'Street' Food

One of my favorite parts about visiting India is eating the 'street' food. The variety and the tastiness of the food is like no other. There are vendors lined up alongside Chowpatty, Marine Drive, Nariman Point (all popular points alongside the Indian Ocean), as well as in all the neighborhoods and at anytime of the day there is always a line. Chaat is one of the most popular forms of street food, bhel puri, pani puri, etc. these foods can be found on the menus at restaurants, but in most instances it is most enjoyable and tasty to eat from a street vendor. These vendors have a little cart and set-up shop in the same location, some of them rotate so they will be in one neighborhood during certain hours of the day and then switch to another neighborhood. You order your food based on the level of spiciness as well as based on your religion (Jains don't eat onions, garlic or potatos).  The latest craze this year is grilled sandwiches, we waited in line for an hour at 3 in the afternoon yesterday at a popular spot! It's basically a triple decker chutney sandwich with veggies and cheese or paneer. It's a massive panini so between 8 people we ordered 6 sandwiches and ended up with leftovers. Another popular street food are dosa and vada, these are similar to crepes but stuffed with veggies and fried donuts and served with a lentil soup and coconut chutney. Crowds of people will stand in the street and eat their meals as there are no counter tops or tables. Freshly squeezed fruit juice and sugar cane juice are also popular. There's a new ice cream franchise that is expanding, which is really good, called Natural, they use natural fruit in the ice cream and the best part is they deliver! Domino's, Pizza Hut, Baskin Robbins litter many of the neighborhoods and this was the first time I noticed a Subway down the street from my grandma's so apparently they have expanded their footprint as well.  Lastly, there is pan, which is an after dinner 'mint', it's a leaf which can be stuffed with a multitude of condiments, which are a combination of sweet and syrupy. Tobacco is often times an additive in pan, so in public places you will see stains of red from people spitting out the tobacco from the pan after chewing it. And whenever you are visiting family/friends you will always be offered chai and snacks (or a meal depending on the time of day), even if you just ate you are obligated to consume something. Even at mealtimes if you do not want another piece of nan they will insist and place it on your plate and you have to eat it. Eating is a non-stop activity in India.