Dinner Out

Now that we were feeling settled in our apartment, we were ready to begin our routine of eating out in the bazaar during the middle of the week. I decided that walking to the middle of Landour would be far enough for me this time. (I was extremely exhausted last weekend when we went all the way to the Cambridge Bookshop at the top of Kulri Hill.) In the end, I did well and didn't even have to stop once on the walk up Mullingar Hill. So next week, on to Kulri!

We often have our first meal out at the Golden Restaurant. It is right at the Clock Tower site, across from the new shop Ram Chander opened across the road from his old one. The proprietor welcomed us, obviously remembering us from our former visits.

I set my camera on the table to be sure to remember to photograph the food for you. (Too often I dig in and later remember!) We had our favorite starter, paneer pakoras. These are cubes of paneer (fresh cheese pressed solid) dipped into besan batter (chickpea flour) and deep fried. As the proprietor saw me pick up the camera, he quickly added his menu beside the pakoras so it would show. I was delighted, and told him it was good advertising.

Oops, we served the food onto our plates before I got back to the camera. We had chicken do piaza (double onions) on the right and aloo gobhi (potatoes and cauliflower) on the right. Tandoori roti on the side.

Last year I wrote about the Landour Clock Tower, more than a century old and a major landmark. It was taken down to be rebuilt but municipal bickering and other delays left it a bare spot for many months. On the weekend we saw men working excavating down for the new base. However, work has stopped again and the hole is surrounded with barricades. We are hopeful that it will be rebuilt soon!