'Kala Burger Wala' is an institution. If you don't believe me, ask anyone in West Delhi. So much so, that no one knows or remembers the name of the road its situated on in Subhash Nagar. When I asked a few bystanders, pat came the reply.
"Don't worry about the name of the road. Just ask for Kala Burger Wala "
Joginder Singh Khurana, the man behind Kala Burger Wala says he opened his shop in 1990. Since then is a hugely popular evening takeaway joint for the residents of Subhash Nagar and Rajouri Garden. The name, Kala Burger Wala comes from the most popular dish on the menu, the vegetarian burger.
To be honest, I'm not too fond of fried burgers where the buns are also deep fried. That's a big No-No. But when I tasted the burger at Kala Burger Wala, I was stumped. The first time I had the burger, I didn't realise that the bun was fried. It was skilfully done and very impressive! The bun was sort of unusual. More like a Eight-shape bread roll than the round buns that we usually get at roadside burger joints. There was very little taste or feel of oil on the bun, but it was crisp. It was stuffed with an aloo tikki and fried black, even though the insides were still soft. It's this blackish colour that gives the place and the burger the name. A thick slice of malai paneer, raw of course. Sliced cucumber, onion and a sprinkling of the heavenly Kala Burger Wala masala is then put on the tikki. Its a stunning all vegetarian affair.
Also important to remember that this is not some big corporation with millions of dollars of research and top of the line equipment behind their burgers. This is a small humble family producing stunning and more importantly consistent quality out of a small place and out of a humble non-temperature controlled gas fired kadhai. They've been producing this outstanding burger consistently for so many years. The chutney that they give with burger is a mix of the green coriander and green chilly chutney and the red saunth chutney. I don't know why they mix the two chutneys and serve, but as a result both chutneys together in the proportions given, taste awesome.
The other items on the menu are ok ok. I tried the Malai Chaap, the newest addition to their menu and the Spring Roll (spring roll sheet stuffed with chowmein and fried), but they didn't really measure up. I did notice some customers ordering other dishes, but its the burger that's a real hot-seller and what you should try.
Details of Kala Burger Wala
Address - Kala burger Wala, Shop No 6/28, Subhash Nagar, New Delhi 27. Or just ask the rickshaw wala for Kala Burger Wala when you come down from the Subhash Nagar Metro Station. He'll take you there.
Timing - 4 pm to 10 pm everyday
About The Author:
Chowder Singh started blogging in November 2011 on Indian street food, small restaurants and hole-in-the-wall kind of places that in spite of producing brilliant quality food, are largely unrecognised outside of their localities. He believes that these are the real heroes of Indian food, who have been consistently putting out their family recipes over many years and now will hopefully get more recognition for the superb work that they've been doing.
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