HYDERABAD: Aish at The Park Hyderabad has a lavish buffet spread that extends the Poila Baishakh or Bengali New Year a week more as two home chefs Swarnali and Sarbani have painstakingly curated the promotion bringing together both Bengali dishes and the Awadhi ones making the feast a finger-licking experience. My dinner began with platefuls of mouth-watering starters. I relished Dimer Devil, Chingri
Sesame Fry, Enchorer Chop, Veg Chop and Bhetki Fish Chop.
What made the taste even more delightful was the combination of chutneys and sauces especially the pungent kasundi sauce which if not made according to the authentic recipe can turn disastrous ruining even the taste of the fries or chops. The star of the segment is Peas Kebab with the vegetable quite taking in to the flavour of the select spices. Another chutney that I enjoyed the most was Amer Chutney: the glassy slightly green preparation with cumin seeds giving its typical sweet and sour flavour.
In the bhaja platter, Jhuri Aloo Bhaja and Karela Bhaja were crispy enough to get crunched under your teeth. The secret? Shares Swarnali, “The trick is not to add salt in the beginning as it makes the preparation soggy.” And this is not just one of the secrets that they have brought to the hotel. “We have tried to include comfort food items also in the menu,” adds Sarbani. That’s how in the main menu you have Sona Moonger Daal and steamed rice which I relished up with Kosha Mangsho and Potol-er-Dalma. Another dish which is a must-try is Shahi Rui Machh prepared with cashew-nut paste, posto (poppy seeds) and curd. Its balanced flavour went really well with the rice and daal combination.
Shukto and Chicken Chaap increased the taste of fluffy golden-fried luchis. The mutton biryani was good but could have tasted better if more ghee was added to it. Another must-try is Mutton Rezala, the Mughlai dish in thin white gravy cooked with ground poppy seeds and select condiments oozing the fragrance of meetha attar and kewra.
For capping the delightful spread I recommend Kheer Komola: juicy chunks of oranges cooked in thickened milk. The taste lingers in your taste buds long after you finish your meal.
Relish the spread at both lunch and dinner on April 21 and April 22 at `1,199+ taxes
saima@newindianexpress @Sfreen