“God, there’s no competition for watermelon by any other fruits in town. And thank god, fruit stores have plenty of them now. I recommend everyone to keep watermelon inside a refrigerator for sometime, which is, whenever you don’t have power cut, and enjoy it all chilled. Believe me, it’s superb,” says Joshi.
In the meantime, Anil Silwal, a management undergrad from Nepal Commerce Campus, is feeling helpless. His favorite fruit, mango, has already come to town, but it’s priced at Rs 500 per kilo at the Bhatbhateni Supermarket.
Anil shares his disappointment, “Man! 500 Rupees for a kilo is too much. I’m just hoping for the price to come down.”
Yes, with summer season right next to our doors, some summer fruits have recently come to town, some came before the season while others are still to come.
Needless to say, about the numerous health benefits fruits have, you can now pick your favorite summer fruits at your nearby fruits sellers. And, if you don’t find all that has come to town, you can spare sometime to pop into Bhatbhateni supermarket, both in Bhatbhateni and in Maharajgunj, for the varieties.
Green and purple grapes are not new to people by now, as it has been here for a few months now. Oranges are still rocking at the stores, but according to fruit sellers, oranges will soon bid farewell for this season and litchis are expected to replace them in a month. Watermelons, like always, came to town since the first week of March whereas mangoes have surprised many because it arrived before the season this time.
However, the mangoes available in town are from India, and as per fruit sellers, it will still take some two months for Nepali mangoes to arrive in Kathmandu’s market. Litchis are taking its own sweet time to ripe, and pineapples have been here for long. Bananas are 24/7 available, and strawberries have become the talk of the town fruits recently. Apples will remain for a short while whereas international fruits are dominant in supermarkets now.
At Bhatbhateni, you can sneak through new fruits like kiwi, fresh pears, Thai mausambi, Thai grapes and Thai melon.
At fruit stores in Jawalakhel, next to the Central Zoo, avocados are also available along with other seasonal fruits.
However, to tally, Bhatbhateni’s fruits are way more expensive than in other fruit stores in town.
“It’s because of the quality stamps and naturally grown fruits,” explains Ganesh KC, sales supervisor Bhatbhateni’s fruit section.
On the contrary, the owner of Gupta Fruit Store in Jawalakhel counters that supermarkets tag expensive prices because they want to prove that they are brands.
“Dozens of people buy fruits from my shop. I’ve never had any complaints regarding food quality from my buyers,” Gupta says.
With more choices in fruits, to pick the right one has become a more difficult job.
For instance, there are two varieties many fruits: Chinese and Nepali. Watermelons are from Nepal, India and Thailand. Avocados are from Japan and Thailand. Strawberries are our fresh products while mausambis are also from India and China.
Prices of the fruits also vary from one store to the other. Indian mango, which is labeled at Rs 500 a kilo, is Rs 100 in Jawalakhel. Apples range from Rs 80 to Rs 390. Purple grapes are available in 180 Rupees per kilo; green grapes range between Rs 90 to Rs 140. Strawberries in the supermarkets costs Rs 150 for half a kilo, Thai grapes is available in 250 Rupees per kilo. A kilo of dark red pomegranate is up for Rs 275, avocados is available in town at Rs 250 per kilo, and watermelons ranges from Rs 30 to 150, depending upon where it is from. Bananas, pineapples and oranges are the cheapest fruits available. They cost you Rs 30, 50 and 75 respectively.
Though it’s hard to say if fruits that have come to town from abroad before the season are equally nutrition packed, it remains the reality that there are no other substitutes to eating fruits and there are no other ways to gain proper nutrition than from fresh fruits. As they are already in town, where to buy them is entirely up to you.
(All photos by Bikash Karki.)
avash@myrepublica.com
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