Serving cheap and home-made food, a mobile eatery can be seen parked near Old Government General Hospital area catering to the needs of construction workers or others on street during their lunch break. The place is crowded between noon and 1 p.m., when people break for lunch.
For the last three decades, they have been relying on the lunch home on wheels. T. Ramanmma unpacks the huge lunch boxes as clock strikes at noon. Parking her pushcart on a daily basis on the footpath, Ms. Ramanamma sells a plate of ‘chicken rice’ at Rs. 30 per plate, which is enough to fill the belly of one person.
“Generally, I serve the food liberally and a plate of rice is enough for a person. Some people ask for extra curry and it is sold at Rs.10,” she says.
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She presents a variety of non-vegetarian items daily. The menu includes fish, beef, chicken, dal, and rasam. ‘Buy one get one’ is the offer to her customers. Dal or rasam is free if one buys a plate of non-vegetarian dish. Ms. Ramanamma cooks the entire food and brings it to sell on a pushcart. She keeps a stove and grocery to meet the unexpected demand.
“At times, I have to cook the rice and curries a little past noon. We are solely dependent on this profession. My mother-in-law started it and I am continuing it,” she explains. She is willing to give them lunch on credit too.