The surprising Bengali connection of a Braj sweet shop in Delhi’s Kamla Nagar

“At that time, Kamla Nagar didn’t have as big a market as it has now. There were only five-six shops and there weren’t as many residents. But students from Delhi University’s North Campus would throng the stall,” says Brijwasi, 42, who manages the shop with his younger brothers Amit, 38, and Rohit, 35. “Our grandfather was illiterate and didn’t know how to calculate. At that time, a rasgulla was sold for four annas. The customers used to calculate and give the money themselves. Our father told us how in the evenings when they evaluated the day’s sale, they had an anna or two extra. That’s how gracious the customers were,” he says. In 1962, they closed the stall and started sitting at the shop.

Shyam Lal died in 1990, so the boys were raised by their grandfather, who died in 2002. “We don’t have any workers, our family members prepare and serve the dishes at the shop,” says Brijwasi. Over 1,500 litres cow milk that is used daily comes from UP’s Baghpat.

In photo, lachha paratha, khoya matar paneer and Vrindavani. (Photo: Surbhi Gupta)

Eventually, they also started serving breakfast of aloo-bedmi puri, aloo-kachori and lassi, and dishes made without onion and garlic such as khoya matar paneer, shahi paneer, palak paneer, aloo gobhi, rajma, dal makhani, chana masala, braj besan gatta, and Vrindavani — which is otherwise known as kadi pakora that’s made of dahi. “We, however, make it with chenne ka pani and milk cream. In our food, we don’t use red or green chillies, using only pepper, cloves, cinnamon, bay leaf and asafoetida. For naan and parathas, we knead the flour in cow milk,” he says. In summer, they serve lauki ka achar and in winter, gajar-shalgam ka achar. Also popular are snacks like aloo ka bhalla topped with matra ki chaat, cheela and samosa. In summer, you can beat the heat with chak doodh, infused with saffron, pistachios, almond, rose water and served in bottles, and in winter, try the kadhai doodh, prepared daily from 5-11 pm.

If Holi saw gujiya, balushahi, chandrakala and thandai flying off the counter, pheni and kadhai ghewar (a one-piece ghewar, weighing four-five kg and cut into pieces) are made during Raksha Bandhan, and maakhan misri and rabri kuliya during Janmashtami.

Construction behind the shop is in full swing as the brothers plan to expand and open a restaurant to serve more recipes and dishes from the Braj region. “The kacchi thali will have kale angoor ki sabzi, braj besan katli, doodh bhaat, arhar dal, moong dal, gwar ki phali, kathal, arbi, rasili matar paneer in a cashew and makhana gravy, among others,” he says.