Three reasons to check out the Military Hotel

Messy,dingy, unhygienic- if these are the words you associate with Military hotels then it is high time you change this notion. A Walk last week with Vidya soon changed my concept of Military Hotels.

Military Hotels were something I stared at while driving through highways. Small tables and chairs crowded in a single room giving a non assuming appearance,  the meat and egg dishes affordable and fulfilling for all the travelers who were cool enough to overlook its appearance. My thoughts about such outlets were not always good, I am ashamed to say. But things changed with a visit to Banashankari.

After a quick visit to the Banashankari Amma temple we set out on a good 3-4 hour walk and here is what I discovered.

–>The origins of Military Hotel of Bangalore is shouldered in a mystery. There are several versions floating out there, each more captivating then the other. But the stories are definitely interesting from the Maratha’s to the Tipoo Sahib.

–>There are huge variations in Hindu and Muslim Military styled hotels. You can clearly distinguish this in their cooking and the dishes you are served with. With a food blogger with me who tastes each grain of the food as if it was her last on the earth, I come to know these subtle differences quite forcibly:-)

–>Military Hotels are not just meat and egg dishes. Each hotel I am taken to has a large range of dishes from Ragi Mude, Paya soup to Mutton Biriyani and Kheema. The owners take pride in talking about each dish. And many seem to be regulars here with the waiters at ease with the customers, serving them their favorites which they routinely  ask for.

Today these hotels are no longer hole in the wall eateries. The popular ones have merged with the times dishing out hygienic healthy varieties in air conditioned rooms or at least in wide sunlit rooms reflecting a fresh ambiance. So go check out some of these traditions of old Bangalore before they too disappear in this burgeoning city. Or come with us on a Military Hotel walk and discover the joys of eating.

–Usha