Month: December 2011

Sticky post
arab, Asian Cuisine, Bakery & Breakfast, chinese, Continental Cuisine, Continental Grilled, Indian, Japanese, Middle eastern, seafood

Spectra, Coffee Shop, Leela Kempinsky (NH8 Gurgaon, besides Ambience Mall)

This post covers our visit on 4th july 2020 & also our first experience in 2011.

Read about Our First dineout experience after the COVID pandemic lockdown

Read about the first eat out (but not done in) experience after the COVID pandemic lockdown here – tres

Keep scrolling down to Read about our first experience at spectra in 2011.

In a NUtshell

An excellent dinner in a restaurant after 4 months of eating at home – wonderful experience overall, great food, enhanced by our host.

Address & other details: spectra

Meal for 2: ₹2000 onwards

Cuisine type : vegetarian & non vegetarian

Disclaimer: All restaurants / eateries reviewed by YUMMRAJ were visited by YUMMRAJ himself & he has paid for the full Bill & tips also. http://www.yummraj.com does not have even one featured / sponsored reviews. YUMMRAJ believes in going to a restaurant in anonymity, as a normal guest, experience everything & give a honest account of the same to you.

I rate all the food items & then give a final overall rating which is a simple average of the individual item ratings. What the ratings stand for: 5 = Excellent, 4 = Very Good, 3 = Good, 2 = Fair, 1 = Disaster

Short description- in case u r in a hurry

This was our first dinner in a restaurant ever since cities got locked down due to COVID. We were deliberating between different options & narrowed down to spectra. We were looking for European food. Very Glad that we came here – the experience was totally worth it.

The restaurant is situated inside leela ambience gurugram. As we alighted from our vehicle, a guy in uniform came for valet parking. I handed over the keys & the car. He asked my phone number (he said it was mandatory). I asked for the receipt. He said physical receipt will not be given & that I will receive an SMS in 10 minutes. The SMS however never came. After our dinner I walked out of the gate, told the security about my car. He asked me for SMS. I said I did not get. He got me the car & handed over the keys!!! So imagine someone can quote another person’s Bentley’s number & drive it away!!! Super wierd.

As we entered the hotel we were asked to put all our metal belongings in a tray and pass through the security so that there is no need for physical patting and checking. As we reached the lobby, we were asked to stand in front of a machine that could measure the temperature without physical contact.

https://yummraj.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/img_1456.mov

After this,when we moved on to the restaurant, it was about 7:40 PM and the restaurant had about 4 to 5 tables occupied. it was as silent as it could be it. No chatter, no clattering of cutlery. It seemed like walking into a restaurant in a hotel at 7 AM in the morning for breakfast on Sunday, sharp at the opening time.

When we had called earlier, the guy did not tell us that the last order will be before 8 pm. We were lucky we walked in at 7.40. Else we would have to return.

Our server was extremely warm and constantly kept us engaged throughout our stay in the restaurant. We felt like being guests at his home.

As we sat, he got us a scanner. It had a QR code, which we had to scan from our camera of the phone. immediately as we scanned the code, a link appeared and it had the entire menu of all the restaurants in the hotel. The E-menu was Crisp and very very easy to navigate through. it was very user-friendly, I must say.

The final check however came in traditional printed paper. Thankfully, inside the restaurant we could takeoff our masks because the tables are apart anyway and due to low occupancy people were seated far from each other.

Few customers in the restaurant and imports not yet being normal, led to some ingredients being absent in the kitchen. so few of the dishes that we wanted to have , cud not be served to us. However, whatever we had was outstanding and by far made up for not getting the ones we were looking for.

