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About Me...

I have been writing about food and travel for longer than I care to remember. I have written for magazines and newspapers about my twin passions: food and travel. My ‘best’ meals have been the ones in palatial surroundings cooked by Michelin starred chefs, but also those of bajra rotis and ground chillies under the stars in a village in Banni, Kutch. I hope this site fully captures the sheer sweep of life from 1987 to the present times. All published articles that date before 2000 are in Vintage. All reviews of existing restaurants as well as those that have closed, are in Reviews.
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About this site

Pull up a chair. Take a taste. Come join us. Life is so endlessly delicious.
― Ruth Reichl

I first started writing as a profession in 1987. For the last 15 years, I have written exclusively about food. It is a vast subject, and my weekly column in Times of India is just one aspect of food. Ingredients, spices, utensils, regional cuisines, grandma’s secret recipes, five star hotels and their chefs, the chaat-walas in the bylanes of Delhi’s Chandni Chowk and Lucknow’s Hazratganj – all are equal contributors to this impossibly rich medley. I hope this site does justice to all of them.

Recent Articles

Coriander: the Spice and the Herb
April 17, 2022

Bloggers’ Meat
April 17, 2022

Butter Chicken
April 17, 2022

China Kitchen, Hyatt Regency Delhi
April 17, 2022

My Last Supper

If you feel sad when nice guys finish last, the reverse must also be true: that you become ecstatic when nice guys finish first. Chef Amit Chowdhury, Executive Chef of Taj Mahal Hotel, New Delhi, is one of the nicest chefs I know. Completely non-political and with a disposition that would give a ray of…

Drool Kitchen

Cuisine: North Indian, Chinese Blurb The first full service restaurant in Dwarka Intro: It is surprising that Dwarka has had to wait for so long to get its first classy restaurant, but from the day it opened its doors, it has never looked back. Atmospherics: Part of the Metro Station in Dwarka Sector 10, Drool Kitchen…

Fatty Bao

Cuisine: oriental The Big Daddy is here, though in a seemingly playful avatar Atmospherics: First the location. Sangam Courtyard is on a main road in an easy to find location. Though it is packed with restaurants – some by Delhi’s most important players – Fatty Bao is the first one to start. The playful sketches…

Dhaba by Claridges

Fuss-free Punjabi The full house from morning to night tells its own story about the popularity of this brand I have visited the branch at the DLF Place in Saket more than once. It is the one restaurant that is consistently full, which says something about the unbeatable combination of realistic prices plus choice of…

Coffee: Ways to Brew It

Unless you live in south India, where coffee is grown, it’s a nightmare getting a decent cup. It shouldn’t be, because India grows plenty of coffee, of which, three are specialty coffees: Monsoon Malabar, Mysore Nugget Extra Bold (MNEB) and Robusta Kapi Royal. OK, so you’ve heard the age old argument that arabicas are inherently…

Manali

Foreigners on the luxury coach from Delhi to Manali outnumbered Indians 3:1. That, however, wasn’t the curious part. What was unusual was that all the foreigners appeared to know exactly where they were headed. The Indians, on the other hand, yours truly included, exchanged notes about hotels uncertainly. The first one off the bus was…

Coriander: the Spice and the Herb

Coriander and Cilantro I know, I know. All spices are equal, but you’ll never convince me that coriander is not more equal than the others. Here’s why: coriander seeds, stem, root, leaves – every part of the plant is not only edible, but is used in cuisine. In India, coriander leaves are used, in addition…

Wasabi: the Pioneer of Japanese Food in Delhi

Want to have a thin crust pizza? Head straight for Wasabi at the Taj Mahal Hotel on Mansingh Road. Or what about some foie gras? Try Wasabi again. Or what about the all-American Surf and Turf where one element is from the land (turf) and the other is from the sea (surf)? It’s Wasabi once…

Viva Goa

The next time you’re in Goa, if you want to stir up hornet’s nest, try asking a group of house wives for the exact recipe of Goan fish curry. have a riot on your hands in no time at all. The exact details of the recipe may elude you — whether the Gherkin-like bimblim, tamarind,…

