Food:
Dining along with owner gives you the insight into the hard work which has gone in for this project. A small chat might even kindle one to become an entrepreneur like him. We started the meal with a smooth Chicken Shorba. A Shorba which was rich like no other, with real fat and cream. Loved it.





Next up, starters was a round of chicken dishes. Tandoori Chicken, Murgh Banno Kebab, Kalmi Kebab and finally Punjab da kebab. Each very different in flavours. This gives you an idea of all the different spices and different methods of preparations that have gone in for these delicious dishes. Each juicy, succulent and fit for the royals.


Moving to the main course we came to realise that the Tandoori Rotis are served free of cost. That's the first I have come across in Chennai. So people can just walk in and order their gravy items and have soft tandoori roti served at their table. Hats off for this decision. We were served with Butter Chicken Masala, Mutton Rogan Josh and Dal Makhani. To wipe them down, we were served with Naan Maharaja and the soft tandoori rotis.


Naan Maharaja is a huge naan which is as large as your forearm, not a kids forearm but a full grown adult's. Packed with cashews, almonds and saunf with a double layered bread. A true maharaja in its size, taste and texture. A piece of Maharaj and a little bit of butter chicken and I was instantly transported to Delhi. Flavours very very similar to what I have had at Delhi. Mutton Rogan Josh, though I have had many variations, this was the best - soft medium cooked mutton in a spicy gravy. The combination of the sweet Naan and spicy gravy support each other to tingle your taste buds. Finally the Dal Makhani! It was just brilliant. You can slurp it alone, without any bread.


Just when we thought that we were stuffed, we were served with a Kashmiri Pulao. I don't think I have had a Kashmiri Pulao as rich as this, ever in my life. Usually it is rice with dry fruits. But here they have taken it to the next level. Cooking the rice with cream and dry fruits made it a bite of heaven.

Finally after the delicious round of main course we decided to sample just the Gulab Jamun and the Rasa Malai. Rasa Malai was just brilliant, it was soft and sweet while the Gulab Jamun was good as well.

Ambiance:
On entering the restaurant one would notice extraordinarily large chairs at the entrance which welcomes you with comfort and grandeur. This definitely sets the tone and you do feel like you were dining at a royal court.

Price:
With Tandoori Rotis being served as free, Ordering just a starter, a side dish and a dessert would cost Rs 800 for two. This is the best value 3 course meal one could have.

And the conclusion? ULTIMATE!

Grill Ministri is located in Mogappair West. If you do encounter a difficulty in locating it, search it on Google Maps.

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Since the platter comes with roti and Dhal Makhani, we just ordered two naans. The Dhal Makhani was a very small portion as  part of the platter. I would highly advice you to order a full portion of the Dhal. It was the best I have had by a long shot. It was rich and heavenly. Since we were non-veggies, we ordered  Murg Begum Bahar which was chicken kheema with various spices and dressed off with boiled eggs. I am not a big fan of boiled eggs so I skipped them while the murg begum was amazing but I just could not resist the Dhal Makhani. The Rotis were soft and they formed a great combo with the side dishes.

By the end of the meal we were really stuffed that we skipped desserts.

Ambiance:
Could seat 50 people at time and the place looks really upmarket.

Service:
Hardly 5 tables were occupied at the time of dinner, which they managed quite comfortably, so not rating this now.

Price:
The meal for 3 was Rs 2200/- which made a big hole in my brother pocket.

Food - 7/10
Ambiance - 8/10
Service - NA
Price - 7/10

Al - Maza is located in 6th Street Anna Nagar which is behind Mc Rennett Anna Nagar.

PS : Sorry for the bad pics.

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It's been raining Iftar Packs all over Chennai. Every Muslim owned restaurant in the city and even some non-Muslim restaurants have gone out of the way to woo this particular cliental this Ramzan season. Hopefully my last stop in Iftar boxes this year was at Sea Shells, Anna Nagar.

The Box Contents:
Fresh Juice - 1 glass
Bottle Water - 1 (250ml)
Dates - 1
Assorted Fruits -1
Vegetable Samosa - 1(Large)
Chicken Shawarma Roll - 1
BBQ Chicken - 1 piece
Kubbus - 1
Kerala Parotta - 1
Haleem - 1
Mutton Biryani - 1
Chicken Gravy - 1
Mayo - small container

The entire box costs - Rs 280/- plus taxes.

