If you think that sandwiches, which make your breakfast healthy every morning are only about cheese and cucumber, it’s time to make a trip to Jain Coffee House in Old Delhi. It is an old sandwich shop that makes delicious and interesting sandwiches that can light up your day. What sets the shop apart from the clan of sandwich makers in the city is the filling they use, which includes seasonal fruits like mango, apple, banana and pomegranate, giving the sandwich a fulfilling twist.
To get there can be a daunting task. Get down at Chawri Bazaar Metro station from Hauz Qazi. Before the road meets Nai Sarak, you’ll find an iron gate on your left, leading to a big courtyard. This is the entry to Raghuganj, earlier the city’s main grain market. Enter Raghuganj and turn left. You’ll find the sandwich makers at the corner of the courtyard. It’s a small, dimly lit shop, with a smaller sitting area. Most people prefer to either get their sandwiches packed, or stand there and eat.
The shop is so non-descript that for years only locals knew about it, but it’s now gaining popularity by word-of-mouth. “We started off initially as halwais, but to give a healthy and quick option to people, fruity sandwiches were discovered. We try it at home, before introducing them in the market,” says Pavan.
But ignoring the dingy part of the place, this is the only café in the city, where fruit sandwiches are sold. Have you ever had a mango, apple or a grape sandwich? Depending on the season, the Jain brothers prepare all this for you — and more. “Nowadays, the most popular is the mango sandwich, while apple, banana and pomegranate sandwiches are prepared all-year long. As fruit sandwiches cannot be preserved for long, these are prepared right there and then, in just a couple of minutes,” says Pavan Jain, who started the shop with his brother Anil Jain in 1950, keeping its fruity taste alive for the last 60 years.
The sandwiches are soft, sweet and a bit tangy. The fruit sandwiches are buffed up with pieces of paneer, malai (fresh cream), cheese and butter, so that the sweet taste of the fruits is nicely balanced by the blandness of the cottage cheese. But their special ingredients — Jaljamni and fruit powder adds the magical touch. “Jaljamni is prepared at home. It’s like a jam made of mixed fruits. And, we get this special fruit powder from Karnataka, which soaks fruits water, making it dry, preventing it from getting soggy.”
Besides that, for diabetics, they have newly introduced chickoo and jamun sandwich. For people, who prefer traditional sandwiches, they have yummy vegetable and samosa sandwich. The samosa sandwich is squeezed and mashed between two buttered slices, along with pieces of tomato, cucumber and paneer and pieces of fruits for Rs 25, which makes a perfect summer delight when tried with special fruit shakes.
Interestingly, Jain brothers have no plan to shift or renovate their old café. Instead they are keen on maintaining its tradition and history.
“We have a traditional feel of Old Delhi and we will maintain it forever. Also, we don’t take our work only as business, but we serve a sweet healthy bite with a fruity twist,” sums up Pavan.