Saibaba Bhel

Saibaba Bhel is a small place on Bora Bazar Street in Sadashiv Peth. If you know the area you know how narrow the streets are around here. Our shop number is 1221/13 and it is not very hard to find if you are walking through the market. We have big bags of murmura stacked up in the corner and jars of different chutneys lined up. The spicy smell of the garlic and chili is always in the air. We spend the afternoon prep time cutting coriander and boiling potatoes. When evening comes the crowd starts building up on the street. People stand around the counter and we mix the bhel in large metal bowls. You can hear the sound of the spoon hitting the metal all evening long. We use old newspapers or paper cones to serve the food. It is a fast-paced environment and we have to be quick with our hands. Sometimes we make mistakes with the change but we try to be careful and fix it. The street lights outside are a bit dim but the shop light stays on until we close up late. We have a small sink in the back where we wash our hands and the bowls. It is just a regular bhel shop in a very old part of the city and we like the people who visit us every day. We usually sweep up the stray grains of puffed rice from the floor before we lock the door at night.