Dollops of butter served with hot crispy dosas... The yum! factor is high at the very mention of Davangere Benne Dosa. A favourite of dosa lovers, everyone loves the way the butter melts with the very first bite, especially if it's prepared at the famous Sri Guru Kotureshwara Davangere Butter Dosa place in Basavanagudi.

This small joint located on a bustling street attracts people from far and wide, including several TV and big screen actors. "We have customers coming from Yelahanka, Malleswaram, etc," restaurant owner Mahadeva H says with quiet pride. Regular customers range from autorickshaw drivers to young IT and BT professionals.

Six years ago, when Mahadeva decided to start a dosa joint, he had only one thing on his mind: "To give Bangaloreans the taste of authentic Davangere benne (butter) dosa." His customers say the taste here has remained consistently good over the years. Like Srinidhi Naik, a private firm employee who has been coming here every day for the past three years.

This bachelor resident of N R Colony finds the place conveniently close to his home, and with this arrangement he doesn't have to depend on other nearby hotels. "If I don't have these dosas for breakfast, I have them for dinner. My favourites are paddu and open dosa, besides benne dosa," he adds.

For Sandeep Sharma, a Class 8 student of St Joseph Boys' High School, it's the price and quality of the dosa that are the main attractions. A resident of Thyagaraj Nagar, Sandeep loves to have the kaali dosa. "The price here is less compared to other dosa joints. Here, it's Rs 13, while in other places it ranges anywhere between Rs 15 and Rs 20," he says.

According to Mahadeva, people love the dosas at his joint mainly for the "pure" butter. "We get it from Bellur Santh. In other restaurants, they get the butter from a place near Tamil Nadu; it's not as good," he explains.

His restaurant also prepares other snacks served in the evening. These include Mandaki Puri, Mandaki Ogarane , Kotur Manasinakai, Nargis Mandaki, Masala Mandaki and Girmit Mandaki which are all popular in Davangere. Topping the chart is Paddu (a snack made of rice flour and served with groundnut chutney). "People love groundnut chutney very much. They sometime ask us to serve it with dosas too," he says with a smile.

Mahadeva, who hails from Kottur in Bellary district, worked as an electrician earlier. Later, with his wife Sudha's help, he decided to open the joint. "I had a fair idea how to make dosas. My parents prepared Mandaki Puri and I learnt it from them. When the staff takes leave, I prepare dosas at the restaurant," he adds.

Interestingly, he claims there has been no attrition here - the same people recruited when he opened the restaurant are still around. "Most of them are from Davangere area and good at preparing the snacks. We are a family," he says.

Mahadeva says the restaurant's popularity has soared so much that customers have repeatedly asked him to expand the place. "I have one branch in Banashankari. But even people from that area come here to eat," he says.

So, forget the calories and tuck into a benne dosa here. It's pure bliss.

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