Thanks Gabriel for the article. Nice photo that really make my mouth salivating already...
Hidden in the farthest corner of Biopolis, which is a veritable maze of clean, futuristic buildings, Khansama Tandoori Castle is a relatively unknown, hard to reach eating place that serves up excellent food and great service at affordable prices.
Reaching the place at slightly after dinner time on a weekday, we were one of only two groups at the restaurant, a place that looked like it could sit a respectable crowd (which it could possibly get during lunch hour, attracting the office workers around who’re too lazy to take the 15 min hike out of Biopolis). Despite the lack of a crowd, however, we soldiered on, not only because we had read some very encouraging reviews online, but also because we had walked for over 20 minutes to get there and weren’t to be denied our treasure.
And treasure it was that we found.
While we were initially overwhelmed by the sheer number of choices in the menu, with some help from the service staff, we picked out a few dishes to share, choosing a selection of meats, vegetables and staple foods.
The aloo tikki chaat, which was a mashed potato patty filled with cottage cheese, green peas and gram daal was tasty, with loads of spices and a tangy zesty taste, and made for a terrific appetizer.
For meat, we shared a chicken tikka masala dish, which was boneless roasted chicken cooked with onion, tomatoes and simmered in a pan with light curry and tomato sauces. I liked the fact that the curry wasn’t spicy (in fact none of the dishes had me, a chilli-phobe, grasping for a drink at all). The chicken was not only soft and tender yet packing a strong punch, it also went well with the naan basket we ordered, which consisted of plain, butter, garlic and cheese and tandoori breads.
The naan were crispy and freshly baked and could, as the Gardenia tagline constantly, even have been eaten on their own. Unlike the cheap, tasteless naan I’ve eaten at other decidedly more hawker-styled eating places, the breads here weren’t greasy or oily and provided a satisfying and filling, but not overwhelming, staple.
The biggest surprise of the night came in the form of the navrattan korma, an assortment of fresh garden vegetables cooked in mild butter and cream sauce. While it didn’t look like much, the mixture had gastronomical oomph, with a thick, full, creamy taste infused with the essence of its ingredients. Upon tasting it, my friend commented that it was “glorious”.
The sole disappointment of the meal was the mutton kathi kebab, which had mutton slices and salad wrapped in roti. While not bad per se, it was unremarkable and turned cold (and consequently, tough) pretty fast.
My friends washed down their meal with mango and strawberry lassi (yoghurt drinks), which were lip smacking and refreshing while I had a jal jeera, an odd concoction of cumin powder, tamarind, lime juice, mint, salt and sugar that my friend commented tasted like sprite with sour plum (which it really did). It was strange at first, but gradually grew on me.
For such a hugely satisfying meal (don’t let the small dishes fool you, the servings we had bloated us all up immensely), each of us only paid $20, which was a reasonable amount considering the quality of the food. Plus, the restaurant doesn’t charge the usual GST and service charge. (And for those looking for a hearty lunch time fix, apparently the restaurant offers a lunch buffet at around $10 per person)
With such great food, friendly service, low prices and an authentic ambiance to the outlet, it’s no wonder that the restaurant garnered great reviews online (from the few people who’d been to it) and I’d definitely return with more friends. By far the best restaurant I’ve eaten at in months.
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