclear Families & the DINK Group of Urbn Indians, Shrinking Time for the families to cook, The Processed & Ready to Eat foor Market, was just sitting on the verge of a huge wave which is just now being witnessed..... Reublic of Chicken, is looking set to cash in on this wave of Change of Food habits among the Urban Indians .... Also they seem to be cashing in on the Health Brigade & positioning themselves as a "Chicken" Specialist, with dedicated focus only on the "Chicken" .. All Chicken are equal seems to be their Logo .....With over 15 outlets in Delhi/NCR, they are all set to cash in on the Popularity of Processed food & enjoy a Good presence in the City that Loves its Kukkads & Chicke Shicken....a Big Balle Balle to ROC from the Delhiwallas, with their wide acceptance of ROC & its small eatery formats as well

Look at the Variety

Raw Chicken - They have full Pre Cut Broliers, Chciken Legs Only, Chicken Breast Only, Chicken Wings + Chicken Legs mixture

Ready To eat Variety - Seekh Kababs - Chicken & Mutton, Shaami Kababs - Chicken & Mutton, Punjabi Chicken Sticks, Chicken Satay, Chicken Suasages - Paprika, Frankfurter, Tandoori Chicken Salaami-Pepper, Plain, Pistachew - Chciken Tikkas, Chicken Tandoori, Chicken Momos



The Menu.....& Much More

They seem to have kept a very clear focus on Chicken & select Chicken Varieties ... They dont seem to be carrying the Chinese varieties - Manchurianss of the world, which dont taste good as a Processed food or the Thick Curry Items, which some other Chains have on Offer

Some SeaFood On Offer...

 The ColorFul Offer Board Display proudly displays the Spl Offers on Display .. whether its a Combo Pack or some Other Offer

Variety of Pastes & Masalas

Small seating area @ the Outlet

There is a Small seating area at the Outlet, where in people can have some of the Ready to eat varieties .. They Charge about Rs 15-20, and warm up the dishes which you may want to buy, Normally the Chicken Tikkas, Seekh Kababs, or Momos

Amazing Chicken FrankFurter Roll...

Have a Closer Look at the Sausage Roll...

There are some other Joints serving Processed & Ready to eat foods, Namely The Green Chick Shop (They serve varieties of Mutton as well), KhubChand & Bros @ Green Park- which have some of the Best Frozen Seekh Kababs, Touch of Spice etc, whicgh serve great Varieties of the Processed Food..Way to go..But a word of Caution - Processed foods may carry heavy amount of Sodium as preservatives - So Eat with Caution !!!!!

Campus Food

Wherever you go in Life, whatever one achieves in life, wherever one eventually reaches, few things always remain entrenched in your memory for ever .... Your First Love, First Kiss, First Date, First Job - But one of the things that shape up your Career  eventually have a major bearing on ones life is Your School, Your College, Your Alma meter. Its the memories of your alma meter that one so fondly recalls in life at times when most needed & they provide an almost Instant dose of energy & charge .... College & Campus Memories are almost imcomplete about food ...Yes the food that we all ate as students .... Campus food or the food ate at our Favorite Cheap Joints with Friends, Girlfriends, Potential Girlfriends, Prospects for girlfriend...... All of us have our deep & fond memories of our Favorite food or restaurants where we gorged our hearts out .. Those are the days when one is fearless in life, fearless in Love & fearless in eating....Roadside food, street food, Outside Railway Stations, Outside Bus Stands, Outside small temples, everywhere .. I spent a good amount of my time in Pune & Mumbai .... Pune for  Engineering  & Mumbai for the MBA Mktg Course.....

