Gramina Thindi, a hole-in-the-wall eatery in Jayanagar IV Block, serves up hearty south Indian breakfast and snacks. While it is a typical self-service restaurant with limited seating, the price and the quality of food are more than enough to keep you going back for more.
The calorie-heavy Davangere Benne Dosa is the restaurant’s specialty. Made with ample butter and ghee, the crispy dosas melt in your mouth. They come in khali, masala and open varieties. The filling comprises mashed salted potatoes, with no spices or seasoning other than a hint of cardamom. The dish is served with fresh coconut chutney that complements its taste brilliantly. Filling as it is, you might be tempted to order a second one. So weight watchers, steer clear.
Other dishes in the not-very-elaborate menu include idli, uddina vada, paddu, khara bhath, kesari bhath and avalakki oggarane, all served only with coconut chutney. The shavige is not the instant variety that has infiltrated today’s market, especially over the past couple of decades. Instead, it’s made fresh from steamed rice flour and seasoned with turmeric and mustard seeds.
For rice-lovers, there’s mix bhath, bisibele bhath with the other rice item of the day. There’s always curd rice to finish the meal off in true South Indian style.
In the evening, the restaurant serves the more spicy delicacies like mirchi bajjis, girimit (a North Karnataka dish that is a lot like bhel poori) and mandakki oggarane, a poha-like preparation made of puffed rice.
Food at Gramina Thindi is very reasonably priced. Tea and filter coffee cost `6 and are as good as they get. Along with a piping hot plate of dosa or idli, they taste heavenly.
Though it has the buzz characteristic of a Bengaluru darshini, there’s always enough place for everyone. You could choose to savour a quick meal, standing around the steel tables or sit cross-legged on the stone ledges rather reminiscent of jaglis – outdoor seating in villages.