Campus Bites: Places to eat inside IIMA

Food forms a very integral part of the life at IIMA, for two very critical reasons

1. Good food is essential to instil that extra energy that all of us need desperately.
2. Prompt and quick service, 24*7 to ensure that you get whatever you crave and whenever you crave- to act as potent stressbusters

So, to serve such needs, the campus is strewn with cafes and chai stalls- each with its own flavour, and dedicated clientele. All of us have been to each, but over time we do form that special bond for one or two- either for the food, but mostly for the ‘flavour’ as our marketing professor likes to call it. Following is the list of our favourite hang outs on campus

1. TANSTAAFL: There aint no such thing as a free lunch. Yes, that’s the name of our all-day café. It serves everything from soups, momos, French fries, chicken dishes, thalis to tea, coffee and lemonade. Located in the far side of the old campus, it is the favourite go to place when we get disgusted with endless case discussions and need to vent out our frustration with oodles of noodles. Or when the mess food becomes too unpalatable to swallow (which is often actually). They deliver to our dorms and syndis too, though at times, the delivery boys do take their own sweet time to serve us. It has an array of both veg and non-veg dishes, coupled with a number of drinks to choose from.

Must Try: Chicken Frankie, club sandwich, chilli cheese toast, and the assorted thalis.

 

2. Bizarre: The rich cousin of CT (Café Tanstaafl), Bizarre is the place to go when you get bored of the taste of CT, and want to try out new things like the chicken lollipop or the egg biriyani. Panipuris, dabelis and sweet corn offer nice snacking options. It’s open till 11 PM, after which the crowd shifts to CT. Students are often seen hanging out with their Macs in front- sometimes you do need that extra spice to make your assignments palatable to the professors.

   Must try: Dabeli, Chilli chicken and the Hakka noodles

3. Tea for Tapri: The quintessential campus tea joint. We swear by Tapri’s tea- undoubtedly one of the best in campus. Open till 4 am, we don’t know what we would have done without it. Come evening they sell nice hot Pakodas and samosas too.

We drop by Tapri at least two times a day- the tea serves both as a stimulant for keeping us kicking till 4, or sometimes as a sedative too. Some of us prefer having that hot cuppa before going to sleep!

Must try: Ginger Pudina Tea and the hot Maggi

4. Radhika’s: The one and only dedicated south Indian destination on campus. Open till 2am, It serves a myriad of dosas- and authentic south Indian filter coffee. It’s also our favourite desert destination post dinner- for the ice creams. It is the go to destination for catching the quick cup of tea/coffee in between classes. Pour it from the big jar, Paytm, and run.

5. Nescafe: Bhavesh Bhai keeps us motivated (read awake) till 5am or till we complete our assignments. He has an uncanny ability to predict the demand each night, and accordingly adjusts his shop timings. We are thus never surprised to find him open till 6am before end term exams!
Add to it the egg delicacies, and Maggi- and we are all set to last the night.

Must try: Tadka maggi, and cold coffee.

6. Rambhai: This guy perhaps deserves a solo article. His differentiating factor is his hole-in-the-wall strategy of serving customers- perhaps the only gap in the red brick wall that keeps students from escaping the rigour on campus. Tea, garlic and chocolate Dabeli form the prototypical orders at his den- and life at IIMA is incomplete without the frequent trips to Rambhai’s. Located beside the main campus entrance, it is said, Rambhai has been here since the inception of the institute! You are welcome to research the origin over a cup of tea. It is a hot destination for professors too, so mind your tongue while sipping the hot beverage. You may get a burn.

   

   

   

7. Falafel: Fruit lovers rejoice- there are options in place to allow you the luxury of going on a fruit diet, or for the non-caffeine lovers to gorge on freshly made juices. An absolute life saver during the hot summer months.

8. Yello: The secret quirky café- behind CIIE. It is only for people who crave solitude while writing articles for blogs or have loads of free time to kill. Service is super slow, but the ambience is great. It has been a personal favourite to spend time with my wife and little daughter, away from the maddening rush on campus.
Must try: The ginger tea and Bhel.

And if you still have some space left in your stomach, there’s always Zomato to the rescue.

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Archya, is a doctor-turned-healthcare administrator, who thinks he has a passion for writing, and hence uses his limited idle time to pen down his thoughts. No publishing house has yet made him any offers, so he has to now debate his opportunity costs.

Archya is presently pursuing a MBA (PGPX) from IIM, Ahmedabad. For his other articles on Blongshong Click Here. 

For his articles on the Official student blog of PGPX, IIM Ahmedabad, Click here