Id Mubarak

 Id Mubarak

Since today is holy Ramadhan i want to write on a famous Biriyani joint in erstwhile Madras todays Chennai .

Buhari hotel in Chennai has been there when Chennai was Madras and when I lived my chldhood there.

The Biriyani of Buhari was legendary those days ,and was a very rare treat to us by a purse tight family .

In fact it was only during my college days l could go there more .

The Tamilnadu type of Biriyani was of Vaniyambadi type made as Dum Biriyani ( BASMATI RICE ONLY ) with succulent meat so well cooked it would roll as butter from its bones !

Chicken was not very elite those days and no puritan would think of chicken biriyani bah !!

It was always Mutton Biriyani .

Beef ,egg,vegetables werent much heard of those days .

The basmati rice was finely grained ,long, aromatic ,and suitably spiced..... just correct

With white boiled egg in crowning glory , the biryani would arrive regally with white raitha and brinjal curry by white coated turbanned waiters ,who served with a flourish .

During my short stint in Presidency college facing the marina beach ,we zoology BSC students ,some who were sure of getting thier medical seats, as that year it was only by merit ,as the DMK govt had been dimissed by Smt Indira Gandhi who was said to have given word that medical admission would be only by merit .

so yours faithully actually benifitted from the Emergency in India !

So the long aternoons would be spent on a breezy Buhari instead of in dreary classrooms munching on crispy samosas .

Buhari was known for , and the waiter would lay before us a big tray of yummylicious pastries with red colored chai in cute cups .

Idea was one could pick any pastry and pay accordingly .

Our group with a couple of girls and some chain smoking boys would empty it in no time .

With time Buhari turned corporate with branches in Dubai and many other places .

I remember tucking into its biryani in Burr Dubai outlet .

So when I saw Buhari once in Chennai I stopped my driver to get a takeaway .

The takeaway outhouse was AC with suitably tied managers , i mean with ties !!

The packed biriyani was very neat, it wasnt bad at all but it had lost its soul ,and no samosas till evening I was told .

So Buhari is more in my memory