Pakodewale Sardarji at Rajpur: One of Doon’s Favourite Places

With the onset of monsoons, Dehradun dons a fresh green mantle and nothing can beat a long drive down Rajpur Road topped with a steaming cup of tea and crispy pakoras at Sardarji’s Pakoda Shop at Rajpur.

This shop is located at the beginning of the Rajpur Village . At that point, the road bifurcates into two. One leads to Mussoorie via the Old Mussoorie Road and the other to the Tibetan Colony and M.D.D.A Park, which is just about 100 mtrs ahead.

Sardarji specializes in making Aloo-Pyaaz Pakoras which taste divine with the imli chutney he serves with the pakoras. The other popular items prepared here are Jalebis and Samosas. Irrespective of what weather it is, the shop is always flocked with people. During monsoons and in winters one has to wait for quite a while for one’s turn.

The shop is owned by Mr. Pritpaal Singh, who does all the preparing and cooking of the fantastic pakoras himself every evening. Brijaal Rawat, a worker at the stall, tells us, “The shop is full at all times but especially so after 5 pm since we start serving pakoras only after 5 pm.” He also adds, “There are a lot of people who sit and eat in the shop but most carry the goodies to their cars parked along the road side. Many people also get the pakoras packed and take it home. There are a lot of college students who come to the shop every day. The crowd on Sunday evenings is basically families. There are lots of tourists also who have heard about our shop and specially come to try our pakoras.”

This shop is one of the oldest shops of Dehradun. People have been coming to this shop regularly for years now. Vijay, a regular customer of the shop, tells us, “The best thing I like about the shop is the setting and the taste of food. The shop is located in the quietest and most beautiful corner of the city, with the beautiful hills and the cool breeze. The taste of the pakoras hasn’t changed even a bit over all these years, and the price is still very very reasonable. I now work in Delhi in a software company but whenever I come home to Doon, I always make it a point to grab some pakoras from this shop.”

So, if you have not visited Pakodewale Sardarji’s shop at Rajpur in a while, go out and grab your plate of pakoras. Enjoy these simple little pleasures of being a Doonite!