The roadside fast food
makeshift stalls that
come up every evening at Police Bazaar area of the city are a favorite destination among the food buffs in the city as this junction is the place to be in every evening.
With customers from every community, young and old, including tourists thronging them in large numbers, these joints are serving ‘stove hot’ foodstuffs at reasonable rates making them the most sought after in today’s inflationary regime.
A government employee, Nirmal Das, who never fails to turn up to one of these stalls and have his favorite kachori chaat said, “For the last few months, I am taking kachori chaat in this junction every evening from a particular food stall. And now I don’t have to order since the stall owner knows my choice”.
A shopper said that she is fond of alu tekea and poochka and even carries them home without fail whenever she visits this commercial hub of the city. “I am a big fan of fast food and cannot resist myself without taking them. These roadside fast food stalls are also reasonably priced,” she said pointing to the other permanent fast food stalls where similar food items would cost triple the cost at this junction. It is learnt that all items in these stalls are evenly priced at Rs10.
Gallant Nengnong, a company executive said that the food served may be fresh and hot, but avtual clenliness comes about when recycle bowls are used in place of the permanent ones.
“Every foodstuff carries a great amount of chili besides black pepper, onion, coriander and other ingredients making it not only tasty to eat but also gives one the atmosphere of a bigger city where everyone gathers after office hours in the evening and relax with their favorite dishes,” he said.
A common trend seen in these dozen plus food stalls of the junction is that as the evening develops, queues can also be seen increasing, all waiting for their turn to have their favorite dish. Rakesh Jha, a tourist from New Delhi said that the chaat items, alu tekea, chana and other stuffs are as good as anywhere else but the chowmein is found best in the city’s restaurant. “Shillong is famous for its Chinese menus and the chow that is selling in these roadside stalls are nowhere near to those that are selling in the restaurants. But anyway these roadside stall owners have some good chowmein customers too,” he said.
Many stall owners said that whatever they bring are sold by the end of the evening and it is true that customers have demanded use of recycle bowls and spoons instead of permanent utensils but they could not do so as they run their stalls in small budgets.
The poochka sellers throughout the city can be seen using recycle papers while dishing out items to customers.
They said that all their food items are sold out everyday and they distribute the remains of the day to the street children. All stall owners are mostly from Bihar.
Keeping aside the happiness that these stalls bring about in the faces of people, health issues need be addressed. Some customers have objected to the untidy washing of utensils in the same water again and again by these stalls, which they say is posing serious questions of hygiene which might at time pose a risk for the customers.
While appreciating that roadside makeshift stalls are a common trend in the country and this fashion has started to appear in the city, a resident observed that the civic authority should also keep a check on the functioning of these stalls as they don’t carry the garbage and leave the junction with a disfigured look, with foul water and other wastes strewn across, every evening. The authority should ask them to carry waste baskets so that the surroundings are kept clean. (By Rajib Roy)