Absolutely loved the food

Detailed description – in case u hv the time to njoy reading:

As we waited for the food, we were served a complimentary Immunity booster – it had strong celery flavors, had a tinge of salt, it was not too sweet & overall it was a great refreshing drink. Rate it 4.25/5

We ordered grilled Norwegian salmon. It was just brilliant. It was so juicy that At times it felt like that I was having watermelon!!! The fish was flaky, full of flavors and perfectly cooked. the skin on top was Crisp & super enjoyable. Chef had made a marmalade Inhouse, that was spread on top of the fish. excellent. Loved it so much that our plate was polished white by the end of the meal. Rate it 4.5/5

Grilled lamb chops were perfectly cooked as well. The pieces of meat used in the lamb chops were also excellent. The meat pieces had a layer of fat in the corner. These had become Crisp outside. as we would bite into the meat, the Crisp thin layer of fat wud burst into a flavorful thick liquid. Outstanding is an understatement. rate it 4.75/5

For dessert we had banana walnut caramel tart. The tart base was very good. The filling was good, the caramel sauce excellent, the bananas were very ordinary, flat taste ones – not too sweet, a hint of salt. Overall the dish was very good. Rate it 4/5.

Overall rating of food & beverages average out to 4.25/5

Really happy we went there. Wud go for a Japanese dinner some day.

Below is the original post from 2011

In a nutshell:

Loved the experience & the food – a few ifs & buts though on the food. Will surely revisit to try out other cuisines.

Inside Spectra, Leela Kempinsky, Gurgaon

Address & Menu card : Spectra

Meal for 2: Rs. 2000 onwards

Cuisine type : Vegetarian & Nonvegetarian

Cool & colorful decor at Spectra Leela kempinsky gurgaon

Short description – In case u r in a hurry:

As u walk into Leela & then into the Coffee shop Spectra, ur eyes r overwhelmed with the decor & the look. I wud not say that it is the most artistic place I have been to but it is a visual delight.

........... a visual delight

As u walk in the restaurant u realize that the staff is very warm. I have this funny habit of wearing the most ordinary of clothes to a 5 or a 7 star & then asking for non bottled filtered water – The reaction is very interesting to see coz a section of the staff in most of these places tend to judge u by these initial parameters. Here at Spectra the reaction was as warm & normal as it could get & they passed my funny test with flying colors.

The Coffee shop has a very very interesting Japanese counter where u can chat with the chef, tailor-make ur sushis & sashimis & sit & eat on the bar table. The Chef rolls the sushis in front of u from scratch &serves.

A little away from there is the Chinese counter. Here again u can sit on counter, chat with the chef , tailor-make ur food & eat soups, stir fries , soupy noodles like thukpas etc. All ingredients are kept there as well & the colors of them are a visual delight.

There are also a good representation of cuisines that u usually do find too many Top end Restaurants specializing in. e.g Arab cuisine, Thai, Malaysian, Singaporean . They also have a large list of good unusual food (unusual when compared to menu cards of other delhi restaurants).

The menu card has a very large & wide selection vegetarian section.

Other interesting options are a breakfast spread Rs. 750 + taxes, a Lunch buffet of Rs. 1600 + taxes , a Sunday Brunch (with sparkling wine, house red & white wine, beer & vodka cocktails) & a Champagne Brunch for Rs. 3500 (Champagne in place of Sparkling wine + everything else) .

We liked the seafood soup, loved the Moroccan seafood grill & Freaked out on the outstanding tenderloin steak.

Detailed Description – In case u have the time to enjoy reading:

Continue reading “Spectra, Coffee Shop, Leela Kempinsky (NH8 Gurgaon, besides Ambience Mall)”

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bengali, For the Chef in u……, Guest Blogger, Indian

Green Peas Kachori (‘Koraishutir Kochuri’ in Bengali)

  This is a part of the series ……. For the Chef in u Contributed by YUMMRAJ’s favourite Chef ANONYMOUS Super easy to make & Super good to eat…………… Cuisine Type : VEGETARIAN Peas kachori (called Koraishutir Kochuri in Bengali) Though u get green peas in Summers these days, the taste & flavor of those is nowhere as good as the fresh seasonal winter green … Continue reading Green Peas Kachori (‘Koraishutir Kochuri’ in Bengali)

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Awadhi (lucknow Dum cooking)

Tunday kababi (B 002, Qutab Plaza Market, DLF Plaza Tower, DLF Phase 1, Gurgaon)

In a nutshell:

One of the best Galawati Kabab makers of Lucknow is now in Gurgaon…… & they also serve some very good Mughlai dishes that r not served in the original old Lucknow shop.

