Situated in a little street opposite the Paradise Cinema hall, and add the fact that it has recently opened, this restaurant has not yet garnered much attention and become a crowd puller, which it has every factor of being. I went with my friend, another one of the greatest foodies, Utsav, who suggested the place because it was Chef Sanjeeb Kapoor's chain, and had a wonderful experience. This place has everything needed in a top class fine dine restaurant― decor, ambience, very courteous staff and of course, the food.
We were impressed by the decor even before we entered, viewing it from the footpath through the glass panelled walls on the roadside. From the inside, these glass panels give you a wonderful view of the road outside, but without the sound of the humdum going on there. The walls are cream coloured, brick textured, and adorned with beautiful graphitti in black depicting Kolkata, with lush velvetted seats adjoining them.
The ambience was pleasant, with not too dimly lit tables and soft music playing in the background, not enough to make you notice the genre or each song, but enough to put a pleasant base to your auditory perception.
The staff are very courteous and very efficient, suggesting and guiding us at evey step of our journey through the food, and being there by themselves when the slightest of our needs arose without even calling them.
After ordering, we were at first served with the complimentary accompaniments of Masala Papad, and a platter consisting of green chillies, pickle, green raita and sweet papaya chutney. Special mention to the papaya chutney, which is basically the commonly called 'Plastic chutney', with the papaya pieces cut in bigger, broader polygonal pieces. Normally sweet, and appetizing.
For drinks Utsav ordered a Peru pyala, and I, a Mango ginger fizz.
Peru pyala, the signature drink, is guava juice with chilli, and chilli and salt lining on the glass rim. Now I am not a fan of guava, but from the sip that I took it tasted kind of like the Paper Boat drink, albeit more natural and fresh, and contained bits of guava. The lining of chilli powder and salt on the rim gives you the feel when you are eating a piece of guava, and your lips touch the smeared chilli before biting.
The Mango ginger fizz was dominated by the flavour of ginger, owing to the sliced ginger pieces in the drink. There was not much hint of mango, which I would have liked. Though the colour was green, signifying a base containing raw mango, this drink was basically gingered Sprite with a very slight hint of aam panna.
For starters, we ordered Peeli mirch ki machchi, the signature kebab. The fish, Bhetki, was fresh and soft to the point of melting in your mouth, and it did not have any raw fishy smell. And the marination! I could taste the mustard, and didn't know what else it contained, but it was like a carnival in the mouth. Add to it the lemon and the green raita, and it is the perfect kebab experience I have had.
Next, we had ordered the signature dish of Shaam Savera with Butter garlic naan. Shaam savera is a dish of koftas, perfectly spherical ones, with a core of chhana (pre-form of paneer, you can call it minced paneer) covered on the outside with a layer of evenly ground and mashed spinach (palong/palak), cut into hemispheres in a delicious gravy. The sweet and sour gravy complimented the koftas, and with the crispy garlic butter naan, it was heavenly. I would highly recommend Shaam Savera, and people, please keep your "It's veg" sneers aside, and try it.
After this, we ordered the Dum gosht biryani. It is not like the typical Kolkata biriyani. Although it has no aloo, and a very light flavour, it does taste good. But the mutton was slightly overcooked and chewy. I would want to give this biriyani another try to taste the perfect version though.
Time for desserts. On suggestion by the staff, we ordered the Indian sweet platter, consisting of Gulab-e-gulkand, Shahi tukda, and Kulfi. I too would suggest the platter, as it costs less than the individuals combined.
The Gulab-e-gulkand is a gulab jamun with gulkand (sweet picked rose) inside it. It tastes as awesome as it sounds. At the perfect temperature, when placed on your tongue for sometime, it releases the flavour in your mouth and induces a foodgasm.
This Shahi tukda is hands down the best Shahi tukda I have had. It is crunchy on the outside and soft in the inside (like a good malpoa) and the flavour of ghee fills your mouth, along with the sweet malai and the almond pieces.
The paan flavoured kulfi is different from the kulfis I have had till now. It is made of kheer, which makes it's texture and consistency like a cold Kalakand sandesh, and the mild flavour is from the minced and mashed betel leaves inside it. It is a new experience to eat such a kulfi, and a good one.
It does not need saying that I would highly recommend this place. Too bad zomato does not allow you to rate in decimals, I would have loved to give it a 4.5*, but had to settle for a 4*.
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