Gobi Manchurian To Benne Dosa: Have You Checked Out Wilson Garden's Mini Food Lane

To us, Wilson Garden is where you need to go to, to board buses to Mysore from the Shanti Nagar Bus Depot located there. Recently one of our friends mentioned about a mini yet thriving food scene and our curiosity knew no bounds. On we boarded a bus to Shanti Nagar and after an arduous journey, we finally made to our destination. The mini lane behind the Depot comprises of just about seven joints that are serving everything from benne dosas to Gobi Manchurian and a rather quirky dessert that you must try.

The first joint you encounter is the corner-side shop that’s open all through the day from 7 am. Benne {butter} masala dosas and thatte idlis come highly recommended here, with the dosas loaded with butter. The white aloo masala and the red chutney smeared inside the dosas are what make them a winner. One plate is simply too less, we say. Thatte idlis are served with red and white chutney and come with a dollop of benne on top.

The benne masala dosa is priced at INR 40 a plate while a single thatte idli costs INR 20. Another evening special is the INR 30 priced Triveni, which is palav, lemon rice, and kesari bath.

Walk a little further and the smell of bajjis being fried will instantly catch your attention. This nameless shop is run by Simha who’s got no time to chat in his schedule of frying and serving. Place your order quick we say. Start with the capsicum bajji, a whole capsicum that too, that’s cut and topped with onion-coriander-carrot slaw. It’s seasoned with chilli powder and a squeeze of lime. The rest of the bajjis are your usual fare of vadas, masala vada, chilli bajjis, and onion pakodas.

A mixed platter of bajjis costs just INR 10, while the capsicum bajji is priced at INR 22. The onion bajji is sold for INR 12 per 100 gram.

Perhaps our favourite shop of the seven, Gopal’s shop is located next to Simha’s. While Gopal is the one who makes the Gobi Manchurian, his assistants are either chopping up kilos of cauliflower or dunking them in maida and frying them away to crispy goodness. The fried gobis meet garlic, three kinds of sauces {spicy, green, and soy}, and all kinds of Indian seasoning before being garnished with spring onions. Saucy and greasy, the Manchurian packs a punch in terms of flavour and that delectable spice.

A plate costs INR 60 and it can be a bit too much for one person, we think.

Having been in the area for about 40-odd years, the manager kept asking us if we would like a plate of Kotthu Parotta, a speciality here. Shredded parottas meet scrambled eggs, a bit of a non-vegetarian gravy, and seasoning to give you a plate of hunger buster. Having politely declined, he proceeded to ask us if we were interested in Egg Rice, Egg Parotta, Omelettes or good old idlis. With absolutely stuffed from all the eating, we simply resorted to shaking our head and clicking pictures of the parottas, bull’s eye, and omelettes being made. We are going back for the Kotthu Parotta, join us maybe?

The Kottu Parotta is priced at INR 50, so is the Egg Rice. The rest of the menu is priced between INR 10 and INR 60.

Located side by side under the same roof, both the dosa masters are in a race to see how many onion, plain, and masala dosas they can serve to the crowd that just keeps coming in. Honestly, we lost count of how many dosas the duo made while we were there for the 20-odd minute we were chatting and clicking pictures. It safe to say that they made close to 10 dosas every two minutes. The top seller at both the places are the onion dosas. Do a time-lapse video of the whole spreading the batter and the onions being topped on the batter to being served with red and white chutney. Trust us, it’ll make an interesting video.

Both the places have the same menu and rate card. A plate of onion dosa costs INR 25, so does a plate of masala dosa and set dosa. A plate of idlis {two} costs INR 15. Lemon rice is also served at INR 20 for a full plate.

We wrapped our binge eating with the dessert from this store across the street. Dubbed the Triveni, bananas, benne, and gulkhand meet tutty-fruity ice cream to create a dessert that’s quite interesting and well as yummy. A little too sweet for our palate, we nevertheless liked the whole ice cream and gulkhand combo. Oh, and guys, you have to share this because too much of it can be a little too sickening.

The dessert is priced at INR 55 per plate.

Finding the place can be a bit tricky. You can either Google Map Vijalakshmi Store or look for the Post Office that’s adjacent to the lane.