If u love ur tastebuds more than ur waistline, rush to this place this winter:)

A view from the mainroad - facade of the shop & a crowd of people eating in front of it

Address & other details: Tunday Kababi

The ever famous Tunday Kabab Paranthe

Meal for 2: Rs. 200 onwards

Cuisine type: Nonvegetarian

Short Description – In case u r in a hurry:

The name Tunday has an unfortunate story – The person who started this shop 125 years ago fell from a height & lost his hand. A person without a hand used to be called ‘tunda’ in local dialect. So when he started selling kababs they started bein g called Tunday kababs. Who knew that this unfortunate incident wud lead to a name which wud become a brand a century later. 

The Shop has an open kitchen. As u enter the shop & cross the kitchen, there r a few seats. But for the rest of the guests there is the open night sky as a roof. The boundary wall of the common market walkway acts as a table, food is served on them & guests enjoy the food standing on the walkway & eating from the plates kept on the boundary wall !!!!

Strongly recommend that u eat the food there & not get it delivered or packed. There is a huge difference in the taste – due to the nature of teh food.

Pls do not expect trained waiters. If u treat them well as normal human beings, they will respond exceedingly well. If u r a regular & tip them, u will b treated like a guest to their house. If u r in a bad mood or just a non cheerful mood & that is reflected in ur communication, or even if he hasjust been maltreated by another customer, don’t b surprised to get a cold reaction from these guys.

We enjoyed some very good mutton korma, excellent murg kali mirch , delicious Lucknowi Dum Biryani & their signature Galawati Kababs with warqi paratha. Tried the mutton sheekh but that was a dampener.

Detailed description – In case u have the time to enjoy reading:

Continue reading “Tunday kababi (B 002, Qutab Plaza Market, DLF Plaza Tower, DLF Phase 1, Gurgaon)”

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Indian, North Indian Snacks & meals

Sitaram Dewanchand Chana (Chholey) Bhaturewala (2246, Chuna Mandi, near Imperial Cinema, Paharganj, Delhi).

In a nutshell:

One of the best Chholey Bhature in Delhi

The outside view of the eatery

GoogleMap: Sitaram Dewanchand

Chholey Bhature, aloo subzi, pickles

Cuisine Type: Vegetarian

Meal for 2: See pic below

menu card & price list displayed on the wall

How to get there:

At Ramakrishna Ashram Metro station, ask for Imperial Cinema. Once u reach there, ask for the Sitaram Dewanchand. Advisable not to take ur car there due to severe parking issues. Park ur car in CP & take an auto or just take a metro & then walk.

Imperial Cinema - Without this as a landmark, u will keep searching all over Pahargunj

Description:
We were surprised to see a Queue as we entered the shop at around 9.00am on a sunday morning. As we waited, a tall, smooth worded guy actually pulled off a typical Dilli sifarish for jumping the queue – He spoke to someone on his mobile & actually handed over the phone to the shop owner & the Gentleman obliged!!!!!

Queue as u enter the shop

While we waited for our turn to get a bite, we caught a glimpse of bhature stored in a hot chamber in trays. Seeing that we realized that we r not getting freshly fried bhatures but ‘already made’ ones. Much later while we were walking out (post meal) we saw a fresh consignment of bhatures from the kitchen. Those looked round & puffed like it is in bikanervala or Om sweets. So we missed it by a margin of approx. 25 minutes. Better luck next time.

aloo ki subzi

The Bhatures that we had were refried on tawa & served. So it is not swollen or puffed like we r used to see freshly fried bhatures. However, inspite of that, the taste of bhature was excellent on its own (without any accompaniment). There were lots of paneer strips & chopped coriander leaf inside the – super soft & much tastier than what it looked like. Wowwwwwwww was the taste. Inspite of being reheated & served, the bhature tasted better than even the freshly fried ones at Om sweets or Bikanervala.

