All good things in life are free....

and all great things are not that expensive. I'm a big foodie, not a great cook, staying alone and trying to save some money for rainy days. Hence, I'm always on a look out for places that give you the bang for your buck and leave you satisfied in mind and stomach.

This week I went to three places I'd heard a bit about but had never been to.

Pecos - This pub situated just off Brigade Road is housed in a run down building. You go inside and the sound of rock music (I personally hate it) fills your ear and you can only talk to your friend during the 2 seconds you get in middle of two songs. You order your pitcher of beer, two starters (beef, pork, squids available; can it get better :), one main dish and dosas! (oh my god! what dosas; If I had enough money I'll hire the cook to makes dosas for me till I die) - the damages : Rs.473/-. So if you ever want beer and some really great food to go along with it without making a whole in your pocket, Pecos is the place.

Kamat Lokaruchi - Situated on Bangalore-Mysore highway around 50 kms from Bangalore is this great retreat for Karnataka food lovers. You can get a meal from different corners of Karnataka for Rs.70 (all unlimited). I had a North Karnataka meal comprising of Brinjal Masala, Jowar Roti, a couple more veggies, rice, sambhar etc. etc. Also tried the Raggi Mudde made famous by Mr.Deve Gowda. Couldn't really understand how can one like something which is not even supposed to be chewed but only swallowed whole. Its really strange that Karnataka cuisine is not so famous given the great vareity and flavors. May be Kannadigas need to be a bit more enterprizing when it comes to food.

Tewari Brothers - This small sweet shop on Dickenson Road is a ray of hope for UPites like me. I cannot thank Mint Columnist Shobha Narayan enough for covering it in her articles a few weeks back. The chats, sweets, and Aloo Puri there are as authentic as you can get in Bangalore. I and my friend binged on Aloo Puri, Missi Roti with Gatte ki sabzi, Pani Puri, and Gazar Halwa - all for Rs.80/-. I hope to visit there as frequently as possible and relish the flavors I left a couple of decades back.

Given the fortunate existence of such places, I've almost started to hate overpriced fancy places. There you are continuously evaluating the food because you have paid for it through your nose. This takes away all the joy of eating and shut your taste budds off. And invariably you realize that you have been conned to pay heaps of money for absolutely average stuff. The other day I went to The Royal Afghan at Windsor Manor on a company party. The food was great but surely was very steeply prized. The biggest surprise came from booze. The cognac served after meal and some other drinks were Rs.3500 per 30 ml ($90!!). Before I could realize I was already down with booze worth $120 and other people were already flirting with $500-1000. Realizing that the watchman at my building who does 12 hr shifts without fail (and sometimes 48 hrs too) get Rs.3500 monthly, I simply could not push a single more drop down my throat. Is this kind of pricing and margins justified? We call ourselves civilized and upwardly mobile but don't think about the criminally wasteful expenditure. Are we even human?