Whether it is fiery Goan Sorpotel or rich, meaty Wazwan, spicy Chettinad fare or traditional Rajasthani staples, and even inventive Indian desserts, students & professionals who have moved to Delhi from
other states swear by the little 'slice of home' such services offer through their food.
Having lived in Manipur all his life, one of the first things Kiddo Langhu started missing about home when he moved to Delhi was its food. "This was 2002, and I had come to the capital to prepare for medical entrance exams. I moved to Mumbai to pursue hotel management a year later, but was unable to find any food from my region there as well," he says,
A degree in hotel management and an MBA later, it was the intention to serve healthy, nutritious and homemade food from Manipur that made Langhu start North East Herbs & Spices, a tiffin service providing healthy & affordable north eastern meals to students & professionals in the JNU -Humayunpur area. "We started it on an experimental basis to figure out if there was a demand for the cuisine. The response was tremendous, and we are now figuring out a process to set up an outlet," Langhu says.
Delhi has never had a dearth of places to order in good ol' kebabs & curries, but as Langhu has figured, the demand for authentic regional cuisine from around the country, has seen a surge in popularity of
home chefs and outlets delivering home cooked regional cuisine from different states right at the doorstep.
Whether it is fiery Goan Sorpotel or rich, meaty Wazwan, spicy Chettinad fare or traditional Rajasthani staples, and even inventive Indian desserts, students & professionals who have moved to Delhi from
other states swear by the little 'slice of home' such services offer through their food.
"I moved to Delhi from Kerala 10 years ago for a job. Every time, I wanted to have something as basic as an appam & fish curry, or even a stew, I had to go to Kerala Bhawan. Now I just order it from Kerala Cafe. On days when I miss my mom's cooking, Kerala cafe is my go-to place," says Diana Suresh, who stays in East Delhi. A hole-in-the wall place, Kerala Cafe home delivers authentic and affordable from Kerala for as less as Rs 300.
Admits Top mal, who has been running a vegetarian Rajasthani food catering business in the city for more than a decade now, "There was always demand for good food in Delhi, but the last few years the
scene has definitely seen a surge when it comes to Rajasthani food. This could be because Delhi has people from around the country, but I think it has got more to do with the fact that chefs and restaurants are only catering to a demand that existed now."
It's no surprise then that areas - especially inhabited by students - have seen an increasing number of businesses cropping up in these areas. Humayunpur in South Delhi is a case in point. Essentially inhabited by students and professionals from the northeast, the place has seen many small places open up in the area that offer everything from authentic Mizo to Naga cuisine open up.
Then, there are apps like FoodCloud, who recognizing the immense demand for regional cuisine provide tiffin services from most states through its network of more than 200 homechefs. " We have a customer who wants Assamese food every day. Then there is one who wants to different cuisine everyday. This is a growing market and we have chefs to cater to all demands," says Nikhil Singh, from FoodCloud.in.
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