The Bhatures being refried & served

Continue reading “Sitaram Dewanchand Chana (Chholey) Bhaturewala (2246, Chuna Mandi, near Imperial Cinema, Paharganj, Delhi).”

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Asian Cuisine, Seafood, Tibetan

Tibetan Kitchen, Julley (Opposite RD city Gate no.2, besides Wine Shop)

In a nutshell:

Very interesting ambience & food – can turn a bit adventurous as well. Check it out if u wanna venture outside the usual Chinjabi (Chinese food Punjabified) stuff that u get in Gurgaon.

At the entrance of the restaurant

Meal for 2: Rs. 300 onwards

the eating hall of the restaurant

Short description – In case u r in a hurry:
From outside it looks like a good Goa shack with outdoor sitting.

Outdoor sitting, Tibetan Kitchen

As u walk in, u enter a very colorful room with Tibetan pictures & drawings on all walls, fans on the ceiling (did not see airconditioners), British style ceiling with wooden beams.

the ceiling of the eatery

The menu cards are ‘black & white’ print-outs on normal paper & then laminated. The waiting staff wears a jacket in which the restaurant name is written. They talk to u from ‘one person’ to ‘another person’ level & not ‘trained waiter’ to ‘customer’ level. I admired the innocence of the guy when we asked ‘R the prawns fresh?’ he said ‘of course, I went myself to the market to buy it today’. They are very polite & smiling but I guess under tremendous pressure to deliver.

Tibetan lamp shade in the balcony outside the eating hall

The adventure bit – The restaurant is located right next to a ‘Wine Shop’. People come in groups, buy booze, have it in open air, bring along with them to the restaurant & drink straight from the bottle. The side effect may be that the guys in the table besides u start laughing 5 times louder at almost non laughable comments post they get drunk etc. So in a way the place might look like a cheap bistro that u get to see in Clint Eastwood movies. The only difference is that some families do come also.

the superb pork

The food is very good but not extraordinary. It is better than the food at Blue Poppy Kolkata.

Detailed Description – In case u have the time to enjoy reading:

Continue reading “Tibetan Kitchen, Julley (Opposite RD city Gate no.2, besides Wine Shop)”

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For the Chef in u……, Guest Blogger

Thick’ n Yumm Aromatic Coconut Crab Curry

Contributed by YUMMRAJ’s favorite Chef ANONYMOUS  in the series named – For the chef in u……… Once again, a very simple recipe that leads to a marvel of a dish……. Though we enjoy this curry most often with Crab, u can try out the same with fish / Prawn / Crab meat / imitation crab meat. In case u r thinking what an imitation crab meat … Continue reading Thick’ n Yumm Aromatic Coconut Crab Curry

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Gurgaon, India, Indian, Rajasthani

Kachori Jodhpuree (Food court, DT Mega Mall, Gurgaon)

In a nutshell: A very good Vegetarian Kachori place with an unexpected meaty marvel – Laal Maas Meal for 2: Rs. 100 onwards vegetarian & Rs. 300 onwards for Nonvegetarian Description: The Gentleman at the counter sports the traditional Royal Rajasthani Moustache & exudes a lot of warmth & hospitality when he talks to u. Four kachoris that they sell r Pyaz (Onion), Garlic kachori, … Continue reading Kachori Jodhpuree (Food court, DT Mega Mall, Gurgaon)

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Asian Cuisine, Continental Cuisine, Middle eastern, One location Multiple Eat out options

Eating out in Gurgaon – Non Indian food

This post is kind of a recap of non Indian cuisines & eateries in Gurgaon – I have covered detailed reviews of many of these eateries in doifferent posts in this blog . Needless to say that this is not a comprehensive guide of food places in Gurgaon but then it is good to start with – its about our favourite pik or not so favourite pik.

