Rourkela: The three-day ‘Eat Right Street Food Festival’ (ERSFF), organised here by the Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) and Rourkela Smart City Limited (RSCL) ended January 26 with a lot of fun. This was the second edition of the food festival held for the first time last year during the Hockey World Cup.
Like last year, this edition was also a big hit among the Steel City residents. There were over 30 stalls in the festival which was held near the picturesque and newly-renovated Basanti pond. The festival was initially set to be held in the second week of December but was postponed due to the cholera outbreak. This time, though for some the cost of the food was a little prohibitive, the prices could not deter the massive crowd converging there to enjoy the culinary delicacies. “I am enjoying it. The prices are a little high, still, this is once in a once-in-a-year opportunity. So just forget the price and enjoy it,” said Deepa, a college-goer.
Another lady who also complained about the price said, “A small cup of gajar halwa costs Rs 35, but the taste is mind-blowing and far better than what I do at home.” Though no official data was available, still unofficial sources claimed that business worth more than Rs 20 lakh was done.
Interacting with the media, then ADM, Rourkela Subhankar Mohapatra said, “We have postponed the festival to a future date of the cholera situation in the city. It will be held once the situation improves.” The most sought-after delicacies were chicken tandoori and mutton biriyani. “I savoured both of them. They were absolutely out of the world,” said Santosh Das, who was there with his family. Besides, ‘vegetable 3D’, ‘raj kachori’, ‘pao bhaji’, and ‘paneer tikka’ were in demand. In addition, the traditional gup chup or gol guppa was also loved by the visitors.