Kashmiri Chutneys

Visit any Kashmiri banquet, and you’ll be proudly told by the host that no fewer than 30 dishes are being served. Just try to put down half that number of dishes at a single sitting and you’ll know that it’s impossible to stuff yourself after a point. Yet, the hosts aren’t lying, so what’s the…

Sweet Valley

In Khayyam Chowk, a couple of kilometres from Dal Gate, there’s a row of no-frill, basic dhabas that are fairly clean and respectable. Here you can try the mutton seekh kebabs or tikkas, served on a plate with six kinds of chutney. The best one is Imran Café, misleadingly named because you certainly won’t get…

Fish Curries of Peninsular India

All along India’s coastline, the staple diet of the locals is fish curry and rice. But, do you think that it’s a single recipe all the way through? No way. There are many dozens of different preparations, depending on which part of the coast you happen to be. Fish curry makes its appearance during breakfast,…

Narendra Bhawan

To put it in a nutshell, the city of Bikaner was a destination waiting to happen. Quite apart from its position on the Jaipur-Jodhpur-Bikaner circuit, it has superb infrastructure for hotels, all the best ones being heritage homes, where real palaces have been converted. The oldest one is Lallgarh, followed by Laxmi Niwas and then…

With Love, for Kashmir

The best part about Paradise is that you can carry it around in your head. I was delighted when a shopkeeper in the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul called me Hema Malini. Not, I hasten to add, because I am a fan of that actress, nor indeed because I have any pretensions of looking like a…

Lesser Known Spots of Kashmir

Every destination acquires its own tourist treadmill and Kashmir is no different. Touristic clichés are a wonderful thing in most cases: when you are pressed for time, a quick drive through all of them, and you can safely tick the boxes. While it would be rather eccentric to miss out on quintessential Kashmir via Mughal…

On a coffee estate in Coorg

The lunch that was hosted by Sagar and Kavita Muthappa at their well-appointed estate bungalow served as a house-warming for the Muthappa’s family and friends. Coorgs or Kodavas (“But please don’t go calling us Coorgis!” Sagar Muthappa warns me, mock-threateningly) are a close-knit community, with members of each extended family thinking up excuses for periodic…

Eating Around in Pune

How to max your time in Pune The average length of my visits to Pune is just three days – totally insufficient to do all the things that this amazing city offers your palate. So, I’ve worked out my formula for tasting the most, in the least possible time. But first, a disclaimer: I have…

Feast in the Valley

Details

Biryani Blues

Slow-cooked food, served fast ATMOSPHERICS Visit any of their outlets at mealtimes and you’ll probably have to wait for a table. The reason is the superb quality of the food, the authenticity of many of the dishes (except a few where they have chosen to tweak the recipe a bit) and the prices. Three people…

Lemon Curd Tarts

Sometimes it is the simplest things in life which are the hardest to do. Lemon tarts are, on the face of it, not rocket science. You stir butter, sugar, lemon juice and grated zest and a beaten egg over a double boiler and add the result to short crust pastry baked in a pie tin.…

L’Angoor

One underrated gem in Millennium City Serves American, European, seafood Atmospherics: I have been visiting this restaurant cum wine bar ever since its inception 11 years ago and one puzzle, whose answer has eluded me, is why it has remained so consistently under the radar. After all, Gurugram has frenetic bars for the young and…

SmokeHouseDeli

Cuisine: Western Khan Market has become richer with the addition of a deli with great, no-fuss food The second Smokehouse Deli in town, this one is packed to the rafters at mealtimes. Atmospherics: The interiors are an accurate indication of the food served here. Smart, witty, unusual and with a personality of its own. The…

Seasonal Taste

Every time a new hotel opens in the city, it raises the bar for excellence. With the Westin Gurgaon, the bar has been raised sky-high. So far, the brand new hotel only has a coffee shop open, and if you always thought that the 24 hour coffee shop of a hotel is where the most…

