It is 12 noon. Shivaji Military Hotel is abuzz with activity. In one vessel Mysore jeera rice is being cooked, while in others chunks of mutton and chicken simmer.
The aroma of donne biryani fills the air, and people come and go as mounds of this flavoursome rice is served in bowls made of palm leaves ( donne ). Members of Bengaluru Biryani Club, a Facebook group dedicated to biryani, swear by the food here.
Shivaji Military Hotel
This Facebook page was started by Vinay Nagaraju, Renukesh Bingeri, and Navaneeth Thimappa in April, 2017. It already has close to 16,000 followers, with every post being only about biryani.
Members of Biryani club at Shivaji Military Hotel
Vinay and Renukesh suggest any food trail begins at Shivaji Military Hotel, as according to them, it is number one on their list.
Hyderabad egg biryani is prepared with rice, egg and spices. This can be served with raita.
“Biryani is not just any food. It has a cult following. We noticed that whenever we posted about it on food groups we received many comments. Bengaluru has welcomed every kind of biryani, from Hyderabad and Tamil Nadu to Kerala and Kolkata and so a page must be dedicated to it,” says Vinay, adding, “We have organised about four meet-ups, and one of them was at Shivaji Military Hotel. It was a closed door event, with about 100 people from the club attending.”
The founders decided to announce their starting of the club on a grand scale. “We wanted our first meet-up to be special. So we went in search of breakfast biryani, and found it in Hoskote.”
“At Anand’s Dum Biryani donne biryani is served at 6 am! The restaurant opens only for breakfast, and closes by 8.30 am. They make about 200 kilograms each day. So, at 5 am, eight people came along with us for meet-up. Then, by 8 am, 35 people had joined in!” says Renukesh.
The duo talk about how they organised their second meet up. “It was on June 4, 2017 at SGS Gundu Palav in Balepet, as it is one of the oldest joints where biryani is served for breakfast.”
Their expedition didn’t just end there.
“As every Bengalurean has eaten at the best places, we needed to set our standards high. So our third meet-up on July 2, 2017, was at Broadway in HSR layout at 12 noon,” says Vinay, adding: “They serve biryani on a six-foot long split bamboo pole!”
Biryani served on a bamboo pole at Broadway, HSR
Shivaji Military Hotel at Jayanagar 8th block, is run by brothers Rajiv and Lokesh Rao. Rajiv says, “The restaurant was earlier located in Nagarpet and was started by my grandfather S Mannaji Rao in 1924. It was handed down to my father M Lakshman Rao.” Over the years, Rajiv says they have been true to their traditional recipe. While he won’t reveal it, he does disclose that they prepare their biryani over charcoal. “We serve homely food. We grow our ginger and chilli in a farm located in rural Bengaluru and our clientèle includes film actors, such as Puneet Rajkumar.”
The founders insist that any biryani trail must include Nandhana Palace in JP Nagar. “Try their biryani thali, which is relatively unknown,” explains Renukesh. The thali has five types of biryani, each served in neat mounds.
Biryani thali at Nandhana Palace
This includes Nellore mutton biryani, supreme chicken biryani, Hyderabadi chicken biryani, nati kodi (country chicken biryani), and vegetarian biryani.
However, just when you think you have savoured the “best” biryani, along comes another. As in Bengaluru, everyone had a favourite source, leading to lots of heated arguments and a truly delicious diversity.
