Sunday Story: Mysore Pak to dosa Culinary delight from city of palaces

The cleanest city of the country, Mysuru, is not only about picturesque palaces, heritage structures and temples and tourism, but also about a unique food culture that has been preserved through generations by old, humble hotels. These eateries are popular among the locals as well as actors and politicians, who unmindful of their status, make a beeline for them, tempted by the delicious fare on offer.

His iconic status never stopped superstar Dr Rajkumar from stopping by at the humble Ramya drive-in restaurant on the campus of the Cosmopolitan Club of Mysuru every time he was in the city to enjoy its masala dosa served with a tiny bowl of ghee. And he nearly always went away with a packet of badam halwa, a speciality of the restaurant, on his way home. CM Siddaramaiah too recently stopped by for a dosa at a branch of the hotel, Ramya Mahendra, near the RTO office in Mysuru. “The late former CM, S Bangarappa, enjoyed having our set dosa made of avalakki,” recalls Mr G.G. Mahendra, its owner.

The cleanest city of the nation, Mysuru is then not only about picturesque palaces, heritage structures and temples and tourism, but also boasts of a unique food culture that has been preserved through generations by old, humble hotels that are popular not just among the locals, but celebrities and politicians as well, who unmindful of their status, make a beeline for them, tempted by their delicious food.

The melting soft Mylari masala dosa and Mallige idli topped with butter and served with onion sagu, prepared on firewood at the 80- year- old Mylari Hotel in Nazarbad , eastern Mysuru are among the hot favourites. The special, crispy yet thick and soft masala dosa roasted in ghee at the over 50- year- old, Gayathri Tiffin room in Chamundipuram in South Mysuru, the Hanmanthu mutton pulav with a unique green masala prepared over firewood at the 80- year- old Hanmanthu Hotel in Mandi Mohalla in North Mysuru , the home-made kaal soup and idly, naati koli curry with mudhdhe (ragi ball) with Mysuru style Maratti masala served at the Tegu Mess on Adipampa Road, and the Mysuru style South Indian meals and delicacies at Mysore Dasprakash, Indra café, in the heart of the city are some of the other dishes that contribute to Mysuru’s unique and rich food culture.

As for the best known sweetmeat of the city, the Mysore Pak, heritage expert, Eechanur Kumar, says it was prepared on the orders of Mysore maharaja, Mummadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar, who gave it the name it is known by all over the country. “This signature dish of Mysuru is still being sold by the fourth generation of the Kakasura Madappa family at Guru sweets in Devaraja Market,” he notes.

“Besides standing the test of time, the old hotels of Mysuru have not diluted the quality of their food,” says, Prof R N Padmanabha, who has lived in Mysuru for over five decades. Mysuru Hotel Owners Association head, C Narayangowda, endorses this, saying that while there are over 350 hotels in Mysuru now , ranging from fast food joints to star hotels, the competition offered by the modern restaurants has made no difference to the hotels, which continue to serve traditional Mysuru fare.

“In fact people still go in search of them in narrow lanes and wait in queues to be served. Although the masala dosa was not invented in the region, the Mysuru masala dosa has a layer of red chutney with flavours of various spices lined inside , which makes it unique,” he explains.

Started with encouragement by the then Mysore Maharaja, Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar , the Modern Hindu hotel replaced the existing Mayura Yathrinivas on JLB road in 1943. Its founder, K Seetharam Rao, later shifted it to a location near Prabha Theatre and re-named it Modern Café. Eventually it got the name, which it is still known by, Mysore Dasprakash.

“The South Indian Mysuru style thaali, guliyappa, goli bajji, haal bhai and other delicacies prepared by Udupi Brahmins on firewood at the hotel have a unique flavour that has even attracted royalty, from the late maharajas of Mysuru, Jayachamarandendra Wadiyar and Srikantdatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar to the present maharaja, Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar and his new bride Trishika Kumari, who have the occasional breakfast here.

It was also a common place for intellectuals and poets of the city to meet in the past,” recalls Mr Nagaraj Rao, the senior manager, who has been serving the group since 1968. The hotel currently, closed temporarily for renovation, is expected to be opened in the first week of April.

Also popular is the Sri Chamundeswari Donne Biryani Centre in Vijaynagar 2nd stage , which sees at least 500 people, including techies and politicians, enjoying its biriyani every day. “The unique red chilly masala and quality rice used give the biryani its unique taste,” says restaurant owner, Chetan Gowda D.

Then there is the famed Hanumanthu pulav , whose recipe has been closely guarded by four generations of a family. "Hanumanthu pulav was served for just 25 paise in the 1930s. Actor- politician, Ambarish came as early as 5am here to enjoy the naati koli pulav before he left for the Sports Club to play shuttle,” recalls Hanmanthu Hotel, owner, Vasu. “The special taste of Mysuru’s food, whether it is rasam or saaru, is due to a combination of spices used in the Mysuru region,” reveals Prof Shalva Pille Iyengar, head of the Department of Ancient History and Archaeology at KSOU.

Recalling that before the construction of the Krishnararaja Sagar dam, Mysuru, being a rain shadow region, grew mainly millets like ragi, navane and avare kaalu , he says the people’s diet even today revolves around ragi, whether it be in the form of mudhdhe (balls) or roti.