TII – Sorry boss, we’ve run out of idli’s
This post is part of my TII series, where weird and wonderful things happen that can often only be explained by the phrase: This Is India.
On Saturday I was heading over to see my friend. I called her up and asked if she wanted me to pick up anything along the way. She did. Some Indian fast food, namely sambar rice and idli.
I stopped at an Indian equivalient of McDonalds, which serves Indian fast food – probably faster than you get it in McDonalds. I’m convinced that a lot of Indian food in restaurants has the same health problems as the Western equivalent, but many people here disagree. My arguement stems from the fact that so much oil and carbs are used in Indian food that it’s just not healthy.
Anyway, I digress.
What I asked for: Idli on the left, sambar rice on the right
I go up to the counter and the conversation goes something like this:
Me: “Hi, can I get one sambar rice and…” I’m cut off
Staff: “sorry boss, no sambar rice, have curd rice?”
Me: “err, yeah, sure, whatever. ok, one curd rice and two idli’s”
Staff: “boss, no idli’s. you want dosai?”
Me: “no idly? fine. dosai. sure.”
Staff: “one curd rice and one dosai. 60 rupees”
I handed him the money and went to the food counter to wait all of 5 seconds for my order to arrive (seriously, McDonalds, if you are reading this, come to India to find out how quick fast food can be!).
What they offered me instead: Dosai on the left, curd rice on the right
Off I toddled to meet my friend and handed her the bag of food. The conversation begins…
Me: “Oh, I’m really sorry, they didn’t have sambar rice or idli, so I got you curd rice and dosai instead, hope that’s ok!”
Friend: “Haha, yeah sure, it’s fine. Thanks!”
My friend goes to the kitchen with the food to put it on a plate and returns a few seconds later…
Friend: “Pete, did you say you got curd rice and dosai?”
Me: “yeah, they’d ran out of what you asked for. why?”
Friend: “Because they’ve given you sambar rice and idli’s!”
I no longer waste time trying to work things like this out. It can be summed up nicely with…TII 
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Nice story..I think steam idlis are the best bet to eat outside..esp if you do have a sensitive stomach . Enjoy India till u can
The south Indian food is very tasty, but I do think they tend to use too much oil in the preparation.
I’m able to eat most kinds of food, it’s just the spice I can’t handle
[...] that dish or drink is not available. A classic case is illustated in one my previous posts about my quest to get some idlies. Anyway, you can’t get stressed about it, it’s just [...]