Devon Avenue aka: Little India,Gandhi Marg Way,Mohammed Ali Jinnah Way,Golda Meier Boulevard

I had dinner at Tiffin on New Year’s Day 2007. I fear that every other meal I have in 2007 will pale in comparison…

i love sarees.
i almost went crazy looking at all of these sarees.
i bought two of them.
i haven’t worn them yet.
but i absolutely love saree-shopping.

So on Sunday afternoon we had decided to go to Devon Ave. or Street which is half-way between where I’m staying and Chicago downtown. Devon is like a mini Indo-Pak with not only Indian & Pakistani stores and restaurants but also a lot of people staying here in the streets perpendicular to the main street. Usually it’s better to go by your own car, if you have one but since we didn’t want to take a cab we decided to settle for going by Metra. But the problem was which Metra to take since different Metra lines run from different stations. I had to go to the Metra website and check each Metra line and find the right Metra station to depart from so that we wont have to walk much to get to Devon street.
Finally after doing some research for about 45 mins I found out that the best station to take th Metra from was in Winnetka, but this station itself was around 10 miles from our place. This meant taking a cab to this station but we were left with no other option.
Anyway 3 of us then got ready and reached Winnetka station before the train arrived. It was supposed to leave at 2.48 pm and reach Rogers Park a station which is closest to Devon Street, at 3.05 pm.

We reached on time and started out towards the first street called Clark Street. On Clark street there was a bus stop and we checked out the map for finding out how we could reach Devon in the least possible time. The urgency was aslo due to the fact that we had skipped lunch ad were eager to find the nearest place where we could get a taste of some authentic Biryani. Clark street btw had all kinds of Mexican stores and walking there on a Sunday afternoon, it almost felt as if we were away from America already and now were returning home or something familiar. After walking on Clark street for about 15 mins we reached the intersection for Devon street. However we started walking the wrong way, heading West instead of East. We only realised this after about 20-25 mins since there were hardly any stores let alone, Indian ones and very few ‘desis’. Anyway we were a bit hungry now and so decided to grab a quick bite at the nearest Dunkin’ Donuts place which was right across the road.

After refilling ourselves, however barely enought to get to our destination we started walking towards the East. Within minutes we knew we were in the right direction since we could now see a group of kids playing cricket in a parking lot using Coke crates as wickets. A few minutes later we could spot some more Indian stores and one of them was a restaurant called Gharib Nawaaz. Dhananjay had already eaten Biryani here during his visit here last year but he said he wasn’t so impressed. We decided to keep on walking.
A little distance ahead we could see a lot of stores now with all familiar names like Sahara, A1, XYZ International etc. and familiar faces on the street. This was it.
Next we check out some of the stores, one of them had these really cheap calling card for calling from anywhere to anywhere. We bought some and asked the same seller for a good Biryani place nearly and he suggested “Sabdi”, which was just a little further down.
“Sabdi” actually turned out to be a Pakistani restaurant called ‘Sabri Nehari’. We decided to go there and finally have some Biryani.
The restaurant was quite spacious and we sat down and checked the menu. The dishes weren’t too many so we decided to order one Mutton Biryani and their speciality called Sabri Chicken. The food arrived quicky but I must mention about the waiter who served it. He was a giant and the way he carried all the dishes in his hands, we couldn’t help but feel intimidated by him. I bet he was either a wrestler or a body builder in his previous gig. Anyway we got down to business and ate to our hearts content. The Biryani wasn’t as tasty or as rich as what I’ve eaten back in Pune but there was no time for critique. But it was more than what we could eat and we had to pack the rest ‘to go’.
But there’s one thing I really miss here which is almost a given in restaurants back home – a finger bowl after you’re all done. I thought this time maybe i will have the luxury to dip my hands in some soothing warm water but that wasn’t meant to be. I wish someday there will be a restaurant here which serves you, you’re right, you’re own finger bowl after each meal.

Anyway we were out on the street again and had to get back to Rogers park station before 6.52 pm, that’s when I train would leave. We did check out some more stores on the way back and we wanted to see more but we knew we would be back a second time or a third or more.
We reached the station in good time and called the cab service to pick us from Winnetka and back to Prospect heights. But that got a bit off target since our Metra got delayed but anyway we managed to reach Winnetka at 7.30 pm and luckily the cab we had called to pick us up at 7.15 p.m. was still waiting.
We all came back home feeling content and a bit lucky.

Many excellent restaurants: Ghandi, Hema’s Kitchen, Tiffin.

...only if I need to do grocery…

The best Indian restaurants in Chicago are here, along with sari shops, bakeries, and grocery stores. I shop and eat here once a month, at least. When I come here, I feel like I’m on a street in India.