Pune was about reaonable food & my first experience with Maharashtrian Food ... My tryst with Vada Pav started here..Vada Pav with Cutting chai used to be a Hot favorite for Breakfast & Lunch......Punes Very Famous Marzorin , Located on MG road, which served some of the Best Sandwiches, Milk Shakes, Pastries ... Or Budhdhani Wafers, which serves some of the Best Potato Waffers In Pune ....... Or Kapila Kathi Rolls ...Pune is actually a Foodies Paradise with Junglee Maharaj Road, housing a record breaking no of Retaurants in a Single Lane ........ Pune was where i discovered the Foodie inside me ....... On Days when one would have a little more money to spare than usual, Hotel Aurora Towers, or AT, as it was commonly known, served the most amazing Non Vegetarian Chicken Sandwich Called Sky High.....
Mumbai, is where i did my MBA & with in a few months of my Course, realised that if Delhi is famous for its Tandoori Food - the Tandoori Kukkad, the Chicken Tikka or Mutton Champs, Mumbai also has a huge & Impressive Street food...Infact I could never Imagine eating outside any of the Railway stations, with strong perceptions about their Inferior quality of raw materials used..But Mumbai is different... I have had some of the Best Omelettes  Pav Bhajis- Outside the Mumbai Local stations ... Omelettes  made in Butter & the Pavs lightly crisped on the Tawa with the Butter ... It used to be quite a meal  a very economical one ... You would also get the Baidaa Pullao or the Egg Pulao & Polish it off with a hot & strong Cup of Adrak Chai...

Or many times while being awake till late night or early morning if you could call it, when Hunger pangs would strilke, the Local South Indian Vendors - Anna - would be standing with his cycle carrying a drum of Hot Coffee & a Hot Case carrying Idlis & Vadas, served with Coconut Not Chutney . Not the Best of the meals, but quite satisfying for a hungry soul & for a Pocket having a Big Hole ... Bun Omelettes & a Cutting Chai in any of the Irani Restaurants in Mumbai along with a simplified dope of the Common Mans understanding & views about the Big Issues of the Country ...& one is ready for the day..No need to rummage through the News Papers..Not that  One really cared to, as a Student...

I am lot of People would have their many many fond memories of the Food they ate at Campus, as Students, that whole experience of eating with a group of friends .. That slight tension, of who can eat faster, or get the better or meatier piece of the Dish, & finally, who would ask for the Bill & what would be the share of Payments, in case of a Dutch ....Vow...Miss those days, miss that Food ...as the famous song from 3 idiots said -- "Give me Some SunShine, Give me some Rain, Give me another Chance, I want to Grow Up Once again.....

Sushi Rolls

Sushi seems to have arrived Big Time in India with Lots of Indians Celebrating this Favorite dish of Japan..With a no of Japanese Speciality Restaurants coming up, Sushi has now come to be accepted as a Favorite Snack for Indians .....I happened to Visit, Sushiya,, a Japanese Speciality take away joint, at Select City Walk Mall, Saket. Sushi is basically made out of Fermentation of Rice using Vinegar & the fish proteins are broken into amino acids ..... High quality of Raw Fish , typically Salmon or Tuna is used in the Sushi

Look at the Interesting mix of Sushi stuffed in Plastic Box packing...Look at the Color Gamut..Yellow, white, Orange...

The raw fish are generally preserved at-20 c in the freezer, a couple of days & then stored at Normal temp to be consumed..... Served with Vinegar dipped Ginger Flakes, Wasabi Dip - a highly Pungent dip made of Japanese Raddish, mustard & some Oil ...Very Pungent Dip..... a sweet Soya dip is also added on the rice cubes....

Slight smell of the raw fish, sesame seeds loaded, Sweetness of Soya Sauce, Wasabi- Highly dynamic & Pungent mix.....Coldness of the Rice, sourness of Vinegar, slight sweet dash of Soya, probably helps neutralise the fishy smell of the raw fish

Delhi Food Festival-2011 - A Photo Journey



The Food Fest Begins.....

People inquiring about food.....