This post was first written in early 2011 for www.socialmantra.in. I am republishing this with minor changes. You will find updates to restaurants that we have revisited if u click on the links below.

Moving to cuisine from our neighboring country China, I must first explain the two types of food available Gurgaon. The first is authentic Chinese & the second is Chindian (Indianization of Chinese food). Manchurian is a common example of Chindian food – When I went to China years back, I asked for the famous Chinese dish Manchurian, to be told that they had never even heard of this. Later while reading a book called Rude Food by Vir Sanghvi, I came to know that Manchurian was invented in Mumbai by a Chinese origin Indian National hailing from Tangra in Kolkata who later opened a very successful Eatery in Delhi!!!! The Chinese of China have never even heard of it. The technique is basically to make koftas of meats & vegetables in the Indian way, deep fry them & then cook them in Chinese sauces. This form of food is so popular that last time I was in Boston I saw a restaurant with a board saying Indian Chinese Restaurant!!!

A good example of a restaurant serving Chindian food is Yo China. With most of the Chinese cuisines tweaked to cater to local tastes, this little eatery in MGF mall is a super success. Food is very tasty in general – Starts with a limited but good selection of dimsums (very chicken heavy). Honey chilli potato is a good vegetarian starter that even carnivores like me would love. Special mention for the fish & prawn dishes in starters as well as main-course. The full pomfret is excellent & so is garlic fish. Crispy mutton is also worth a try. There are a few very good sautéed chicken options as well. In the desserts section, there is a unique ‘snickers sundae’ which is actually pieces of snickers chocolate pieces dunked in vanilla ice cream. In food courts of other malls, movie halls & large departmental stores, you may come across a little colorful Yo China Cart which serves yummy momos & honey chilli potatoes. This is our favorite ‘little munch’ during our Gurgaon hopping exercises.

Continue reading “Eating out in Gurgaon – Non Indian food”

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Sticky post
One location Multiple Eat out options

Eating out in Old Delhi – Chandni Chowk, Chawri Bazar, Jama masjid area & Daryagunj

I originally wrote this post in 2011 but hv been revising it from time to time. latest update being 30th March 2024

crowd @ Kake di Hatti crowd @ Kake di Hatti

Some of the best Dilli food is found in Chandni Chowk & adjoining areas like Chawri Bazar as many of the shops have not changed much from what they were about fifty to hundred years ago. This is not a comprehensive list but is a fairly large list which u will need few visits to cover – Some of the eateries mentioned below (e.g. Karim’s ,Jalebiwala etc) have been covered in detail (in other posts) in this blog – u can read those & enjoy the pics as well.


Slide1

Attached is a hand drawn (by YUMMRAJ) map without which you will never find anything. You may need to take a printout and carry it with you as, without a map, you can easily get lost here. Let me tell u that inspite of the printout u might need to use Indian GPS – ‘Bhaisab, ye ved prakash lemon wale ka dukaan kahaan hai?’

click on the picture to enlarge it – so that u can read it, suggest u to carry a printout of the map

The best way to get here is to park your car in CP (Connaught Place) and take the metro to Chawri Bazaar or Chandni Chowk. Let me warn u though that there r huge queues at the ticketcounters of Chandni Chowk station on the way back. The other option is to park the car at CP & take an auto rickshaw.

