Varq, Taj Mansingh, New Delhi – Eclectic Indian

Another new chic restaurant has opened in Delhi, this time around it is not Japanese or Italian or even Mexican, it is well for the lack of a better word – "Indian". It is not easy to describe this cuisine but I will make an attempt – imagine Liz Hurley in a Saree – well now that you have, this is not the correct analogy, this would be the correct analogy for Chicken Tikka Masala served at Chutney Mary in London but imagine the exact mirror image of this, say Aishwarya Rai in a gown on the red carpet at Cannes – this would be the correct analogy. Bear in mind, this does not take into account Aishwarya Rai's acting skills, the point I am trying to make is simple, take something Indian and put a twist on it to make it more contemporary. That is what Varq does that to Indian Cuisine, it takes it to the international stage.

 

The decor keeping with the theme is contemporary, red glasses on white table covers on black floors, ceiling pasted with gold foil. Very very chic.

 

Now to the main act - First on the table was a fruit chaat in a degustation spoon, a small bite of fruit chaat to tingle the taste buds before the appetiser arrived. Each plate of appetiser comes in individual portions, each a piece of art, neatly arranged or rather decorated on a stark white plate (the canvas of choice of most good chefs today). Hemant Oberoi seems to have been inspired by Masaharu Morimoto with whom he co-founded the Wasabi restaurant. For the appetisers I ordered the crabs with shrimp – crab minced between filo sheets and topped with a spicy shrimp and Corn Gilaafi kebabs – both were exceptional, the crab more so, the Gilaafi is available at Masala Art too so nothing unique about it. Between the appetiser and the main course is the Sorbet – the tamarind sorbet – to cleanse the palate for another line-up of extravaganza. The sorbet itself is exceptional – tangy, cold and an excellent dessert in my books, but it will also do as a palate cleanser. The main course was Yellow Dal (ordinary nothing much to report on this), excellent raita (the kind which goes well with biryani – which I did not order but I am sure would be wonderful) and Lamb in a martaban – for the uninitiated a martaban (which your grandmother will confirm) is the white and mustard colour container to keep pickles. The lamb was cooked with red chilly pickle – an excellent fusion of flavours. Surprisingly what was missing on each dish was the clichéd varq – not that I am complaining but would have been nice to see some gold leaf on some food item, although I would not be amused to see the bill after that.

 

The entire experience was a Jambalaya of senses – spicy, sweet, tangy, cold and hot all at the same time, never before have I teased my senses in so many different ways in so short a time. On the whole an experience worth repeating when you are in the mood for Indian but not the solid desi ghee Indian – head to Varq.

 

Food: 8.5/10

Ambience: 8.5/10

Service: 8/10

Overall: 8.5/10

Value for Money: 6/10

Repeatability: Yes

Cost: INR 2500 / head without hard drinks inclusive of tips.

Polo Lounge, Hyatt, New Delhi

I don't like going to Hyatt too much since they started the Rs. 100 parking fee - if at all I go there it is always under protest. I do not have an issue with the amount or the fee as such but more with the fact that they do not distinguish between a genuine customer and the GAIL building people who were using their valet service and basement parking which encouraged them to bring about this fee in the first place. For a genuine client - who uses any of the services of Hyatt, they should revalidate the parking fee. In any case, back to the point, recently I discovered a new gem at the Hyatt, which was always there right under my nose - The Polo Lounge. 

Went there recently for a business meeting on a saturday evening around 7.30ish, the idea was to catch a drink. When we got there, the bar was sparsely populated with a few foreigners who were there for their pre-dinner wine / beer etc. We started off with a pint of beer along with our choice of cigars, after a couple of hours the drinks grew heavier along with the conversation and we were on our second cigars now (of which they have  a very good selection). Then hunger pangs began and we decided to have a look at the menu - expecting finger food only, but we were mistaken - the food ranged from pizzas of La Piazza, Kebabs from Aangan and some stuff from TK's too which I forget. We settled for some kebabs from aangan which weren't half as bad as I remember Aangan to be. It was the basic menu of all the restaurants (obviously, they do not want to take away the importance of the restaurant itself), but the concept of being able to spend a couple of hours there having food, drinks and smoking options was good. The Ambience was unique, atleast for that particular night, we had illustrious company - Priyanka Gandhi and Robert Vadra on one side and Nanda & Shveta Bachchan Nanda on the other along with their respective safari suit clad security people hawkingly observing our every move. 

For a relaxed evening with some good drinks, variety of food, great ambience and at the pretext of having a business meeting getting some good time in, Polo Lounge is ideal !

