HYDERABAD:All the foodies in the city, if you long for authentic Songkran vibes and flavours from Thailand, 'GGE Aroma' at Kompally is your next food destination to hustle to. The restaurant had organised a Thai food fest based on Songkran from May 4 to 6. The menu at the fest covered everything from salad to desserts with tangy Thai touch for both vegetarians and non-vegetarians. 'Woan Gati Maprao On', a refreshing dessert made out of fresh coconut water and coconut jelly was amongst the most savoured dishes. Thai chilli chicken, fish cake, Thai green curry and every other dish on the menu was enhanced with the restaurant's kitchen-made masala. "We like doing things the old fashioned way. We like making and grinding our own masala and pastes from fresh ingredients, instead using them out of a can. We plan to own a kitchen garden soon," says Swarnendu Ghosh, the owner of Aroma. Swarnendu quit his corporate profile and had founded this restaurant in December 2017. Excerpts:
What drove you to start the restaurant?
One of the passions that I had was food. But honestly, I was only limited to eating. I had been to so many places, had so many cuisines and loved Hyderabadi food. One obvious choice was to start a restaurant. I wanted to treat the people of Hyderabad to some authentic food. There are other good outlets, but more have proliferated which do not have integrity towards original cuisine. In this part of the city (Kompally) which is developing of late, there are lot of joints but not many can claim authentic cuisine. We take pride in our job and we are doing what we set out to do.
What are the special dishes at Aroma?
Amongst customer favourites are nalli nihari, the Hyderabadi lamb trotter soup made from leg of the lamb which is cooked in a slow process, and Awadhi biryani. All our dishes are made with equal care. In fact, if you find something not on the menu that you would like to eat, challenge us and you will be surprised. I am not saying we cook everything, but we can surely try and give you the experience. We love to cook and love to serve. So, when you come to aroma, do not have a set thought ‘Yahi milta hai’.
How did the name Aroma occur to you?
We consume with all our five senses. When you scoop the food, I believe, you know the taste of the food before it enters you mouth and that is the beginning of aroma. If it does not smell good, please do not have it! Trust the sense of your smell, trust the aroma.