How do you top the Valentine’s dinner that was an ode to Badshah’s overpriced mediocrity? By a lunch (at Baba’s Corner, Nucleus Mall, Pune) that is not just a gastronomical delight, but also a gastroenterologist’s.
The real romance, as they say, is on the streets.
A rickety stall. A cracked wok. A ‘chef’ who last saw a bar of soap in another lifetime. A footpath barely wide enough for pedestrians, now illegally encroached upon by a quick-dining experience for the true ‘connoisseur’.
Lunch? The classics. Hot & Sour Chicken Soup. Schezwan Chicken Noodles. Egg Fried Rice (two of them). Chicken Lollipops. Five tiny Thums Ups. One bottle of water. Damage? ₹850. Experience? Priceless.
The wok has seen generations. Possibly wars. Certainly no detergent. The fried rice? Perfection. Uncle Roger would bow. The waiter? A multitasking maestro. Order taker. Food runner. Meteorologist. Engaging in deep conversation about the unpredictable February weather while serving the crispiest chicken lollipops known to mankind.
And then, the real reason it is the best post-Valentine’s meal?
Your love, sitting opposite you, looking resplendent in a pink kurta and jeans. And the beautiful little human she calls her daughter (and who’s just aced her elocution exams). Giggling. Feasting. Telling you about their day. No fancy candlelight dinner could ever match this.
That is how you do it.
