Baljee's Restaurant

The news that Baljee's restaurant at the Mall, Shimla is closing down has come as a shock.Situated in the middle of the city, that too at a vantage point on the Mall, the restaurant has attracted the locals and the tourists alike due to availability of ample sitting space and the food and beverage items on offer.

I am taken back to my college days in the early '70s when we came here , not frequently though as it seemed a bit upmarket in view of the limited amount of pocket money we received. The choice then fell alternatively to The Indian Coffee House and the Himani restaurant, which we could afford.

In the early days of my employment at Shimla, I used to alternate between Baljee's and the Indian Coffee House.

For more than a decade now , my visits to the Mall have become few and far between, but Baljee's is the only place I visit to have tea and the South Indian stuff like, Dosa, Vada or Idli.

I feel concerned for the eighty odd number of staff employed there, who will face crunch.

As per the news, the winding up may take about a year but then time passes too quickly.