This is a review of pop up of rampuri food by journalist, food writer, food historian Osama jalali, his mother and his wife. They work with the executive chef and his team

Pop up ends 10th March 2019

In a nutshell:

This was one of my most memorable dinners of this decade. a beautiful cuisine presented impeccably by Osama.

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

Description

Osama has his roots in rampur, though he had grown up in old delhi.

To make the food authentic, he used many home techniques, had got utensils from home and some of them were used for cooking and also for display.

Begum Akhtar songs were playing in the backdrop.

He had also put on display a family traditional necklace made with cloves.

Rose sharbat – sharbat e mufarrah was the first non syrupy rose drink I have had in a really long time. Flavours of rose were beautifully incorporated- so much that it would influence multiple senses simultaneously. Rate it 4.75/5

Vegetarian starters

Sufiani paneer tikka was different than all paneer tikkas I have ever had. No layer of masala on side. No strong flavors. No chatpata masala on top. Just saunf flavors and outstanding super soft paneer. Rate it 4.75/5

Mewa mawa kabab was a beauty on the plate. Not by looks but by taste. Rate it 4.5/5

Kacche kele ke kabab was a bit drying as compared to the mewa. Liked it. Rate it 4/5

Kathal ke kabab was very nice. Soft and smooth. Rate it 4/5

Meaty starters

Yakhni tali boti was a unique kabab that did not have to much masala flavors. Flavors and taste of the meat were being celebrated in this dish. Outstanding. Rate it 4.95/5

Shami kabab was very good. But we have had as good. Rate it 4/5

Kacche keeme ki tikiya was a tikiya made from mutton mince – unevenly minced meat. Loved it. Rate it 4.5/5

Nargisi mutton seekh kabab was juicy, had robust and rustic flavors and taste. Eggs added a new dimension. Rate it 4.5/5

Murgh seekh kabab was very good. Rate it 4/5

Vegetarian main course

Chana daal bharta was a unique dish where China daal was made into a super smooth paste, while retaining the flavors and taste of the daal. Brilliant. Rate it 4.75/5

Arbi ka salan is Osama’s favourite. Sheer brilliance once again. The arbi had not been fried or steamed or boiled but cooked in masalas for a long time. The sliminess of arbi was totally gone. The curry had a beautiful balance of spices. Most important, arbi taste and texture was retained beautifully. Rate it 4.75/5

Laute palaute was besan pancakes rolled and made into a curry. Again, dry different and excellent to taste. Rate it 4.5/5

Paneer qorma had a thin robust gravy that I loved. Also loved the sheer paneer – super soft and super good. Rate it 4.5/5

Rampuri mash ki daal was a dry daal preparation. The closet to this dish we have eaten is at gaylords, Churchgate, mumbai. The one By Osama was better by many shades. It was not greasy. It had flavours of the the daal beautifully expressed and each grain of daal was independent like that of rice. Rate it 4.95/5

Meaty main course

Gobhi gosht was cauliflower and meat cooked together. Loved how cauliflower and meat both retained their respective texture & flavor. Rate it 4.25/5

Urad gosht was meat cooked in urad daal. Loved it. Rate it 4.25/5

Taar gosht was excellent- meat falling off the bones. Full of flavors of meat, spices and ghee. Rate it 4.5/5

Hari Mirch qeema was a rockstar. It was roughly minced mutton in flavorful green chilly – unbelievable how the chilly flavor came out do strongly in presence of the mighty meat. Floored. Rate it 4.95/5

Murg stew was very good. Rate it 4.25/5

Rampuri khichda was meat, multiple daal, rice – sounds similar to haleem but very different. We were just loving it. Rate it 4.75/5

Cereals

Do gosht biryani had chicken meatballs dunked in spinach & mutton pieces. Nice. Rate it 4.5/5

Loved the fermented flavor of the piping hot Roti

Desserts

Aloo ka zarda was a sweet made from aloo!! Unusual and really nice. Rate it 4.5/5

Gosht ka halwa we had the second time. This was very interesting. A sweet dish made from mutton. Loved it. Rate it 4.5/5

Gulathi was an interesting sweet that looked like Phirni but was different. It had coconut, ghee, milk, rice etc among other things. Rate it 4.5/5

Qimami siwayian was lovely thin sewai with low sweet and very good taste. Rate it 4.5/5

Overall rating averages out to 4.5/5

Memorable