“Do you want chai?” my father-in-law asked, pointing to Raja Tea Shop Alappuzha, the most South Indian-looking tea kada (tea stall) I have ever seen in my life.
Do I ever?!
We were on a morning walk off the houseboat we had slept on overnight. Just the two of us. Him out of restlessness (being cooped up on a boat is not his thing). Me out of curiosity. And this, right here, was the moment I had been dreaming of for my whole Kerala trip. Reliving scenes I had only ever seen in the movies growing up.
“Yes, of course,” I said, and in we went.
The tea stall seemed unattended at first. Two long tables, mismatched chairs, a cashier desk to the left of the entrance and an open kitchen to the right, with a glass and steel cupboard in between. Shabby, and exactly how I like it.
Eventually a man in a lungi wandered over to take our order. Chai for me, tea and vada for him. Slowly the regulars trickled in. All uncles. All mildly fascinated by me and my very intrusive photographing. They were amused, but that’s okay, because so was I.
My chai was freshly made teh tarik style, pulled a few times for that frothy top, and served in a tumbler glass. He shared his vada, and I shared my chai. Delicious. Add a view of life on the river with boats floating past, and it easily became one of my favourite moments of the whole Kerala trip.
“Do you want anything else?” he asked. I declined. Breakfast was waiting for us on the boat, after all.
Passing on Parotta at Raja Tea Shop Alappuzha
Back on board, I told the whole story over breakfast, and my brother-in-law chimed in that Raja Tea Shop Alappuzha apparently does the best beef and parotta around, with more than a thousand Google reviews to prove it. All I could do was stare at my idli sambar and kick myself for not taking my father-in-law up on his offer.
Here’s to next time. And to another unexpected mini side quest.
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I guess we just have to go back la