Another Tea Break- The Chai at Nilofer

On Friday evening while on way to a book reading at Crossword at Banjara Hills, I realized I was in the vicinity of an Irani Restaurant I had only heard about. I was near Lakdikapul and felt I wouldn’t get a better chance to check the Irani tea in that joint. So I turned left deciding I would give the Irani chai at Nilofer a go than the café latte at ‘Brio’ in Crossword. Moreover, I wasn’t in the mood to shell down a couple of tenners for a mere coffee. Irani tea in Hyderabad hasn’t yet crossed the five rupees barrier.

The name of the restaurant, ‘Nilofer’, maybe comes from the fact that it is right next door to the Nilofer Children’s hospital. Whatever, one could tell at a single glance that it was a popular joint. Half of the road in front of it was packed with haphazardly parked vehicles while the customers stood on the road outside the hotel sipping eagerly from the cups. I had passed by this hotel in the past but did not have the chance to sample the chai there. But on Friday I got the chance.

I too parked (haphazardly, though) and entered the hotel. It was not very big and was actually a hall with three just tables to one side and two counters on the other two sides. One served the bakery items and the other tea and other eatables. There was self-service but I decided to sit at one of the tables and order the tea. I was disappointed to note it didn’t serve chota samosas so I settled for Osmania biscuits and a cup of tea. It was brought to me within minutes.

I guess I can say it was the best tea I have ever tasted in any Irani hotel so far. It was light and kind of rolled off the tongue straight down the throat. It was not heavy like teas at other places and did not leave any aftertaste that takes hours to disappear. The tea at ‘Nilofer’ did not seem to have any such aftertaste. I loved the light tea which was not too sweet or milky. It had just the right flavor and sweetnes. The nectar like tea at Nilofer was worth the visit and as I was leaving I was wondering how I could fit in my route so I could have the tea here at least twice in a week. I wanted to have a ‘Nilofer Chai’ day in my week