Before our trip to Chaat Corner inside of Taj Mahal Imports, I was completely inexperienced with Indian Street cuisine. I had never even heard the word “chaat” before, nor did I have any idea of what it tasted like. I have no reasoning for never trying this type of food, but Arijit Sen summarizes my situation best in “From Curry Mahals to Chaat Cafes” when he writes “outsiders are oblivious of these places, or they feel unwelcome because of their unfamiliarity with the ambiance of these spaces.” (Sen 3) However, as I stepped into the grocery store, I didn’t feel the slightest bit unwelcomed — I felt that I was stepping into a very exciting piece of Indian culture. I was surrounded by hundreds of products that were entirely unfamiliar to me – everything from miniature statues of Ganesha to unknown herbal supplements used for Ayurvedic medicine. Sen states that “Indian grocery stores are (…) as symbols of the exotic ethnic landscapes of expatriate Indians,” (Sen 9) and I definitely understood the magnitude of what he meant as I walked through this market. Chaat Corner sits in the very back of Taj Mahal Imports, and what first surprised me about this Indian street café was the price of the food. All of the dishes were three dollars and they were all very decently portioned, which is extremely different from most American eateries where three dollars might get you a beverage at the most. I ordered the Chaat Masala which I had been told was the least adventurous dish on the menu, but I figured it was a safe bet since the entire menu was adventurous to me, given the fact that I had never tasted any Indian street food before. At first sight, I was unsure of what to think of the Chaat Masala, but after the first bite I was truly satisfied to say the least. This dish brought a combination of tastes that I had never experienced before and I found it to be very enjoyable. Made with chickpeas, puffed rice, browned-mashed potato patties, ginger, mungbean sprouts, toasted lentils, and topped with a tangy spice powder; I was in shock that a vegetarian meal could have such an explosion of flavor. Needless to say, I ate my Chaat Masala faster than they could serve it to me and was actually quite surprised with how much it filled me up. What also shocked me was how very few other people were ordering from Chaat Corner while we were, given the fact that we were there right around the time that professionals would be on their lunch break. I highly recommend chaat to anyone who has yet to try this Indian delight and I will definitely go back to the gold mine that sits in the back of Taj Mahal Imports. After the trip to Chaat Corner, I’m going to make an effort to be more adventurous with the food that I eat — who knows, perhaps the next time I eat chaat, I might even order panipuri and a samosa!