Delhis Street Food Lifeline - Chaat, GolGappa, Aloo Tikki

Punjabis Favorite- The Deadly Basin Ka Chilla



Veg Kathi Kabab Combo



Veg Champ & Gatthe Ki Sabji..in a Tomato Gravy




Hmmmm..... Aloo Tikki....Delhites love their Tikkis

Still Looking for More.......



Varieties of Pickles



KatPutlis ..Thats what Life tells us who we are



Nomadic Food ...Use of Local Natural Ingredients






Variety of Kulfis on Display

All in all an amazing Display of the Variety, Range of Delhis Food -- Right from Morning till the Desserts post a Heavy Mail, everything about Delhi Food is just like the City ..... Spiicy, variety, Generous in terms of the helpings but also being a Pot Pourri, in absorbing differenet flavors of the Regions & absoring them in its won.. Be It the Mughlai Specialities Like Biryani, Chicken Kurma, Chicken Changezi, or be it the Parathe Wali Gali, or the Variety of sweets - Jalebi, Daulat ki Chaat, Kulfi ,Rabri, Gulab Jamun ------ Its all very much part of being Delhi Food & part of being a Delhite ....Its great to be a Foodie in Delhi



Kathi Rolls - The Smart Street Food

Popularised a Great Deal in the Eastern Part of the Country, Kathi Rolls have been almost glamorised as Kolkatta Kathi Rolls...There is nothing that can mathc the pleasure of having a really Oily, Crispy Maida Roll ,stuffed with a Spicy Chicken Stuffing, sauted & fried Onions, Shades of Sauces - Red Chilli Sauce, Green Chilli Sauce, Coriander - wrapped in a small Paper & handed over to you for a bite ..... Imagine biting that highly spicy, Crsipy, really Oily & filled with loads of Chatapatta spices & biting this in the Chilly winters of Delhi & north ... This is a real Comfort food for the Soul

Just Like Momos, which are now available in almost every nook & corner of Delhi, esp, in winters, Kathi Rolls joint are almost omni Present across the length & breadth of Delhi...A Flat Round Bread made out of Maidaa Dough is placed on the Giant Tawa ... Mix of Onions, Cabbage, little salt, red chilli, spices, ketchup, chilli sauce , lots of oil are thrown on the tawa & the mix is given a good & hearty mix .... The Chicken Gravy, is also sauted on the tawa ... An Egg is broken on the Bread & spread over the bread evenly.....
The Onion Mix, Chicken Gravy are then placed over the bread roll & folded into a roll wrapped in a tissue paper The succulent chunks of chicken retain their Juice

"Nizams Kathi Roll" in Connaught Place has been serving one of the best Kathi Rolls in New Delhi for a Long Long Time... A really really oily & crsipy Paratha , quite big, full & a meal in itself'
Zaika Kathi Rolls, based in Sec 18 Market, Noida - also serves some really lip smacking Kathi Rolls
De Pauls - Based at GK-1, Janpath, have been serving really fantastic Kathi Rolls for some time in adddition to their fantastic Sandwiches & Cold Coffee
CR Park MARKET, also houses quite a few Kathi Roll vendors trying to sell some what similar version of the Kolkatta Kathi Roll
PVR Saket Market Complex - also serves some Local Kathi Roll vendors, who sell this really hot & spicy snack

Hot, Crisp, Oily & Spicy Kathi Roll.......

Best had in winters, on the street, with a really spice & tangy dip, mixs with the Chicken & Onion Spices

Upcoming Bakeries in South Delhi

This Weekend, with no specific foodie venture exploration in mind or any visit to any of the restaurants, I just happened to check out two up, Coming & Interesting Bakery Shops in my neighorhood in South Delhi - One in KalkaJi & One in Defence Colony

Cake & Bakes in Kalkaji, is an Upcoming Bakery Shop - Having One of the Most Colorful, Bright, Vibrant , Cheerful looking & high blitz Glow Sign ...... They have  2 franchise now, One in Kalkaji , and the 2nd one in Malviya Nagar .....

