One plate soft fluffy white idli dunked in spicy flaming red rasam followed by a steaming hot filter coffee after a rough night at the hospital keeping vigil for a dear one in a badly ventilated air-conditioned room when you are yourself just recovering from flu, with chest congestion and blocked sinuses, waking up every hour to call the nurse for one reason or the other, and then, as dawn breaks and things look under some semblance of control, deciding to walk 3km to the nearest Wadeshwar just to clear your head: ₹163
Tip for the waiter who recognised you from 2 years ago when you were consulting for the chain, and so offered you a table out of turn, as all the Puneri morning walkers gave you ‘the look’: ₹20
The warm sensation that starts at the buccal cavity and slowly travels down the oesophagus to settle in the pit of your stomach and up through your nasal passage and out through your nostrils, clearing them in an instant, radiating its glow to every corner of your tired body and bringing you a feeling of general well-being, making you believe that all’s right with the world within seconds of swallowing the first spoonful of your freshly made and quickly & efficiently served breakfast, as the rays of the sun penetrate through the hole in the roof and hit your seating place, as if on cue, lighting it up like a Disney movie moment: Priceless
Ah, life!
