What’s a visit to Kolhapur without one to eat the famous Phadtare Misal? Set in a shed in the busy industrial section of Udyamnagar, Phadtare’s misal hosts not only daily hungry workmen, but also some well-heeled society, and of course, Kolhapuri women visiting their parents’ homes – all sharing benchspace in the modest eatery. As Souvik called it, the ambience is a cross between a factory and garage, but the single dish (with regular & Jain options) costing Rs 20 is really worth much much more!

Here’s a link for the Phadtare Misal recipe.

And here’s what it looks like:

Misal Pao at Phadtare's

Deceptively simple, and packs a punch! Don’t forget to carry plenty of water to douse the fires!!

A day trip to Panhala is also usually on the cards on my Kolhapur visits. Being true-blue Gardes, we are mostly concerned about our next meal, and a few more after that. So Panhala means lunch at Valley View Hotel, special bhel (whether we’re hungry or not) and corn-on-the-cob if we can manage it.

The beverage cart next to the Bhel cart had some interesting bottles

Panhalgadh was one of the strongholds of Shivaji Maharaj – there are some interesting structures to explore, like Sajja Kothi – beautiful views and divine, refreshing breeze.

Sajja Kothi

This time, we were treated to some views of the resident monkeys, and I barely managed to escape being attacked by one (or so I thought then).

It was also Lata Mangeshkar’s birthday around the time we were there, and we wished her from afar, catching a long-distance view of her house in Panhala. The tree-lined highway makes for a relaxing drive, and the greenery only adds to my happiness!

And O!Ya! – a sweet little shop in Rajarampuri, selling old-fashioned Indian-style pizzas and the nicest cheese chilli toasts. They also have nice pastries, but we managed to resist that temptation!