ITP Indian Travel Places: Food, Travel, Tourism Business Events and Trade Shows
Restaurant Name: Sarposh, Indiranagar, Bangalore
Phone: +919538262493
Address: #39, First Floor, 80 Feet Road, opposite 12th Main, HAL 3rd Stage, Indiranagar, Bangalore, Karnataka 560075 India
Time: 11:30 AM – 10:30 PM
Meals for two: Rs. 1,400
Cuisines: Kashmiri, North Indian, Beverages
Facilities: Home Delivery. Takeaway Available. Table booking recommended. Desserts and Bakes. Indoor Seating
I was delighted when Sarposh opened in Bengaluru. It is a celebration of ethnic food rooted in a specific place and culture — a rare exception in a market crowded with menus that are a jumble of dishes of no known provenance; the trend is to present them as modem, progressive or experimental.
The first floor space on 80 Feet Road, Indiranagar, is done up in a style that uses art, objects and elements of kitsch to evoke nostalgia for Kashmir. You can sit on the floor on comfort-able cushions and sip on Zafraan Kehwa 0125) or even linger over the Kashmiri High Tea to share 01,600). I’ve enjoyed the Trami 01,200 for single) – the traditional meat-heavy feast — here, moving from Seekh Kebab to Rista, Rogan Josh and silken Gushtaba. Now, as summer sets in, and lighter eating is called for, you can savour some of Kashmir’s lesser known foods, particularly dish-es featuring dried vegetables, collec-tively known as hokh syun. The prac-tice of drying vegetables, while bom out of necessity — to brave long, harsh winters when fresh produce is unavail-able — has led to an array of utterly deli-cious dishes. These use, for instance, Wangan Hach (dried brinjal, in a sour preparation) and Al Hach (dried bottle gourd in a gorgeously flavourful dish th-at includes meat). Dandelion leaves and sundried tomatoes also star in dishes.
Sarposh owner Azmat Ali Mir puts in a lot of effort to source and showcase these seasonal ingredients. Given the logistics, dishes that rely on these unique ingredients are not on the regu-lar menu, but appear as specials at the restaurant. If you dine here frequently or follow Sarposh on social media you’ll know when a fresh batch of nadni, lotus stem, or haak, the Kashmiri green, has arrived and is being cooked up. The fleeting nature of their availability makes them even more special. Look out also for the arrival of bumchoonth, Kashmiri quince, which is cooked in a zesty sweet-and-sour base, to be eaten with the superlative breads here, such as Girda or Lavasa. While on the subject of breads, I also recommend the cookie-like Kulcha scattered with poppy seeds and the flaky Bakarkhani, both of which are perfect with kehwa.
