some indulgences cannot be explained, being an ardent foodie i was on 2 day trip to surat with no agenda except relaxing and eating good food. in gujrati we have a saying 'surat nu jaman ne kashi nu maran naseebvala ne male' which translates to only fortunate people have the privilege of eating in surat and dying in kashi. i have been to surat many times but i could not do justice to the quality, innovation and passion of food in surat so decided to have a trip completely dedicated to food.
had visited hari krushna hotel inorderto experience some good kathiyawadi food, intended to have dinner ended up having next day lunch also it was so damn awesome.
lasaniya bateta nu shaak (rs 70/-) : it had small cloves of garlic along with potato sliced in 2 equal parts. i had this dish for the first time and happened to be one of my instant favorite.
ringana no olo (rs 65/-) : kathiyawadi food cannot be without ringana no olo, it is baigan ka bharta for non gujratis. it is a dish prepared in winters by cooking the aubergine on raw gas fire. it is cooked until the same is soft from inside having consistency of keema. once cooked the skin is removed and various masalas are put and cooked. it was bang on, absolutely a treat to have it with the bajra no rotlo.
lila lasaniya lila dana (rs 70/-) : it consisted of green peas, tuver na dana. it was absolutely stunning. it was cooked to perfection.
lila lasan walu sev tameta nu shaak (rs 65/-): sev tameta is a dish i have had lots of time at home also or at restaurants also, but this version with the green garlic was better than any previous versions i have ever had.
bhinda masala (rs 55/-) : amongst all the dishes ordered, only this happened to be average. it tasted good but i think all other dishes were exceptionally good so it would have been okay if this was avoided.
khichiya papad (rs 25/-) : it was fried khichiya papad, crisp and tasty.
chaas (rs 15/-) : very sutle cooler in this scortching surat heat. in kathiyawadi food chaas or buttermilk is an integral part. even in kutch, every meal is accompanied by chaas. because of the geography of the areas of kutch and kathiyawadi, chaas helps body maintain it's heat level intact. this chaas was indeed not sour and absolutely went well with the food, which had lot of green garlic. it pacified the heat in the food.
bajra no rotlo (rs 20/-) : bajra no rotlo in gujrati means millet bread. it was served piping hot and the ghee on top of it made our tongue watering. it was so soft and delectable. millet is much more healthy than other wheat and maida based breads and also gluten free.
aam ras (rs 25/-): it was served cold straight out of the refrigerator. aam ras is like second nature to humans, have not heard of anyone not liking it. i had 2 of them after food and it made me end up my meal on an extreme high
khichdi kadhi (rs 40/-) : after all that guilty pleasures of having tasty, oily kathiyawadi good, khichdi and kadhi is a good way to go ahead. had this in dinner.
daal bhaat (rs 40/-) : surati daal and bhaat (rice). surati daal is a priced possession of suratis and it tastes like no other daal. in lunch i had daal rice after rotlo and shaak.
hari krushna is worth every penny spent and prices are so damn reasonable. i have listed prices of every item that i had. my dinner bill was 210/- and lunch bill was 395/-.
in 5 star restaurants food is presented in such a way it is a treat for the eyes, street food is prepared in such a way that it is a treat for the taste buds, but food prepared here was a treat for the soul.
overall enumerating this place in numbers on various parameters :
taste : 5/5
portion size : 5/5
hygiene : 5/5
value for money : 5/5
revisit quotient : 5/5
service : 5/5
ambiance : 4/5
overall rating : 5/5
if you happen to be in surat, this is a must visit. i guarantee you will not be disappointed.