Darshini is a vegetarian fast food

Fast food

Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...

 restaurant chain found in Bangalore

Bangalore

Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...

 and other parts of South India

South India

South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...

. The menu includes mostly South Indian

South Indian cuisine

South Indian Cuisine is a term used to refer to the cuisines found in the four southern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.-Similarities and differences in "Four states' cuisines":...

 breakfast dishes. Food is generally served in stainless steel

Stainless steel

In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....

 plates or cups. Plates may be placed on tall tables, or held in one hand, and the food eaten while standing.

There are more than 5000 Darshinis in the Bangalore city.

Typical Menu in a Darshini

A typical Darshini menu comprises rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

-based dishes like idly, vada

Vada

Vada ; also known as wada or vade or vadai , is a savoury fritter-type snack from South India.-Description:Vada can vary in shape and size, but are usually either doughnut- or disc-shaped and are about between 5 and 8 cm across. They are made from dal, lentil, gram flour or potato.Vada is a...

, sambar and dosa

Dosa

Dosa or Dhosai is a fermented crepe or pancake made from rice batter and black lentils. It is indigenous to and is a staple dish in the southern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, as well as being popular in Sri Lanka...

. Indian filter coffee

Indian filter coffee

South Indian Coffee, also known as Filter Coffee is a sweet milky coffee made from dark roasted coffee beans and chicory , especially popular in the southern states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu...

 is also available. Some Darshinis also serve North Indian dishes

North Indian cuisine

North Indian cuisine , part of Indian cuisine, is a term used to refer to the cuisines found in Northern India which includes the Indian states: Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and West-Central Uttar Pradesh...

.

Features of a Darshini restaurant

All Darshinis are pay-first-eat-later, similar to most fast food restaurant

Fast food restaurant

A fast food restaurant, also known as a Quick Service Restaurant or QSR within the industry itself, is a specific type of restaurant characterized both by its fast food cuisine and by minimal table service...

s or fast casual restaurant

Fast casual restaurant

A fast casual restaurant is a type of restaurant that does not offer full table service, but promises a higher quality of food and atmosphere than a fast food restaurant. In the US, it is a relatively new and growing concept positioned between fast food and casual dining...

s, intended primarily to serve the rush hour

Rush hour

A rush hour or peak hour is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice a day—once in the morning and once in the evening, the times during when the most people commute...

 crowd in Bangalore. Darshinis usually are identified with small round steel tables, around which customers stand while eating.

The first Darshini was Upahara Darshini near Netkallappa circle, Basavanagudi, Bangalore. Most of them are run by Kota Brahmin

Kota brahmin

Kota Brahmins hail from the Kundapur and surrounding areas of Udupi district in Karnataka, Bantwal and Puttur Taluk in Mangalore District and Kasargod District in Kerala...

, Shivalli Brahmins and Koteshwara Brahmin.