Two Arabian speciality restaurants fighting it out on the same side of the town this Ramadan. So the food has got to be ultra competitive.  I have already tasted from the first and this is the next.

Firstly the fresh juice served in the box was the Papaya Juice which could be the perfect start to breaking a fast. The Vegetable Samosa is really large and it kind of reminded me of the samosa's from Sree Mithai. Coming to Chicken Shawarma, this is by far the best shawarma which came out of  an Iftar pack. Really juicy and loaded to the brim with chicken. BBQ Chicken with the Khubbus was perfect. The chicken remained tender even though it was cool. Haleem in this box is the best in the city this season. If you are a Haleem lover do not miss it. Perfect soft texture, combined with great flavor beats the other haleems hands down. The negative elements of the box the Mutton Biryani was a little dry and the Chicken Gravy was a bit gingery. But overall this Iftar box is the best I have had this Ramzan Season.

One box would easily feed two!

Food - 8/10
Price - 7.5/10

Sea Shells, Anna Nagar is near the the main roundtana in Anna Nagar East.

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Al-Najeeb was once our favorite joint for a quick snack and on few occasions dinner location in the early 2000's. But it lost its charm and quality of food service during 2005-06. That was it and I have never been back to Al-Najeeb ever since. So having a take away from that restaurant recently brought back many memories and also put into perspective on how much the cost has increased over time.

Food:
Since my brother wanted to have a quick bite to eat after Iftar, we took a small take away of Mutton Sheek Kebab Roll, Veal Fry and a Chicken Kalmi Kebab. Even in so many years which have passed by, I still remember the taste very well, the flavors and finally the price. Katti roll lovers must try-out the Mutton Sheek Roll here and its best had pipping hot. The mutton mixed with the pudina chutney wrapped with romali roti is just heavenly. The mutton just melts away in your mouth. I am pretty sure that one cant be satisfied with just one. Th flavors in every bite transported me back to the early 2000's when I sat in the resto with my bro and his friends and dined and relised the flavors. Veal fry is the best I have ever had from small shack. If you have not tasted it, I very strongly recommend you to try this. In spite of it being slightly oily its really tender and worth it. Finally the Chicken Kalmi Kebab, this is one dish which I am not able relate to my previous visit here. Maybe I have forgotten, Nevertheless it was really great - soft with great flavours.

Ambiance:
If you are the kind of person who looks for the ambiance, look else where. Its a small road side shack and I am still able to remember how the shack went from few tables and chairs to many. Also how we used to wait outside on the road for a seat.

Service:
Service is their motto, and you cannot beat them at that.

Price:
4 rolls plus a veal and the kalmi kebab cost us Rs 500/- and I still remember having the same plus a couple fried rice and dosa for Rs 200/- some years ago.

Food - 8/10
Ambiance - 1/10
Service - 8/10
Price - 8/10

Al-Najeeb is located in Secretariat Colony below Abinaya Gym

 I have been trying out the Iftar Packs from different hotels, this Ramzan. I was stuck in college with a duty upto 8pm. This gave me the opportunity to the try the Iftar pack served in Copper Kitchen, Porur. I placed the order over phone and the person on the other end of the call was more than happy to explain to me about the contents of the box. Since Shawarma was not a part of the box I decided to order one separately. Also as I was eating alone in my car, I could not take proper pictures of the entire box contents.

The Box contents:
Fresh Juice - 1 glass
Bottle water - 200 ml
Dates - 2
Assorted Fruits - 1
Kheema Samosa - 2
Shawarma Sandwich - 1 Half
Tandoori Chicken - 1 piece
Haleem - 1 container
Chicken Kothu Parotta - 1 container
Mutton Biryani - 1
Sweet Sauce - 1 very small container
Mayo - 1 small container

The entire box costs - Rs 275/- net
First this box has a different group of target audience and I feel they might have just got the box right for the intended group. The box has a mix of both old school items such as Kothu Parotta and Biryani and a blend of the new such as the Haleem and Shawarma Sandwich which could tempt people to order them separately.