Daulat ki chaat being sold at Chandni chowk. Winters only. Multiple vendors. Must try... Daulat ki chaat being sold at Chandni chowk. Winters only. Multiple vendors. Must try…

As u alight from the metro at Chawri Bazaar, take the gate towards Hauz Kazi. Once you are up on the street, you will see a clearing/intersection of roads. Go to the diagonally-opposite corner of the road, towards your right. You will find a tiny shop called ‘Ashok Chaat Corner’. You will see the red-coloured Times Food Guide certification on its wall. Ask for their signature offering – kalmi chaat and urad daal chaat. They use a kachalu chutney which is totally different, and simply awesome. Avoid the paani puris – they r no different from the rest of the places.

To try one of the best kulfis in town, check out Kuremal Mohan lal kulfiwale. Do not miss their stuffed mango kulfi during summers / jamun / lichi….

Stuffed mango kulfi Stuffed mango kulfi

Continue reading “Eating out in Old Delhi – Chandni Chowk, Chawri Bazar, Jama masjid area & Daryagunj”

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One location Multiple Eat out options

Eating Out in Gurgaon – A recap of Indian eateries

This post is kind of a recap of cuisines & eateries in Gurgaon – I have covered detailed reviews of many of these eateries in the blog . Needless to say that this is not a comprehensive guide of food places in Gurgaon but then it is good to start with – its about our favourite pik or not so favourite pik.

Food being a passion, eating out is a part of our regular existence in this city of Gurgaon. The range of eateries here vary from the tiny old shops of old gurgaon & their relatively new avatars in New Gurgaon to Restaurant chains & Boutique restaurants in star hotels. When someone asks us ‘what is ur favorite cuisine’ or ‘what is ur favourite dish?’, we have no answer coz as long as the food is great, we r happy. We generally try to avoid eateries that are confused about their USP themselves & have signboards saying ‘Indian, Chinese, Mughlai’ – They seem to have separated Mughals from the rest of the Indians owing to the former’s Timurid origins (pun intended)!!!!

In this post we focus on Indian eateries. By Indian most restaurants here refer to Punjabi. Among the non Punjabi ones, there is one stray tiny Bengali joint, few horrible or at most average South Indian ones (except Zambar), two branches of ‘Mughal’ Karim’s, a super cool Mangalorean seafood joint, a very bad Rajasthani food joint & alas a good erstwhile kashmiri joint Chor Bazaar (now closed down).

What is common with most of the above restaurants, however, is that most of the non-veg menu cards are very chicken heavy influenced by the taste of Punjab.……….. to the extent that I heard someone crack a joke in frustration – ‘Chicken seems to be the National bird of Punjab’. Let me make a confession here – For hardcore carnivores like us, chicken actually is the lowest form of non-vegetarian food & is on the borderline of being vegetarian!!!! I have consciously tried to cover all chicken joints, being completely aware of my bias………… Hope I do not disappoint the chicken lovers.

Inspite of having a bombardment of Punjabi food on offer, surprisingly there is not one shop which serves an Amritsari macchi tikka as good as Makhan Fish shop in Amritsar or a Bhuna Baingan & Dal Makhani as good as Kesar Da Dhaba in the bylanes of old city of Amritsar. In case u have had the opportunity to taste the fantastic true blue Amritsari Kulcha on Lawrence Road, Amritsar, u wud hate to swallow down the breaded variety of kulcha that is served at most of the eateries in Gurgaon. In fact, if u had been courageous to eat at Bajwa Ka Dhaba (opposite Highway King on Jaipur road), then u wud shudder at the thought of eating Punjabi in Gurgaon.

Among the low cost Punjabi joints, the best seems to be Pind Balluchi & Park Balluchi besides Bikanerwala. Bauji ka Dhaba in MGF mall is also not bad. All of them serve very good tandoori items (meats, paneer, breads), few good curries (the meats in many cases are not cooked in the gravy but boiled meat is simmered in half made gravy) and mostly average to good desserts. Gulab jamuns do no more have that slight taste of saltiness in the center near the kesar and many of them smell of ‘ageing’.

Continue reading “Eating Out in Gurgaon – A recap of Indian eateries”

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