The Very Brightly Lit- Main Rd Kalkaji

Amazing Machines for the Bakery ...

Look at the amazing Range of Cookies & Biscuits at this Bakery - They also have  the most Gizmo Looking machinery , I have seen at any of the Bakery Shops....4 Temperature Controlled Panels adorn the outlet beautifully - for Cakes & Pastries, For Desserts, For Breads, For Puffs & Pattice

Range of Cookies & Biscuits in the Shop

The Chicken Kabab Patties are just to die for .. The Chicken Seekhs are Fresh, Spicy & quite a range of spices can be felt when one digs into the bites



Amazing Chicken Kabab Rolls

One More New & Upcoming Bakery at Main Market, Defence Colony- Defence Bakers ...... Looks to have an elclectic mix of Products, Biscuits, Cakes, Pastries, Sandwiches, Bread - Garlic Toasties .............. I could see a helathy clientele of quite a few foreigners who flck this place for their dose of breads & Cakes



Defence Bakers -DB

Have a Look at the place from Inside ..... They also have some aazing range of their own Hand Made Chocolates - in a very unique, eco friendly packaging ..... Diff varieties - Low sugar, Bitter , No Sugar Chocolates .... I tried their Chicken Sandwich, which was good - The Traditinal Good Old Chicken Sandwich - Chicken with lots of Mayonaise, Coleslaw & Fresh Bread -- The Garlic Toasties - are also quite good - For Rs20/= for a decent Sized packet ....

World of Pattice

The World of Pattice or Patties - or simply pronunced pattic..... Have come to become one of the best known evening snacks available ... Imagine a Light  Brown Crispy, Fluffy Crust on inside, loaded with lots of ghee or oil, & filled with heaveny stuffings ..... Fragile Crisp on outside, fluffy, crispy flakes , with lots of flakes acoming out with every bite ...The Layers of the dough are nicely laden with oil & mix so well with the stuffings, mixing the oil flavor with the stuffing ...There are a variety of stuffings used in the ever popular pattice - Vegetable, Panneer, Cheese, Chicken, Mutton, Mushroom ....


Pattice also have their little shapes & sizes with each shape depicting some message or associated with a particular stuffing - Bakers, Shopkeepers, also try & keep different shapes for the Pattice, in order to differentiate between the Stuffings they offer ..The Expensive or better the Stuffing, generally smaller the size for the Pattice --- Chicken Pattice generally would be round & smaller than a Paneer Patty or smaller than even a Vegetable Pattice

Triangluar Shape Pattice being the most Popular & conventional shape for pattice which is used generally for Vegetable Pattice only

Traingular Shaped Pattice

Rectangular Pattice are generally used for Paneer or Cheese Pattice . although there is no difference between the tastes which one gets from the different shapes.......

Round Shape Pattice are generally used for Mushroom, Chicken or Paneer Fillings .... Pattice are one of the Most Important Snacks on any Bakery Shops Menu .. So Common, so Important, yet so understated ..... Many Office Goers, look upto pattice as one of the preferred, quick fix emergeny food.....Have a Look at any of the Majr Office or commercial Hubs, & you will find hordes of Vendors, Bakery shops, small eateries, Even Small Kirana Shops, stocking up on the crispy pattice .....

Hmmm Crispy & Flaky Pattice

During my Engineering Days Pattice used to be one of the best comfort foods for me .... 2-3 Hot Cups of tea along with 3 Crisp, Fresh, Hot Vegetable Pattice & you would have finished your reasonably oily & heavy breakfast in just about Rs 20/==== Quite good for perenially Cash Crunched Students .... One of the favorite Evening Snacks, Delicious, Greasy, Fresh , Crisp, Flaky - best enjoyed with a Cup of Hot Tea....

Round Crisp Pattice

Do explore the world of Pattice- at your Local Bakery Shop, Mithai Wala, Kiraana Store