Food: 7.5/10

Ambience: 8.5/10

Service: 8/10

Overall: 8/10

Value for Money: 6.5/10 (carry your hotel card)

Repeatability: Yes

Cost: Varies on how long and what you do there

Sanchos, Mexican

Mexican, South Extension, South Delhi

With bated breath I read the review of the new mexican restaurant in town, it joins not too many pre-existing mexican joints in the city (I do not understand why that is the case, mexican cuisine after all is a close cousin of Indian food - beans, rotis-fajitas, sauces like chutneys etc.). There are only a handful of mexican joints in Delhi such as Rodeo, TGIF and another new joint opened by the market cafe people at the Janpath Hotel. I mark a caveat on the use of the word mexican here since most of these restaurants actually serve tex mex cuisine and not mexican cuisine - the former being an anglicised version of mexican food with heavy influences of southern american flavours. 

At the first opportunity which presented itself, there I was sitting in a group on a Saturday night at Sanchos (which has replaced the older Delhi Devils) on the 3rd floor of the restaurant - there is also a 4th floor with the bar and more seating. The music which seemed to be live DJ music (could not figure out as most of the speakers and the mythical DJ seemed to be on the floor above - but the music was good, quite good. The place is spacious and has high ceilings giving the restaurant a regal feel. The ambience is quite good with most of the tables occupied by foreigners (even they love mexican cuisine). We were in a group and ordered a few margheritas (but of course) which were quite good and followed it with a round of beer. This was accompanied by the nachos with various sorts of dips - which in my opinion were all more or less regular - there was a mango sauce which was different (mind you not good but different). For the main course we all ordered different stuff - no one actually said the food is good - 'cause it wasn't - again it wasn't bad either, but I will not be going to Sanchos for the food - but more for the ambience and the pocket friendly drinks. 

A great place to get a group together or drop by for a drink post work. Well located, service is enthusiastic, food is average, drinks are good. Overall - I am glad there is a mexican choice in town - high time ! Cheers !

Food - 6/10

Ambience - 8/10

Service - 7/10

Overall - 7/10

Value for Money - 8/10

Repeatability: Yes

Cost: Rs. 750 / head 

Claridges - Dhaba

Punjabi, Claridges Hotel, Central Delhi

One of the best places to go for an authentic Indian meal, a simple Balti meat with roti accompanied by a seekh kabab (one of the best in Delhi) will do the trick, but if you are in the mood, also indulge in their achari chicken tikka and butter chicken. The restaurant itself is modeled around an Indian roadside Dhaba catering to truckers etc. There is even a half shell of a truck in the dhaba fixed on the wall. The dishes are kept in pots in true Dhaba style in one place over a clay heating area. The service is not spectacular but the food makes up for any deficiency. A small restaurant, better to go early or book - frequented by large groups often so getting a table can be a challenge on a weekend. Dhaba is purely about food and nothing else, the purity of the objective does add to the perfection with which each dish is served, the Seekh Kebabs have the right tenderness, the Balti meat is oh so well cooked and soft with a consistent gravy, the menu though not very varied (fits on a small hand fan) is done well and pretty much covers all that you might feel the need for. There also seems to be a Thali on the menu which would be worth a try the next time around. On the whole one of my favourite places in Delhi for Punjabi food - to digest the food there is panditji's paan right outside the hotel.

Food - 9/10

Ambience - 7.5/10

Service - 6/10

Overall - 8/10

Value for Money - 6/10

Repeatability: Yes

Cost: Rs. 1000 / head (with no alcohol)

Wassup-bi or Wanabi

Japanese Fusion - Taj Mansingh, New Delhi - reviewed in June 2008

The swish crowd frequented mumbai restaurant wasabi is open in Delhi, there was not much pre-launch hype just a simple announcement and a few media coverage to announce the opening of the restaurant at the Taj Mansingh (in a location where I don't remember what was there earlier). So a few nights after it opened, I decided to go to Wasabi (not on a weekend mind you, there was no table available), with a few foodie friends. This decision got reaffirmed by the end of the meal, when going to fancy restaurants go with foodies and not with fussy eaters. The fussy guys wont enjoy their food nor would they let you enjoy your food, specially when it is as unusual as what is served at Wasabi.

First things first, the restaurant is hip and contemporary and does not seem to fit the Rs. 6000/head bill which was ultimately presented. I would have expected to see something far more proper and luxurious. The finishing of the restaurant was bad and seemed shoddy. The space itself seems tiny - not appropriate at all for a restaurant of this stature. Not that I am saying the decor was bad, it was great, for Pan Asia maybe but not for Wasabi. Which takes me to the staff, who seem to be the familiar faces from Pan Asia. A lot of poaching seems to have taken place. 

