Serving delicious dishes for over a century, some sweet shops have become the landmarks of the city. From the boy next-door to Prime Ministers, they have won accolades from all.

Retired schoolteacher Vibhuti Narayan has grown up on the taste of kachri of Nandu Lalji Kachriwale — said to be one of the favourite food stations of chief minister Nitish Kumar too. The shop at Patna City Chowk, which treats its customers to both sweet and savoury snacks, has been standing for the past 102 years. Narayan, 67, has been a customer for 55 of those years. Kedar Prasad, who runs Nandu Lalji Kachriwale now, said the chief minister had invited him to 1 Aney Marg at least four times for making the shop’s speciality.

“Chief minister Nitish Kumar is very fond of kachris. So he calls me often to make the snacks whenever there is some party at his official residence,” said Prasad.

Patna City resident Narayan makes it a point to have kachris from the shop once a week. He said: “My father brought me here for the first time when I was 12 years old. The taste of the savoury snack made me go crazy for them. I come regularly to the shop for the kachris.”

Sexagenarian Prasad is the nephew of the original owner. He said: “My uncle Nandu Lalji had set up the shop 102 years ago. It became popular for its kachris. The desi snack of Bihar is made from khesari dal (pulse).” While Nanduji sold 10 kachris for 1 paisa, now two kachris are sold for Rs 5.

Swastik Kesharia shop, also at Patna City Chowk, precedes the kachri shop by around 50 years. Popular for tilpapri or tilkut, the shop has been running for more than 150 years.

Seventy-year-old owner Jaynarayan Keshri said: “In 1964, Atal Bihari Vajpeyee, then a strong leader of Jan Sangh, had come to Patna City on his way to Bhagalpur. I presented Vajpeyee tilpapri from my shop and he liked it a lot. For the next 12 years, I sent him tilpapri on his birthday.”

While Keshri’s father sold tilpapri for Rs 5 per kg, now one has to shell out Rs 240 for 1kg tilpapri. The speciality is available from November to February. “The sweet is made from til. We sell the tilpapri in winter, as til is only available at that time,” said the owner. Kesar tilpapri and elaichi tilpapri have been included on the menu.

A photograph of chief minister Nitish Kumar adorns one of the walls of Keshri’s shop. “Even now in the winter, I have to supply around 5kg tilpapri to the chief minister’s house every week,” added Keshri.

Road construction minister Nand Kishore Yadav has been visiting the sweetshops in Patna City for past 50 years. “There is a shop where delicious khurchan is prepared. Jaynarayan Keshri’s shop where they prepare tilkut is another childhood favourite of mine.”

Khurchan, a popular Bihari sweet, is found in Patna City only at Prabhatji’s shop. His great-great-grandfather Ramashray Prasad started the shop 80 years ago. “We sell 1kg khurchan for Rs 500 (at first khurchan sold at Rs 15 per kg). The price goes up during the lagaan (marriage) season. Then, 1kg khurchan is available at Rs 600,” said Prabhat. Former Prime Ministers Atal Bihari Vajpeyee, Rajiv Gandhi and Indira Gandhi have tasted the sweet from Prabhat’s shop. Yadav has also been a regular.

Prabhat added: “When Nitish Kumarji was not the chief minister, he used to come to my shop to buy khurchan. His wife, Manju Kumari Sinha, used to teach at a nearby government high school. Nitish used to come my shop then and have khurchans.”

Admitting that he has been to several of the sweetshops in Patna City, Nitish said: “I have been fond of local sweets prepared at home and the local shops from my early days. I wish that Bihari sweets and other such delicacies find their way to the plate of every Indian.”