As part of the itinerary of Bihar's biggest culinary conclave, the organizing body, GTRI, curated a super exciting day-long gastronomic experience that featured a brief breakfast walk in the city followed by a traditional Bhoj (feast) in a mango orchard. Along with some of the dignitaries and organizers, we had a memorable day sharing food stories and memories around the traditional Bihari delicacies that were part of this food tour.
The event saw the gathering of celebrated food personalities with roots in Bihar who have been making their mark around the world. This included Chef Manish Malhotra, Chef Jap Singh of ITC, and others. This food tour was organized the day after the main event. What a wonderful idea it was to explore down the streets of Patna with food maestros, food bloggers, and the organizers.
The first part of this tour was a breakfast walk in Patna. Four spots were earmarked to indulge in nostalgia. We were excited to relish some of our favorite things with some stalwart chefs. Our first stop was a sattu sharbat cart opposite Biscomaun Bhawan. Sattu, or roasted gram flour, is a key ingredient in Bihari cuisine, and the savory drink made with it is an easy and great source of protein and other essential nutrients. The drink is very filling as well. The one that they serve here was a thick and velvety concoction of sattu, spicy pudina chutney, chopped onions, and lemon. Anubhav rightly refers to it as a desi protein shake. This refreshing and flavorful drink was a great start to the tour.
Next stop was Sangita Sweets, an old name for traditional Bihari sweets and namkeen. Here we couldn't resist savoring some of the classic sweet snacks—gaja, khaja, pedukiya, and khoya-stuffed anarsa. Everybody basked in the irresistible flavors of these sweets they've grown up with.
After the sweet indulgence, it was time to have some chai. But when we reached Nandani Sweets, we got spoilt for choices as there were so many other favorite items being served. Since we were half full, we decided to try a little of sattu kachori, channa sabzi, puri, and jaleba. The crispy sattu kachori was phenomenal and so was the combo of jaleba and dahi. And the chai that was cooked on charcoal was like a balm.
Soon after, we left for the feast at Dr. Mritunjay's mango orchard in Rohua village in Samastipur. He is one of the key members of GTRI. In between, we halted for a samosa break at Gupta Sweets in Malpur, Vaishali. We love the samosa from eastern India and this one was just perfect to our liking. It felt gratifying.
Finally, we reached the sprawling orchard of Dr. Mritunjay. Everyone was overjoyed at the sight of the numerous mango trees bearing fruits. We got to know that it is home to nearly 20 varieties of mangoes. With the timely help of a little kid who was a pro at climbing, we plucked some raw ones to eat. It was a great joy to have fruits plucked from the trees. A feast was arranged in the midst of this serene spot. The menu of this pangat bhoj featured traditional Bihari dishes. Just like the rural tradition, we all sat down to have the meal. "Soul-satisfying" is an understatement. What makes it so special and joyful is the experience of eating together, laughing, and sharing stories.
This experience was truly exhilarating and we thank the whole team of GTRI for this curation. Heartfelt thanks to Aditi Nandan, curator of GTRI, for making us a part of this wonderful initiative that is taking Bihari cuisine to a global level.
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