In the year 1924 two brothers, Yajnanarayana Maiya and Ganappayya Maiya, came from their village in Karnataka to the city of Bangalore with a dream. They set up a restaurant, Brahmin's Coffee House, near the Lalbagh gardens in Bangalore. After a few years, Ganappayya Maiya returned to his native place. But Yajnanarayana Maiya and his family continued their culinary adventure; soon the restaurant was re-named Mavalli Tiffin Rooms and went on to become one of the city’s busiest establishments.

Today the Mavalli Tiffin Rooms, or MTR as it is commonly known as, is considered an integral part of Bangalorean lore. The place evokes extreme sentiment from the people who have visited it - they either love it or hate it. It has been termed a snobbish affair because of its strict adherence to timings, a tiresome expedition due to the long minutes people need to wait for their table, and a pompous place because of the obvious pride with which its run. But MTR is if anything an experience.

It is not for dramatic effect that I say this, but there really is a procedure, mind-set and dedication that must be part of your mental make-up when you visit MTR. On the Lalbagh road, you know you have arrived at Mavalli Tiffin Rooms when you spy upon groups drinking tea, chatting or reading newspapers outside a faded white building. Inside, do not let the swarming crowd or waiters sweep you aside. Instead wiggle your way up the staircase, where a glass painting of a comely woman smiles at you, even as the sign above suggests you enter your name on the guest list.

After entering my name in the guest chart and being told I had a good half hour before I would be allotted a table, I wandered off to the kitchen below. In its early days, customers had to enter the hotel through the kitchen and they could see for themselves the care with which their food was prepared and served, and MTR is still eager to flaunt the high standards of hygiene it maintains.

On my request, the manager gave me the run-down on how the kitchen works. Steaming idlis and masala dosas came to life side-by-side in a room, in another one nearby veggies were chopped, opposite which was the room where the chutney and batter for dosa and idlis was continually made. The passageway in the middle of all this was where the cups and dishes were washed and sterilized. Pleased with what I saw, I accompanied my rumbling stomach back up to the waiting room.

Soon it was the time to put my anticipation to rest. I was curious if the masala dosas that had survived 80 years of consistency in taste would sate my taste buds. The steaming dosa arrived along with the signature tiny cup of ghee; I poured it over the dosa, after which the waiter put a liberal ladleful of coconut chutney on the plate. And when the delicious mix of dosa, ghee, potato masala and chutney arrived at my mouth, my brain froze for words. It was undoubtedly among the best dosas I had ever eaten (and I have eaten many).

Seeing my expression, Santosh, a patron who had been coming there for over 20 years, couldn’t help but smile. ‘The rava idlis are great here too’, he informed. ‘MTR invented them during World War II.’ My brain was too befuddled with the tastes exploding in my mouth, to pay attention to his words. The coffee I ordered to clear my head came steaming in a silver glass. I felt like royalty and I understood why people were willing to wait for an hour to eat. I am still undecided though if the sweet joy I was left with in the end was due to the low bill amount or the yummy steaming plateful of Kesari, a sweet made with semolina, ghee and sprinkled liberally with cashews.

Being at MTR is much like standing for hours in serpentine queues at Indian temples for a glimpse of the divine. Here the waiting rooms are as large as the eating areas and the enlightenment-inducing masala dosas come only to those who have mastered the art of patience. After all MTR is an old-world joint; it is where the locals converge. Its walls are covered with fading pictures that tell stories of older days. Coffee, company and conversations is the charm MTR exudes, a charm that has attracted people here unfailingly since decades.