Flavour of the season

When Surinder Chawla set up Amritsari Lassi Wala at Fatehpuri Chowk in old Delhi in 1974,it came in three variations: namkeen jeera,sweet malai and fat-free. Today,it’s sweet,salty and everything in between. “I enjoy selling lassi. It’s been my family business for over three decades now. The lassi’s popularity now goes beyond the walled city,” says the 25-year-old proprietor,Anshuman Chawla. The lassi at Amritsari Lassi Wala now comes in many flavours: mango,banana,rose badam and kesar badam.

The shop gets about 500 customers in a day,from the time that it opens at 8 a.m. till 10 at night. “Lassi is a traditional drink and is a good substitute for soft drinks. Soft drinks arrest the digestive system,lassi assists it,” says

Dr Naresh Vaid as he sips a glass of lassi. Vaid is a regular. For years,he has been stopping here every night on his way home from his clinic.

Though there are a few more lassi stops in old Delhi,if you want to try something different you could drop in at Raj Lassi Wala in Chandni Chowk (or Pitampura in west Delhi) for their pedewali lassi.