The story of the nation and the story of The Embassy restaurant in Connaught Place reverberate the same narrative in a lot of ways, especially, of the time when both were trying to find their identity in the year 1948. Today, having become of archetypal Indian cuisine, the restaurant, at one time, was trying to find its place in the larger scheme of things, just like the post-Partition India. Cut to 2015, both have found their identities, and are continuing to evolve in a manner that lets them hold on to their individuality, yet keep in tandem with the contemporary world.
The one thing that’s turned this seemingly ordinary restaurant into a legend, is quite honestly, more than anything else, its consistency in food. If that hadn’t been up to the mark at all times, the business wouldn’t have survived beyond a few years, says its Managing Partner, Rajnish Bahl. “Restaurants today are focusing just on alcohol sales. A customer visits it a few times and then gets bored. The ability to maintain quality of food has helped us a great deal,” says Sunil Malhotra, the other owner of the place.
Synonymic with Butter Chicken, Meat Samosa and Tomato Fish, you cannot exit the restaurant without trying the same. “These became our speciality by fluke. We got the same chefs from Karachi, who were working with us for over a decade, at our restaurant there. So, many of the dishes here are actually influenced by the Karachi food heritage. These dishes became popular because they added a novelty to the Delhi palette and, at that time, we were the only ones doling them,” says Malhotra.
Since the inception of the restaurant, the use of ingredients have remained the same. That’s quite a feat, considering every new chef appointment could have brought with him his personal preferences. That didn’t happen. “We grind our own masalas, and for some dishes, overnight cooking is required. These things are uncompromisable. Also, Malhotra and I take a lot of interest in the taste of the food, and even when a small change is introduced, it’s not served until it’s passed our judgement,” says Bahl, adding, “Our signature dishes—Butter Chicken, Meat Samosa, and Tomato Fish—have stood the test of time for the very same reason.”
The gentlemen started operations with a meagre capital of `1.5 lakh. They established themselves in Connaught Place at a time when life here was different. Where The Embassy stands today, stood a famous beauty salon run by a British lady. There were not many eating options, and hardly any cars, Bahl tells us. “The place was equipped with tanga stands in every block,” he says, letting out a laugh. “Our clientele consisted of intellectuals from press houses, senior politicians and expats. As the years went by, we started hosting families. Soon, we earned the distinction of being a place where marriages were made. Following that, The Embassy became a place for the power lunches. We actually had regulars who would put ‘9.30 am to 11 am at Embassy Restaurant’, on their visiting cards. Our reputation from our years of services from our Krachi restaurant followed us well, and
I hope it continues to trail behind, even in the years to come,” says Malhotra.