When it comes to Indian beverages, Chai and Lassi are the first that come to mind, right? Chai has already been covered in another article, so this time I’ll introduce the street stall Lassi I drank in Delhi and the rich mango juice I enjoyed in Mumbai.
Street Stall Lassi in Old Delhi
I stayed in the Old Delhi area of Delhi, India. Along the road in front of Old Delhi station, there were many street stalls selling various foods and fruits. Among them, I found a Lassi stall. As you can see in the photo above, they simply set up a table by the roadside with glasses of Lassi. The price was 20 Indian Rupees (about 38 JPY). Even though it was February, it gets hot during the day, so a cold, sweet drink with the refreshing tang of yogurt was incredibly delicious.
However, on the same street, there was a stall selling it for 10 Rupees. The selling method and quantity were the same, so I thought it might be watered down, but when I tried it, there was no difference at all. In that case, there’s no reason to drink at the 20 Rupee stall, and 18 JPY (approximate conversion for 10 rupees) is incredibly cheap, so I drank it every day during my stay in Delhi. I initially thought Lassi was sold this way in every city in India, but I didn’t find it in Varanasi or Mumbai, which I visited later.
Rich Mango Juice in Mumbai
Mumbai was the last city I visited on this trip to India. I stayed near Bandra Railway Station in Mumbai. It seemed to be outside the central part of Mumbai, which lacks high-rise buildings, but here I often saw mango juice at fruit juice shops, something I hadn’t seen in other cities. The prices varied depending on the size of the glass – large jug, small jug, or glass cup – but at cheaper shops, even a large jug was 25 Indian Rupees (about 45 JPY).
I had tried mango shakes in Thailand before, but the mango juice I drank in Mumbai was the best I’d ever tasted. It was rich, cold, and incredibly delicious. And it was cheap! How much would this level of juice cost in Japan? I continued to drink one glass every day during my one-week stay in Mumbai.
For those planning to visit India, I highly recommend trying Lassi and mango juice. However, I believe prices will be higher at more established shops. I suspect what I found was probably the cheapest in India.
