I woke up to the sound of the whirring fan, feeling slightly warm despite the cold outside. I had fallen asleep in my clothes the night before, and the clock showed 6:05 am. Yawning, I reached for my glasses, recalling the events of the previous day, slipped into a pair of hotel slippers and switched the fan off. Half an hour later, I was dressed for the day and raring to go. A quick peek inside the breakfast room revealed the remaining members of my motley crew. Hot pooris, idli, and a pair of eggs over easy were quickly devoured, and then, off we went to our first destination: Dimna Lake.
Dimna Lake
Dimna Lake was constructed by TATA Steel in Boram Block. Located close to the Dalma Wild Life Sanctuary, the way up to the lake was scenic and pleasant. LC kept on snapping photos with SP in tow, while TD and RC walked hand in hand, their voices mingling gently with the general cacophony of birds. On the steps that led up to the dam, RC encountered a stray dog (‘FEROCIOUS BEAST’), froze and almost forgot to breathe, while LC and I safely shepherded her away from it, into ‘safety’. The ‘ferocious beast’ might have gotten a few pats on his furry head from yours truly, but that’s still unconfirmed news.
Brubeck Bakery
On our way back, we stopped at Brubeck Bakery for coffee and LC had to have the blueberry cheesecake, which wasn’t my first choice, and I settled for a lemon tart, with a crumbly crust that held a bounty of tart lemon curd with a lovely sugary hit – a perfect wake up call after our little walk down the dam.
We did walk around a bit afterwards, and went into the Boulevard Hotel, but didn’t have the time to eat anything there. The photos on the walls of that hotel was rather interesting, and I would love to stay there for a couple of days to do a more thorough study.
Novelty Restaurant
Our initial lunch plan was at nearly empty Cafe Regal, but when we went up there and asked for a menu, apart from some sandwiches, virtually nothing was available. TD and I looked at each other, and promptly walked downstairs to Novelty, which was packed to the hilt. We were lucky though – a table for six had just opened up, and we didn’t miss a beat. Bowls of Hot and Sour soup were ordered, along with the Amritsari Tawa Murgh and Biryani, and soon enough, the table was quiet except slurps and requests for more rice. We later got to know that Novelty is famous for its fish fingers – well, another time!
Brown Bread Bakery
SHM and I took a car to visit the other bakery that had been a point of some contemplation – Brown Bread Bakery. Primordially vegetarian, we both found ourselves marvelling at the rather large display of pretty cakes and cookies, and ended up ordering one for RC (it was her anniversary the next day), and buying a pastry to try.
A dark chocolate-y affair, I found the cake to be slightly on the dry side, with extra icing smeared to compensate for the dryness. It didn’t help much, and on that overly sweet note, we made our way to a mall to buy some knickknacks for ourselves.
Manohar Chat
After loitering around P&M mall for a bit, and then walking around Sakchi market, we ended up heading towards Manohar Chat in Sakchi Market.
As I walked in, the owner, a lovely gentleman, a proud fan of Madhuri Dixit (that showed in the wall decor and the countless photos of the star all around us), smitten by LC’s smile, offered her a Cornetto. She giggled – I smirked and promptly ate the aloo tikki chaat she had mistakenly placed in front of me – crisp and hot from the tawa.
Bhatia Ki Jalebi
After a short detour where we ate some fried goodies from a couple of street vendors close to chhappan bhog, we ended up walking to Bhatia ki Jalebi, a shop known for its strange clock that runs anti-clockwise but keeps perfect time.
Designed by Satbir Singh, the third-generation owner, this clock was one of the reasons we had to see the shop, the others being boondi and farsaan. We might have gotten distracted by the besan laddoos and jalebis, but that was a good distraction.
Social 75
Our final stop of the night was at Social 75, described to us as a swanky place that served hookah. We, however, were too distracted by the food to go towards that dedicated section, and it was cold enough for another round of soup, chicken momos, a bowl of stir fried chicken, followed by some pan fried noodles.
The pan fried noodles was my favourite – a huddle of crisp vegetables tossed gently with soy and oyster sauce, dousing a generous portion of slightly crisped noodles. We ended the night by visiting Brubeck Bakery to pick up a few apple pies and sandwiches for the train next day.
Jamshedpur was a rather lovely revelation this time around, and though I have missed out on many suggestions that were made to me, I think I made a pretty good dent on the food scene during the whirlwind trip. Next time, I hope to visit a few more places and spend some quality time at Dalma Wild Life Sanctuary, trying to spot elephants and other beasts.
Disclaimer: Sponsored Trip. All reviews were done anonymously.
One Response
Delicious food stop collections! Really this City has various street foods stops as well as the restaurants for getting joy. For local city visit, you can take the help of local taxi services in India and explore the entire city easily.