On a sandwich trail

It is the hottest selling item at many outlets – tomato, cucumber and mint chutney sandwiched between two tiny murukkus.

Harshad A. Sheth of Link’s is among the first few to have popularised murukku sandwiches.

Link’s

Location: Raja Annamalai Road, Purasawalkam

Anyone who has ever visited this small eatery on Raja Annamalai Road is likely to swear by the

murukku sandwiches and

sev puri that are on offer there. These two dishes, like most others on Link’s menu, have been tried and tested by the owner, Harshad A. Sheth.

The owner of Link’s, Harshad A. Sheth, better known as Kaka (uncle) to his many customers, has been running the joint for 30 years.

“I came to Chennai in the mid-1960s and opened a paan shop where we took this space on rent,” says 65-year-old Sheth, originally from Jamnagar in Gujarat.

He then switched over to selling ice golas and shaved ice cones, topping them with different sugary flavours.

Link’s became famous for its golas, even after the shop expanded 10 years later into a full-fledged sandwich and chaat shop.

Today, Link’s is known for its quirky snacks, like the murukku sandwich. “Most customers would place orders for murukkus s. We would make more than was necessary and at the end of the day, we would many of them. I thought there should be a better way to use them,” he explains how murukku sandwich came up.

Sri Keshav Chats

Location : Vepery High Road

Started in 1988 by the Dubey family at Purasawalkam, Sri Keshav Chats now has two outlets, one in Puraswalkam and the other in Vepery. The most innovative items, which include murukku sandwiches, are available in all the branches.

“We started making murukku sandwiches around 12 years ago,” says Abhijit Dubey, who runs the Vepery High Road branch.

“We always experiment with our dishes. Our customers also give us feedback and offer us different things that we could try out. So, this was something we made, wearing our creativity hat,” he adds.

Among the other popular items on Sri Keshav’s menu are khakra sandwiches and corn canapés.

Ashok Pan House

Location: Raja Annamalai Road

Around 30 years old, Ashok Pan House is a frequent after-school hangout for students in the area.

The small shop offers many types of snacks.

Some of the snacks that have been newly added to the list are murukku and bhujiya sandwiches.

“We don’t really keep a count of the number of sandwiches we sell every day. As and when we get an order, we make the necessary sandwiches,” says Ashok Kumar Sharma, owner.

The outlet started selling murukku sandwiches about three years ago, seeing the snack’s popularity in other places.