Dial 'H" for Haleem

Except for tea I do not prefer going to a hotel alone. Food tastes better when shared with friends and family. Also, I cannot finish an entire dish of anything save stuff like idli, dosa etc, alone. So, having no friends to share the season’s first Haleem I decided to take home some to share with my kid. I thought of picking up a Haleem pack at Bahar restaurant at Hyderguda on the way home.

It was as I expected. The place was milling with people ready to drool as they stood waiting for the Haleem to be dished out at the parcel counter. The service was quite fast and the order was met in seconds. However, I had to wait for a while because the gentleman before me had ordered ten packs of Haleem shelling out four hundred and fifty rupees. A 300 gm pack was forty five rupees at Bahar. I picked up the packet and was on my way. All along the way home I noticed the Irani hotels had decked up their Haleem counters with bright lights and banners. I saw Niagara at Old MLA Quarters had a haleem counter, so did Majestic, Kabab Inn at Himayat Nagar, Bawarchi, Astoria and another place nearer home, Light of Asia.

The Haleem from Bahar was wonderful without being too spicy. It was like a soft, smooth paste smelling heavenly and tasting even better. There were a few pieces of bone but more than a quarter of it was tender meat. I couldn’t make out any of the other ingredients but it didn’t matter because the taste was what mattered. Full marks to the Haleem of Bahar Restaurant. I will taste from other places next week. This time I will catch hold of a friend to share it with.