Bittu Tikki Wala

We are located at G-46 in Jasola Vihar, and if you follow the sound of sizzling oil, you’ll find us easily. My name is Bittu, and I’ve been doing this for a long time. The tikki business is all about the crunch. We spend a lot of time mashing potatoes and getting the fillings right before the evening crowd arrives. Usually, around 5 pm, the area starts to get busy with people coming back from work or kids hanging out. It’s a small place, so most people just stand around the counter or eat in their cars. We don't have fancy seating or anything like that. It’s just the hot tawa and the smell of ghee. Sometimes it gets a bit greasy, and the floor needs a lot of cleaning, but that’s what happens when you’re frying things all day. We use a lot of green chutney and tamarind sauce, so my hands usually smell like coriander by the end of the shift. It’s hard work, standing in front of the heat, but I like seeing the same faces every week. Some people have been coming since they were kids. We don’t really change the way we do things. The recipe is the same as it was years ago. We just keep the potatoes boiling and the stove going until we close up for the night. It’s a simple neighborhood food stall and we just keep it moving.