Bir, the village in Himachal recognized for its paragliding, has an genuine South Indian café simply off the touchdown floor.
Dotted alongside the entry to Bir are signboards that say “AVVA’s café, flavours of southern India”. Considering that it is a village in Kangra in Himachal Pradesh, with a inhabitants of Tibetan refugees and native people, it is a little bit of a shock.
Situated near the touchdown floor — Bir is thought for its paragliding — the café’ itself is much more of a shock. Its Japanese-inspired interiors: White partitions, unfastened stones on the ground, locally-made picket tables and chairs, rope, and tin lamps are the not the type you’ll anticipate in a spot serving puliyogare.
Two massive glass home windows body the snow-capped Dhauladars, mist circling them, and the barley fields simply outdoors. The constructing has one of many few terraces within the space not used for a plastic water tank. On its two ranges, folks sit and sing, learn, work, because the cool wind blows.
Suraj Dikonda, whose thought it was to begin the café, had labored in promoting. “One of my projects was with a Japanese real estate firm, so I was exposed to that design sensibility and minimalism,” he says.
Sometime round 2017, he made the journey to Bir, from Delhi, the place he was working. “I loved that it was very laidback, non-commercial. There were just four or five cafes here and not more than 10 places to stay. Also, people came here for the paragliding and for Nature, not for charas.”
At 26, he started to think about establishing a café right here. So he spoke to his mother and father in Pune, suggesting that they transfer to Bir and set it up, as he continued working at his full-time job. Anil and Sunanda Dikonda, who converse Hindu and Telugu, had been to Himachal simply as soon as, many many years in the past.
“It took him eight months to convince us,” says Anil, who has run just a few companies by means of his life. Sunanda has at all times been a homemaker, cooking and feeding folks. Hence the title of the cafe: Avva means mom in Telugu.
They lastly consented, and in 2018, the household took a mortgage, leased the land, and constructed a construction. Suraj would are available in each two weeks. “On the first day, we gave out food for free, just to introduce people to the food,” says Suraj.
What shocked them have been the monks who visited, grateful {that a} South Indian meals place had opened. “They had visited a monastery in Mysore, and eaten these things there,” says Anil, who’s now 63. For those that didn’t perceive what an idli or dosa have been, they constructed a bit of card with footage of the fundamental dishes.
Sunanda, who’s 48, and initially from Chengal in Nizamabad, Telangana, says she has discovered learn how to ferment the batter within the chilly: “It takes 48 hours in winter and 24 hours in summer,” she says.
The hottest dish is Avva’s particular dosa, which has three pastes unfold skinny on the inside portion: a Chettinad, podi, and a chilli garlic combine. All spices and chutneys are freshly floor day by day, and the couple nonetheless goes collectively to purchase greens.
When the household initially arrived in Bir, the native vegetable distributors didn’t inventory coconut, however on particular request they started to. There are nonetheless issues like appalams, espresso, and tamarind that they want to usher in from Delhi’s INA market that caters to the big South Indian inhabitants there.
In truth, after the lockdown, for which they have been shut for 4 months, Suraj says they’ve by no means seen a extra crowded December. With a day by day footfall or 100-150 that goes as much as 300 over the weekend, they’ve seating for about 70 folks, unfold out throughout an inside house, a terrace and a yard.
Anil says Avva’s is the one pure vegetarian restaurant in Bir. “Once a lady came in asking if we made eggs. I said no. She asked if we could at least do them boiled, and I repeated that we were pure veg.
She went out and called about 20 people in. She had been testing us,” he says, laughing.
Last 12 months, Suraj’s sister Priyanka moved to Bir, to assist with the café. During the lockdown, it was her thought to make masalas on the market on-line. Now, the masalas do effectively within the café. “People taste the food and want to make the same thing,” he says.
In December 2020, Suraj give up his job and moved to Bir to be together with his household completely, questioning whether or not they wish to do a franchise.
They determined in opposition to it, as a result of the explanation to begin the café was for the household to come back collectively, and for Suraj himself to get off the hamster wheel.