There is a sushi bar, a tepanyaki counter, some regular tables and of course the oh so ever private room. We decided to place our posteriors at the tepanyaki counter and started ordering the varied dishes - rock shrimp tempura, oysters with foie gras, mixed sushi platter and some tepankayaki meat dishes to go with the garlic rice. All in all, we had a feast, the food was a good fusion of - not cuisines - but tastes. I felt tangy, spicy and sweet in the same mouthful, like cirque de soloeil was performing for my private pleasure in my mouth, the butteriness of the foie gras was complemented well with the salty taste of the ocean in the oysters. All in all a great meal indeed. The sushi platter was great too - the fresh wasabi grated in front of us did wonders from a presentation perspective. The morsels of fish and rice on the platter were unknown to some extent and made it fun to enjoy them. The veggies on the other had (or I should say the non-foodies) did not enjoy their meal so much. They ended up eating veg fried rice with some mixed veggies tepanyaki style ! Shocking, specially when you pay so much for something so basic. The service was a little confused, I guess the staff would need time to get accustomed to the menu and being high headed, they are not, but the management would want them to be. There were also logistics issues - I gave my credit card for the bill and got a call from the restaurant after 5 minutes on my cell phone letting me know that I have forgotten the credit card at the restaurant. All this when I was sitting and waiting for the bill to arrive at the tepanyaki counter. A little confused, but can let it go considering they are new. A word of advise though, order from the menu only, do not the server suggest and order anything off the menu if they do the charges could be anything (Kobe Beef - 10k per serving).

The ambiance (read the crowd) was pretty much Delhi - that should say it all, some P3 personalities, some wanna be P3 people all talking loud enough to create a din which was after a while intrusive to the taste buds. With every new party entering the restaurant there was "hey how are you" and shallow kisses being exchanged, a place to be seen for sure, Wasabi is going to be a permanent fixture around for sure, after the initial hype dies and the P3 are gone, it would be left alone to serious foodies or for some serious high level entertaining for business (Daichi san with Mr. Singh at Wasabi's private room maybe?). A good but very very expensive restaurant making it one for the special occasion - just like the orient express. Wassup-Bi is here to stay, for sure.

Overall Rating - 8.5/10

Food - 9/10

Service - 7.5/10

Ambiance - 7 /10

Value for money - 4/10

Repeatability - On special occasions

Costs - Budget 5k for a meal per head, 6k with a glass of champagne.

 

Ginger Moon

Chinese - Khan Market, New Delhi - reviewed on 28th June 2008

A friend from out of the country wanted to eat what most self respecting Indians do when they come back to India after a long time - chinese, not just any chinese "punjabi chinese". We Indians have improvised on the cuisine consumed by a population larger than ours to our taste, it is the fusion of two of the worlds largest cuisines at it's best. 

When thinking of options after a bad movie we shortlisted 3, mainland china, the side wok at khan market and the newly opened ginger moon. For the sake of being adventurous we picked the new restaurant. We reached there around 8.30, after climbing up a flight of stairs to the first floor eatery (which is oh so khan market), we entered a tiny hole in the wall restaurant. Done up in regular manner, nothing extraordinary about it the meal started with ordering appetizers and soup. We had a tough table that night, of the four of us, one was a veggie, one did not eat seafood (except fish), one ate only seafood (no lamb or chicken) and I ate everything. Ordering was tough, a linear program was warranted but we made do without it. 

For the appetisers we ordered a portion of crispy fried mixed veggie and chicken in hunan sauce. The soups were varied - each portion was enough for an individual but could have been split for two people too. For the main course we kept it light and ordered veg fried rice and lamb in chili sauce and some veggies in soya sauce. On the whole the presentation was food was dismal if non existent, it seemed to be slopped on to plates right out of the wok. The food itself, soup was average but everything after that was downhill - the appetisers were soggy, the main course was anything but interesting. Ginger moon has taken the concept of Punjabi Chinese and stretched it to the extreme, so much so that the sliced lamb actually tastes like Rogan Josh ! Imagine having that with veg fried rice. It was adventurous for sure but not something that I had bargained for that night. 

The tables are also set too close for comfort (space constraint due to the 1,000 Rs. / sft rental I guess) and you are, whether you like it or not, part of the conversation of the next table where the girlfriend is complaining to the boyfriend that she got ready for ricks and they are here!

The total meal cost us Rs. 600 per head and was average in all regards. The smartest decision of the evening was to skip dessert at Ginger Moon and head downstairs to Big Chill for some ambrosiac desserts !

Overall Rating: 4/10

Ambience: 3/10

Food: 4/10

Service: 3/10

Value for Money: 4/10

Cost: Rs. 600/head (with no alcohol)

Repeatability: NO