King of Daal-Bafle from last 50 years: Hotel Rajhans

If you are a true Indori your life is incomplete without treating yourself with authentic royal rajasthani food “Daal-Bafle/Bati-Churma, and when it comes to authentic Rajasthani food, then the first thing which comes to everybody’s mind is definitely ” Hotel Rajhans” located at 3rd floor, 52 Bada Sarafa, Indore the restaurant has only two items on the menu- Dal Bafla or Dal bafla thali serving Indore from last 50 years. The Bafla is soft and served with liberal dose of ghee. The dal accompanying it spicy with strong smell of hing. With thali you get gond ka laddoo, rajasthani karhi, fried rice and aloo ki subzi.

Just in case If you’re not familiar with Daal-Bafle/Dal Baati Churma (very unusual) is the most popular dish of Rajasthani cuisine. This meal is an esteemed part of every Rajasthani household. This 3 in1 delicacy is a typical Rajasthani treat. A platter of sweet Churma, spicy Dal and Bafla, is one such traditional combination. Fresh bafla dipped in piping hot dal is a perfect accompaniment for churma. This combo of ‘Dal Bafla/baati Churma’ is a wonderful way to warm yourself up on a cold day!

I have been visiting this place from my childhood, FYI this is a pretty old restaurant located at heart of Indore in sarafa bazar not much change with time, price is reasonable, good portions, authentically prepared, people are still courteous and friendly staff, the taste remains the same. But the best part is with changing times they now have home delivery service to anywhere in Indore.

I am a die hard fan of ‘Dal Bafle’ ohho ho ho aha aha 1 no. Despite I  don’t like to add ghee to my dishes as I am bit calorie conscious. But for ‘Dal Bafla’ there is actually no substitute. You can surely add less ghee but cannot really omit it completely. I think not adding Ghee would be an insult of this royal dish. And then it won’t be called ‘Dal bafla/Baati’.

Also I’ve read and heard that the quality as well as the service has been deteriorating considerably over the years, but not having any frame of reference myself, I cannot comment. But at the end of the day, with the value for money that all-you-can-eat just for INR 170-200 per person, go to Rajhans just to try something traditional, if nothing else.

Food: 4.5/5 Service: 4/5 Ambience: 2.5/5 (its better to order for a take out if you don’t like canteen/mess type ambience) Hygiene: 3/5 Value for money: 4.5/5