Strange pregnancy memories

For the longest time I totally loved Veena Stores. A decades old eatery in Malleshwaram with a history of serving delectable food for a few hours every morning and evening. You had to line up to get food tokens and then eat standing on the street. Any item that got over was over. They wouldn't make it again. Chutney would be served out of a big steel drum, outside the shop, often by an elderly gentleman. It was unlimited. 

The food was perfect every single day. The idlis were soft, served piping hot and nothing could be more blissful than a plate of them dunked in the slightly spicy coconut chutney. The vadas crisp, speckled with whole peppercorns and curry leaves. The shavige bhath was perfectly tempered. And the upma or khara bhath as it's called in Karnataka was rich, flavourful and in my case, enjoyed best with an idli. 

Since it was on my way back from work from TGB, I would halt for a snack every other evening. That is, until pregnancy happened. That first trimester I lived with a constant sense of nausea. And on one day during that phase, our gang at TGB decided to stop at Veena Stores for an evening snack. That's where this tale gets strange. From that day till today, I have not been able to shake off the feeling of nausea when I think of Veena Stores. Clearly some impressions formed during pregnancy are indestructible. It could be that I could never bring myself to go back to it to correct the memory. But think Veena Stores and my mind is flooded with an unpleasant sense of nausea along with a clear image of eating there with my colleagues, that day, 6 years ago. 

A similar story is that of Phobidden Fruit, a Vietnamese eatery in Indira Nagar that we visited in the same period. The food didn't go down well that day and we've never gone back because I'm unable to get that uncomfortable sense of nausea out of my mind. 

Infact so intense is the sense of dread of nausea after the second pregnancy that I can almost relive it everytime I think of it. And it's such an unpleasant memory. 

Idli Vada at Veena Stores

Bisibele Bhath at Veena Stores