In Bengaluru, if you are on a quest for a satisfactory Mysore Pak, you may pay people to sing praises of Sri Venkateshwara Sweetmeat Stall at Balepete Main Road (inside the Chickpete area). And with desirable purpose. Although it’s miles a mission to maneuver via the chaotic traffic on this slim avenue, you comprehend how a lot one can stretch to pamper one’s cravings.
Sri Venkateshwara has been inside the enterprise of making chocolates for one hundred years. At the 800 rectangular foot save, which, at any factor, holds three dozen customers internal, air-conditioning is the principal update, with a chaat counter and seating. “The traffic and the dust may want to no extra be not noted, and we have to go with the instances,” says Raghu Nagaraj, the 1/3 era of owners, who now runs the business enterprise along with his brother Srinath. “What stays the equal is our taste of Mysore Pak and du mort,” he smiles, main the manner into his well-organized, neat kitchen spread nearly at 3 degrees of the old constructing wherein nearly 3 dozen chefs, chefs, and helpers engage. Pointing at the sacks made of gram flour, Raghu says, “We even have the gram milled and sieved here.”
“We crossed a century this year. Venkateshwara Sweetmeat Stall become began with the aid of my father, VA Venkatachalapathy Setty, at Chikkaballapura. It ran for 35 years, then in 1954 the goodies commercial enterprise shifted to Bengaluru,” says Nagaraj V, son of Setty, who persevered the circle of relatives culture with the aid of making Mysore Pak, du mort, badam halwa, and Kobra mithai. He then regularly brought different versions.
“It is most effective whilst you consume our chocolates which you get the Venkateshwara revel in,” he says as trays heavy with warm, conventional Mysore Pak and gum rot arrive with ‘next-degree goodies.’ The simmering golden yellow Mysore Pak melts on your mouth before you can parent out whether or not it’s miles ghee or gram flour in cognizance.
“The recipe for Mysore Pak has been surpassed on from my father. It remains our king. We comply with a sequence of steps and methodologies, aside from a method and listing of substances,” says Nagaraj. While he elaborates on how the gram dal is chosen, ground and sautéed, with the ghee added in degrees, he makes it clear that “simplest natural butter from our own long-time suppliers are used, just as our Paka (sugar syrup) is a time-examined technique my mom Lakshmi Devamma perfected,” says Nagaraj, including, “That special aroma is from our fragrant cardamom powder.”
“I have been a consumer of the shop for 6 many years now,” says MK Anantharaman, an enthusiastic consumer. “You may be astonished to peer the crowds that descend from various parts of the State, in particular throughout Karaga season in which nobody returns without their proportion of Mysore Pak. Your palms, too, maintain their aroma.”
“Mysore Pak, badam halwa, and aggregate have been my normal buys at this historical past nook,” adds Anantharaman. Speaking about the area that Setty followed together with his recipes, Nagaraj says, even if he created du mort, a sweet comprised of ash gourd and sugar, he wanted it pressed on a banana leaf, put in a massive copper vessel, and baked on charcoal for the crust to be more flavourful. “We observe his procedure,” says Nagaraj. “Setty became restless; he becomes exceedingly innovative. He insisted that an excessive amount of relaxation might rust your brain,” he laughs, adding that from the age of 16, his father offered sweets and mixture at temple galas.
Discussing his plans to take this legacy ahead, Raghu says they’ve made additions to the menu. Eleanor, made with dry fruit and chocolate, for example. “We additionally have caramel dry fruit gujjia, Kaju coffee crunch, ice cream burfi, and aam papad with layers of sliced white chocolate,” says Raghu.
