North India..the amazing land for food (specially dhaba side). I was surprised with the scale & fame of highway dhaba's when i first visited north india and travelled from Delhi to Amritsar by G.T.Road. Its an amazing glimpse into the world of entrepreneurs who have created a food cult with quality & hygine.

40 kms north of Delhi on G.T.Road is a place called Murthal..the mecca of dhaba's. Tyre of our car got punctured before a Dhaba (Ahuja no.1) while passing thru Murthal. While fixing it, the mechanic heavily insisted that we sit in the dhaba till he is finished. We did it & were zapped by the quality & quantity of food offered there, mind blowing..cant describe the experience (here we realized why our car got punctured) but our tastebuds will never forget the food.  

50 kms ahead while passing thru Panipat, wht we saw was unbelievable. More than 250 shops on both sides of the road selling "Pachranga Achar" world famous pickle brand. It seemed that everybody in Panipat sells & eats Pachranga achar..salute to their entrepreneurial skills..surviving & growing by selling pickles, that too same brand same competition is remarkable.

While passing thru Karnal on the same road, u cant miss the impossing structure of "Havelli"..the 3 star dhaba chain with really good ambiance & quality food.

A bigger surprise was awaiting some 80 kms ahead in the city of Ambala. More than 25 adjacent hotels near bus stand had same name.."Puransing ka Asli Dhaba" "Puransigh ka Mashhoor Dhaba". We asked a localite about the same and he said all these are nakli dhaba's..asli Puransigh is on 300 mtrs away. Its said that if you have not eaten chicken at Puransingh's dhaba than u dont know wht real non veg is..(i m a veggie so cant tell abt the taste)

If u want to see real Punjab than visit "Rangala Punjab" 10 kms before Jalandhar city. I bet it to be a lifetime experience. The structure uses Balushahi bricks (used 100 years ago in India) and attracts lots of NRI's every year. Its truly a 5 star dhaba in style & oomph..

I cant finish without mentioning about "Keshar Da Dhaba" in Amritsar established way back in 1916 and still carrying the same ambiance & sitting arrangements till now. Food is too good & the price is equally good..which will take u back in time..we paid Rs.63 for 3 persons after eating pet bhar ke..dont miss their speciality punjabi desert " Firni "

New age entrepreneurs..wake up to the call..still there is lot of space for organised food chains in Dhaba style. The dhaba brands of Choki Dhani, Haveli, Lucky Da Dhaba etc. are becoming legends..minting more money than star restaurants.