BENGALURU: With a truck full of absolute ‘chataakedaar’ surprises, Dhaba by Claridges at Indiranagar will titillate the spice craver in you and leave you with a warm feeling of ‘ghar ka khaana’. Also, if you are lucky like me, you might even witness a flash mob by the staff on Bollywood chartbusters.
Despite the menu sporting dhaaba food, the lip smacking dishes and cocktails are anything but street side and is definitely up in style and Punjabi flavours. Chef Shivam Bose introduced us to the menu that included Paneer Tikka, Veg Galouti and Tandoori Bhune Aloo as starters for vegetarians. For mains, you can pick from Dal Dhaba, Paneer Makhani and Amritsari Chole along with choice of two breads from the menu between Roti, Butter Naan, Lachha Paratha and Naan.
For non vegetarian starters, choose from Highway Chicken Tikka, Tawa Mutton and Tawa Chicken. For the mains, pick from Butter Chicken, Rarra Ghost, Kadhai Chicken and Dal Dhaba along with choice of two breads from the menu between Roti, Butter Naan, Lachha Paratha and Naan. For sweet endings, go for some rabri, gulab jamun and phirni.
For the Chaat Flavour
If you love chaat flavours, I would recommend you to order Tandoori Bhune Aloo and Paneer Tikka. The paneer cuts through smoothly and is tempered very well with spices. The Bhune Aloo are roasted baby potatoes, tossed in spices and served beautifully with onions and tomatoes. Two of my favourite things – potatoes and tomatoes – put together with roasted flavours and tempered with chaat. Was I a happy woman? Damn, right.
While I have heard of Galouti Kebab, I had always perceived as a non vegetarian dish. But here, thanks to chef Shivam, I got a taste of its vegetarian version, where just like the meat one, the vegetable is minced to smoothness through slow cooking, flavoured with cinnamon and black cardamom and placed over a maida crispy base. The galouti is buttery smooth and the base adds the crunch to this dish.
The non-vegetarian version of the galouti had lamb minced and cooked to buttery smoothness. The chef definitely earned respect on the dinner table having cooked the meat so well. The effort of the kitchen and its use of technique shows beautiful with this starter.
Be it the medium rare Mutton Seekh, the Amritsari Machli or vegetarian starters, the kitchen at Dhaba by Claridges has got its flavours and cooking technique right on the money.
The Chitta Butter Chicken is served with white sauce. Flavoured in kasoori methi, this dish is cooked in tandoor with the marination of hung curd and spices. The meat is well cooked and bursts of zesty flavours.
The Balti Meat is the house’s signature dish, which steals inspiration from the famous mutton curry of dhaba. The curry has all the flavours of a Punjabi house kitchen. Although the gravy looks spicy, at no point do any of the favours overpower the centre-piece sticking out of the bucket serving bowl – the mutton.
The Tawa Mutton Pulao has flaky Basmati rice that is tossed in spices and tempered with spices that you will find in any Punjabi kitchen. The dish is light on the stomach and has a fresh mint garnish with well cooked meat pieces. If you are a rice fanatic, do give this one a try.
Gujju Dreams Come True
Being a Gujarati, I had to ask for the Kadi Pakora, and boy, was I impressed. The thick curd-flour consistency, flavoured well with turmeric and spices, served with pakoras drenched in the gravy won my heart. I definitely missed home a little less with this preparation that is famous across North India.
While there’s so much to talk about the food, one place where Dhaba by Claridges proves its versatility is the cocktails. They are all flavoured with chaat spices and my God, are the one of the most impressive mixes I have had so far.