Hotel Balaji

Our place is in Chinchwad Gao, specifically around the Gandhi Peth area. It is a very busy part of the town with lots of people walking around. Hotel Balaji is more of a small eatery than a big hotel where people stay. We open up quite early because the local workers want their tea and breakfast before they start their day. I spend a lot of time at the counter handling the cash and making sure the tables are wiped clean. The benches are made of wood and they’ve been there for years. We have a big kadai where we fry things, and you can hear the oil sizzling from the street. It gets very crowded around ten in the morning, and the noise of plates clattering is everywhere. My brother helps with the serving while I stay near the front. We don't have any air conditioning, just a couple of wall fans that spin quite fast. The floor is made of stone and we wash it down every afternoon when the rush dies down for a bit. It’s a local spot where people know each other’s names. We don't bother with fancy decorations or anything like that. We just focus on keeping the food ready and the tea hot. It’s a lot of work, but it’s what we’ve always done here in Chinchwad.