6.26.2010

chaat: to lick

Vik's Chaat Corner

2390 4th Street
Berkeley, CA 94710-2402
(510) 704-0485

Chaat literally means "to lick." Traditionally, this road side snack was served on a leaf and was so tongue-tickling that one could not resist licking the last morsels from the leaf before discarding it.

Five years ago my friend Nikki took me to Vik's Chaat. She says it's the best Indian fast food around. She's from India, so she should know, right? Recently I asked Bipin and Savita, two more expert Indian food aficionados, what they thought of Vik's. They agreed, it's the best. So of course I was anxious to take my husband, who loves eating so much he claims to have a food disorder. I was sure he would love Vik's too. Well, the opportunity arose this week, after a trip to IKEA. Now, I should have known that would sour him from the start since he'd rather die a slow death than go to IKEA (what's the difference, he would say), but I figured I'd give it a shot. Throughout this gastronomical joyride he had next to nothing to say. Still, I thought, that's not necessarily a bad sign with him. He'd just rather eat. The verdict came a few hours later as we were munching down the Indian sweets we brought home. Yep, he loved it. It's the best.

Here's how others loved it on Yelp, and a review from SFGate.

See more of my photos from Vik's Chaat Corner here.


Melanie Renn

Melanie Renn