China Club

In the 17 years since its inception, not once has China Club ever faltered or lost its stride. That says something for a brand in the lone-standing market, with no hotel guests to fall back on. It is probably one of the oldest restaurants in Gurgaon, built at a time when Gurgaon was a sleepy…

Militancy’s Child

Fear and other emotions are alien to a generation of Kashmiri youth who grew up under the shadow of militancy.. In 1991, when militancy was at its peak, Omar Jan was three years old. It was the year I got married and travelled to Kashmir as a bride. Before that, my visits to Kashmir had…

Chef Angela Hartnett

I’ve noticed that lady chefs always bring another dimension to their food than their male counterparts. Perhaps it has been entirely incidental, but when you hear Chef Angela Hartnett talking about shopping for food, you could forget that she has won two Michelin stars at The Connaught in London, where she manages a restaurant for…

Noel Nalin Fonseka and the Lure of Local Fruit

When Chef Noel Nalin Fonseka arrived in Delhi to do a trade test as the Corporate Pastry Chef at ITC Hotels, his interlocutors promised to get him the exotic ingredients he asked for “within two days.” He however, had no plans of working with exotic ingredients. He wanted to work with local fruit and come…

Stephen Twining on Twinings Tea

Everybody who has ever received a Diwali/Christmas/New Year hamper would have received a carton of Twining’s teabags in it. It is something of a silent revolution, and not unlike carrying coals to Newcastle, but that’s a fact that both Stephen Twining and Georgina Durnford would stoutly deny! You see, much of the tea that is…

Rohit Bal, A Stitch in Time Revives a Dying Craft

Visit a museum, look at a miniature painting or a Bourne & Shepherd print and you’ll be struck by the sheer splendour of royal costumes of yore. Rich brocades, tiny jewel-like stitches, an unlimited vocabulary of motifs. Yesterday’s craftsmanship with its palette of warm, vivid hues seems to have given way to shoddy workmanship and…

Abha Kohli

The advantage about being a cake- chocolate- and cookie-maker who works flexi-time from the house is that there are no overheads and consequently, no compromises in quality or menu. Abha Kohli of Vasant Kunj is one of these. Her perfectionism comes through clearly, her menu is intentionally small and her prices unbelievably reasonable. She bakes…

100 years of Restauranting in Delhi

It was the year of the Great Darbar, 1911. A young man from the outskirts of Delhi thought he spied an opportunity to earn a living. He moored a push-cart near Gate Number One of the Jama Masjid, and served dal as well as meat and potatoes with freshly made rotis. Business boomed: he was,…

Urban Cafe

If there was a beauty pageant for the best looking restaurant in Khan Market, the prize would probably go to Urban Café. The lower floor has a stylish-meets-decadence look with a few overstuffed armchairs and black and white flooring, while the upper floor has a totally different appearance and caters to a different segment altogether.…

Yellow Brick Road

When it came into existence some ten years ago, it became a sort of cult to be seen there. In the intervening years, Yellow Brick Road at the Ambassador Hotel has acquired a few more layers insofar as cuisine goes. Its sunny yellow interiors have worn well, and it still looks as fresh and chirpy…

Witches’ Brew

Jancis Robinson, the well-known wine writer, and Silverio Cineri, master chef from Italy, occupy two ends of the spectrum of food and beverage. But last week, both found themselves in New Delhi. While Robinson, on a private visit to the Capital, was co-opted by The Oberoi to hold a wine workshop for the staff, Cineri…

The K – N ready reckoner

Your complete guide to the unexplored treasures of the breathtaking Kumaon hills in Uttarakhand A is for apple, which together with apricots, peaches and plums constitutes Kumaon’s fruit crop. Centred around Ramgarh, country houses belonging to the Scindias, Birlas and Dalmias dot the hillside, surrounded by orchards bursting with blossom. B is for bungalow. There…

From Tokyo, with love

Japanese restaurants will flood the market and Indian regional cuisines will be big If 2007 was the Year of the Chinese Restaurant, 2008 will be the Year of the Japanese Restaurant. Japan bites So far, almost every Japanese restaurant in India served either sushi, teppanyaki or both, but nothing more. Apart from Sakura in Delhi’s…