If you are a Bengali, you must have heard the term ‘gobor-e
padmaful’, I won’t take the pain to elaborate the meaning which is pretty clear
to every Bengali, but if you are not a Bengali then let’s put it pretty bluntly
for you – this place called ‘India Restaurant’ somewhat stands in debris, in a
pretty unruly environment filled in with chaos and in a not-so-clean locality
of Fancy Market, Khidirpore. In the last few months it has undergone some civil
‘plastic surgery’ work which has made it look like the ‘Shilpa Shetty’ of
Biriyani Houses in the town :) So, you can’t really ignore her!
Jokes apart, the interiors of India Restaurant are now
simply stunning. It feels as if you are at some mansion in Dubai and you are at
some party or dawat maybe, hosted by some super wealthy Sheikh! From the moment
you enter this place you notice super clean marble flooring with embedded
motifs and walls with lining of glowing signature tiles. The strategically
lighted circular false ceiling designs have become quite a trademark of this
place by now. If you climb up the stairs and reach second floor, you get to see
more of the building and you’ll discover it being immensely well-maintained,
clean, brightly lit with an ultimate glittery finish that leaves you
overwhelmed. From Interior decoration point of view the place gets full marks
for all that royal finish, no doubt about that. Seating arrangements are well
spaced out and the chairs and couches are very comfortable as well.
But this multi-storied glittery pot of gastronomical gems is
quite hard to commute, and it is really tricky to find a proper place to park
your car at this place. So the only saving grace is the abundant availability
of Uber or Ola, but then I am not sure if I will take that pain to take a cab
and come down all the way, traveling the entire breadth of the city just to
have a plate of biriyani!
Well, I used to think like this unless I learnt about
the range of biriyanis they serve and their characteristic flavors. And after
I saw some latest pics of this place, I decided to pay them a visit sometime very
soon. But still it got delayed, due to the odd location of this place and the poor
parking facility. Finally, the day came when I had to make it to India
Restaurant since some of the food bloggers from Panchphoron (including me) were
invited to this place by their management. So as pre-decided, I took a cab and
reached the place on a super-gloomy day for lunch. I was quite astonished to
discover the volume of the crowd dining at this place on that weekday late afternoon in such
an unpleasant weather outside. The footfall surely indicates the quality of
food being served at this place, so I became more hopeful about the food and
expectations kept on building!
Now without wasting any further precious words of mine,
let’s delve deep into the food talk where the crux of the matter lies! So, here
are the items which I had tried at this place -
MOCKTAIL
a) Virgin Mojito – I had heard the mocktails served at this
place are amazing, but sadly the mocktails were not available that day. So
apart from the North Indian or Mughlai fare they also put equal amount of
importance on mocktails and infact on every dish which the serve. In fact the
simple Virgin Mojito was too refreshing to be true! The sweet balance was
perfect, just a bit lemony with a dash of mint, packed with crushed ice and
heavily refreshing! And yes, the presentation was simple yet appetizing with slices of lemon and cherry on top. Surely you can try this out here.
STARTERS
a) Chicken Cheese Kababs – These are deep brown colored kebabs
with a smooth outer texture and were quite fragrant to elevate your appetite.
The chicken pieces in there were very soft and it clearly shows how well they
were marinated. As the name goes, it was quite cheesy and had a mild spiciness
to it; also it was cooked in tandoor to perfection thus locking all the juices
inside.
b) Mutton Galawati kababs – Well, if you have already tasted
Oudh’s Galawati kebabs then you might be tad disappointed here, but still I
must say these are close competitors to Oudh’s Galawati. Here at India the
texture of the meat paste (which is really creamy and having a dash of zafran in
it) was perfect. It looked nice with those flattened meat ball
structures. It tasted nice with those thin layered paranthas which were served
along with it. But the stuff was tad overdone with the outer skin showing
evidences of it, having few hardened or rather burnt spots.
c) Pineapple Tandoori – The stuff tasted awesome, to start
with. The large slices of pineapple were very well cooked in tandoor after it
was marinated with lemon juice and spices for hours. The final product had all
the juices of the pineapple locked inside it, that was fresh and succulent as
it should be and tasted awesome with that sweetness of pineapple, tanginess of
the spices and that smokiness coming after it got tandoor-ed. Awesomeness
redefined!
MAINS
a) Daryabaadi Biriyani – The main course had five variants
of biriyani, and Daryabaadi Biriyani was the one we tasted first. This
Daryabaadi biriyani has a very typical taste which you can’t judge or comment
without tasting it, it is unlike all other variants. The aroma was so unique
and pleasant. Daryabadi Biriyani is surely the signature dish of India
Restaurant and it has got fragrant mildly spicy flaky rice, sweet potato and
super soft juicy piece of meat! Together they taste awesome! Must try!
b) Kachhi Biriyani – Again a gem of a dish served with all
its honesty and subtle flavors in one amazing plate. Here they put layer of raw
marinated meat on a layer of raw basmati rice before they are cooked together. They also have the spices and the a yogurt based marinade layer at the bottom, and the sweet potatoes along with it, these layered structure is now left to cook
in slow pace in its own steam. The kachhi biriyani overall has a yellowish
color and a very subtle flavor, nothing too aromatic or flavorful, the subtle
aroma which it has got is beautiful and majestic. The mutton pieces are
extremely well cooked and literally melt in your mouth!
c) Awadhi Biriyani – The Awadhi biriyani was served in the earthen
handi in which it was cooked. It tasted just amazing to be honest. We were
almost lost in that strong aroma of ghee and zafran. This method of slow
cooking in the dum pukht style where you seal the handi with wheat dough always
locks the awesome flavors and drives the biriyani enthusiasts and foodies crazy
when the dough is removed and the lid is opened, the same thing happened with
us as well! And somehow we ended overeating this gem of a dish for its rich yet
subtle flavors and insanely good aroma! Must try!
d) Chicken and Mutton Biriyani – There were separate plates
of Chicken Biriyani and Mutton biriyani which were so called cooked in ‘normal’
style and these are the ones that we have most of the times from all the
biriyani shops or houses. These were nice as well, nice aroma, not too oily and
the meat pieces were well cooked.
Overall, I will rate India Restaurant close to 8.5 out of 10
for its authentic, amazing flavorful biriyanis and the variants which are
available under one roof; not to forget the awesome ambiance and friendly
service. Only the location and the communication is bit of a headache which I guess
can’t be cured so easily. So, to sum it up if you haven’t yet tried India and
you are a Biriyani lover then you are surely doing something wrong, this is a
place you should never ever miss if you are in Kolkata. If possible try their Daryabaadi,
Awadhi and Kachhi Biriyanis which you won’t get at every Biriyani shop, they
are really well prepared and are amazing. Hopefully you will enjoy your meal
here, it has got loads of potential to satiate your taste buds, so make sure
you reach the place before the wheat dough is removed and the lid gets opened :)
Cheers!