Restaurant Review: A culinary journey to NH1 that is worth embarking on

Specially curated under his care, the Punjabi Border Cuisine Festival drew culinary influences from the Wagah border to Delhi connecting Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Patiala. The menu consisted of lesser-known dishes that are handpicked from along the NH1 but spoke highly of the regions they come from.

Signboards of milestones reading ‘Lahore 22 km’ and staff dressed in traditional Punjabi attires were a welcoming sight. The cool evening made it ideal to visit this rooftop restaurant and enjoy a sumptuous meal. The appetisers were many to choose from, and from the first bite, the efforts the team had taken to beautifully balance the flavour of spices, sweet and tanginess were evident.

While placing a dish on the table, the chef said, “If you’re walking on the streets of Ludhiana, where I come from, you can find one vendor making fresh, hot parathas and another making kebabs. This dish — lamb ke parchey — is a combination of sliced lamb folded within a paratha, complemented with some salad and chutney.” Though a tad on the salty side, we must give it to them for how well the meat was cooked. Even in the main course, a meat dish was presented that reminded us of roganjosh. The meat slid off the bone and was soft and supple.

Returning to the table once makki ki roti and methi paratha were served, the chef made it a point to clarify, “There’s no such rule that makki ki roti should be eaten only with sarson da saag. We basically eat whatever our mother tells us to depending on what she prepares in the morning.”

The final touch was added by a cold lassi that, surprisingly, wasn’t too overwhelmingly sweet. But did it come close to the experience of standing in a dusty, old lane of Chandni Chowk drinking thick lassi with malai from an earthen glass? Certainly not.

When the chef walked away with a smile after serving the Fauji Chowk da paneer tikka, we were wondering why until we took the first bite. The soft, fluffy cubes of cottage cheese made it seem like we were missing out on something great all these years.

Well-made tomato soup can be the most comforting food and while the tamatar shorba at the festival was delicious, the twist of badami or almonds was a pleasant surprise. Added to the soup were tiny meatballs or kofta, which enhanced the flavour.

The menu featured dishes like ‘Shaam Savera,’ a main course served in the royal households of Mughal empire. Another dish from these kitchens presented at the festival was Lachedar Lychee Rabri, a delicious milk-based dessert laden with the fruit.

Address: Up North, The Raintree, Anna Salai

Cuisine: From Wagah border to Delhi connecting Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Patiala

Must-have: Lavand-e-Murgh, Tawa Pulao, Crystal Chowk Ka Murg Tikka 

Date and time: Till February 10, dinner