Country: India (Street Food)
Must-try Dish: Sev Puri
Dinner Guest: Curly Guy, Suited Sebastien, Darth-Sid (AKA Darth Sidious) & Deba

Mandrea Bike partook in the second Indian Pop-Up dinner hosted by Darth-Sid and his wife Debahuti. The theme of the dinner was street food from several regions across India. The the night started out with some beers accompanied by some popped water lily seeds (Indian-style popcorn) as Darth-Sid and Deba described the appetizer chapter of the dinning adventure. 

Sev Puri
This Indian street staple originates from Bombay (Mumbai) and is a type of chaat which is an Indian hors d’oeuvre typically served roadside all over India. Breaking down the name, “sev” is a popular Indian snack that consists of small pieces of crunchy noodles and “puri” is a cracker made with whole wheat flour. This was an interactive dish as you topped the puri with pieces of boiled potato, red onion, tomato, cilantro, sev and finished it off with any of the three sauces: yogurt, herb and hot sauce. Sev Puri is packed with flavour and is an excellent introduction to the exploration of Indian street food. 

Chicken & Egg Rolls/Kati Rolls
Served alongside the Sev Puri were chicken and egg rolls, which are a type of street food that hails from Kolkata. Kati or Kathi Rolls are the umbrella term used to describe all the different variations of this dish. Don’t let yourself be mistaken by “egg rolls”, the Americanized deep fried rolls served in North American Chinese restaurants. Instead, the wrap is made similarly to a naan but with less of a fluffy texture and filled with various ingredients. in Darth-Sid’s case, chicken, egg, cabbage and spices. It was obvious that Mandrea Bike loved these as they did a quick disappearing act. 

Keema Pao
After a few more beers, we opened a bottle of wine and made our way to the dinner table for our next course: Keema Pao (Pav). This is a staple street food from Bombay, a legacy of the Parsee (nee Iranian) cafes which once dotted most of the bylanes of the city. Served alongside a simple Indian style salad, “Keema” refers to ground or minced meat and “pao” refers to a bread bun. The mince is cooked in a variety of spices and includes pieces of onion, potato and peas. This is a no judgment dish and can be eaten in any which way tickles your face. Mandrea Bike opts for digging right in with hands, but using a fork is also acceptable. 

Phirni
Finally, the night was finished off with phirni, a dessert from the North of India that’s a variation of rice pudding made by boiling rice, milk, sugar and cardamom. This was a great way to end the dining tour. Curly Guy gave his stamp of approval when he exclaimed: “I love rice pudding!”

It’s always a pleasure sharing a meal with Darth-Sid and it’s a special gesture to be invited into his home to share in his culture. Although we come from different backgrounds, we share many similarities such as our love of travel, food and great company. It was an honor sharing a meal with Sid and Deba and we hope that there are many more to come.

Thank you very much for the warm hospitality and for the introduction to Indian street food.

Eat with you soon,

Mandrea Bike
(Mat & Andrea)