I’ve found what has to be the best dish in all of Columbus… possibly even the world.
It’s not a meal, per se – more of an appetizer. It’s a “chaat” or street food snack from my favorite Indian cafe and it rocks my world!
Without further ado, the dish is Dahi Puri from Bikanervala in Dublin, which is my new favorite spot for Indian snacks, sweets and more. I’ve had Dahi Puri at other restaurants, but none have moved me like this dish.
The Dahi Puri at Bikanervala is a light, perfect appetizer or wonderful afternoon snack. It is beautiful to behold and literal poetry for the tastebuds! I cannot say enough about this dish or its preparation and presentation at this wonderful Indian cafe.
Dahi Puri is a dish of mixed potatoes and lentils placed into delicate little fried bread balls and topped with a variety of condiments, including cool yogurt, sweet and spicy sauces, crisp rice and a garnish of fresh beets, ginger and pomegranate arils. In short, it’s gorgeous to look at and tastes like heaven in the mouth!
I’ve loved Pani Puri for a while, which is also made in these little fried, crispy bread shells. However, with Pani Puri, you are given the ingredients and put them together yourself: first loading in the potato and lentil mixture, then topping with various sauces and then popping the whole thing into your mouth in one bite that is a flavor explosion. I still love Pani Puri – both at Bikanervala and at Neehee’s, also in Dublin.
But now that I’ve had the Dahi Puri at Bikanervala, it has taken the #1 favorite chaat spot in my heart. I still love all the other Indian appetizers and street food snacks I’ve enjoyed in the past: samosas, Pani Puri and the like. There’s even a third type of puri chaat known as Sev Puri. But for me, there can be only one, and Dahi Puri is that one.
I just love how all of the different flavors and textures meld together into the perfect bite every time.
- The cool yogurt offsets the spice of the potato and lentil mixture and the flavorful, spiced sauces.
- The slightly sweet pomegranate and tamarind sauce is a perfect counterpoint to the savory filling and tangy, spicy cilantro-mint sauce.
- The crunch of the little outer shell is perfectly balanced by the softness of the mixture within and the fresh crispness of the veggie garnish.
Even the overall look of the dish is delightful: like tiny, perfectly orb-shaped birds’ nests packed with deliciousness and decorated for maximum color, texture and flavor.
I am hoping you’ll read this, then run right over to Dublin and order Dahi Puri at Bikanervala. I imagine that you will love it as much as I do.
While there, you may see on the menu board an even bigger version of Dahi Puri – a monster-sized version known as Raj Kachori. I tried this, thinking “If I love Dahi Puri, I’ll love its larger cousin even more!” But as it turns out, the Raj Kachori was a bit too much for me.
It was delicious, don’t get me wrong – and as gorgeous to look at as my favorite chaat. It just became a little overwhelming due to the sheer volume of yogurt and it ended up a bit soupy and hard to manage. I felt that my greedy eyes had made a bad call; Dahi Puri, though a smaller portion, is definitely the one for me.
If you fall as deeply in love with Dahi Puri as I have, you may even consider making it yourself at home. I haven’t tried this yet, but I may have to give it a whirl!