Good things first, the stand-out for me was the Sharwarma sandwich, which is the shawarma chicken packaged inside a two slices of bread and toasted. This is something new to me, because I am used to having it in a roll. It was a little soggy by the time I had it, but still worth it. The Kheema Samosa was nice. It was like having samosa in buhari hotel during the early 90's. The fresh juice which came along with the package was a fresh made watermelon juice, which was perfect and refreshing. The Tandoori Chicken was really juicy and very spicy and this is the right thing to serve for Iftar. Mutton Biryani was nice considering it was hotel made. I was also happy that they stuck to serving Tamil style biryani instead of the other variations. Now coming to bad side of things, the Chicken Kothu Parotta lacked flavor and the Haleem was a disaster, it was liquidy and was more like a mix of mutton and tomato.

Other minor elements, the package even had mouth refreshers and a couple of tooth picks which is a neat addition. Is it worth Rs 275, just maybe, since the intended audience might like it.

The Chicken Shawarma which I had ordered separately was huge, in-fact the contents were  about  to spill out. The chicken was creamy and juicy but it lacked authenticity. It was more like their own version of a shawarma.

Food - 7.5/10
Price - 8/10

Copper Kitchen is located in arcot road next to porur signal.

I am returning back to the CFG Showcase scene after a long time and what better way than heading to the restaurant which pioneered the Butter Chicken Masala and the well known Tandoori Chicken. Even though I had visited Moti Mahal earlier, this was one opportunity I was not going to miss.

Usually when I write about a showcase dinner, I go on ranting about all the dishes served. But this time I want to try something different. I ll make it short and sweet. The dishes which I liked the most. Nothing more or nothing less, just the ones you need to try.








There is nothing better than having the Butter Chicken Masala along with the assorted rotis. This was what was served to us. I just loved the flavor the chicken had. Off the lot of assorted roti, I must say the stand outs were the Garlic Naan, Butter Naan and the Chilli Roti. If you guys go as a group, I would suggest you guys try the above mentioned roti. I am pretty sure, one would not be disappointed.


The Mutton Biryani served here, is standard affair. It was very much similar to the Biryani which one would be used to in North India. I am pretty sure if you like the Tamil Nadu style you will not like this.


Last but not the least, one should never leave Moti Mahal without having their Kulfi and the best I have ever tasted Paan Ice Cream. I have had paan ice cream all over the town and I am pretty sure this is the best one, one can have. It has nice deep taste to it.

If you guys love North Indian Food and are a sucker for kebabs, this is a must have restaurant. I do wish they have a small buffet offered on some odd days.

Ambiance:
The place stands true to my previous verdict, very subtle and neat.

Price:
A decent meal for two should cost around Rs 1200/-

Moti Mahal Delux is located in Jaganathan Road, in the same building as Sam's Pizza.

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*A review about a place holds good only for 6 months as there can be a change in quality and quantity of the food, the service and the staff, due to reasons best known only to them. So kindly consider these factors while visiting the places

The only time one can eat  freely without worrying about the cost,  is when someone else is giving a treat. I was out on one such occasion to enjoy my friends birthday treat. We had decided on Triana Valasarvakkam, since we had received a flyer about the restaurant, on the previous day. On reaching there, we asked the waiters , since that restaurant had been opened to the public. When the waiter replied 6 months, we were surprised, since none of us knew about the presence of this restaurant. One sore point was that the restaurant lacked electricity when we had reached around quarter past 1pm. We were informed that it would not be back until 2pm.






Before the other starters could arrive the vegetarians were served with the Hong Kong Noodles, which was part of their main course. Not that they minded about it. Flavor of the noodles was not very authentic, but it was palatable. The Cheese Naan which the vegetarians had ordered was the next to arrive. The vegetarians seemed really happy that they were being treated better than the non-veggie, who sat waiting for the next dish to arrive.


After quiet a bit of waiting, Chicken Wontons were served to us. The wontons were crisp, with decent amount of chicken stuffing in it. Crispy, crunchy & yummy.



Then came the Crispy Fried Baby Corn with Mushroom. One might wonder at the amount of Chinese dishes we had ordered in a North Indian Speciality restaurant. The Crispy Fried Baby Corn with Mushroom was fantastic, we even went on to order another portion of the same. After the crispy baby corn, finally came our Pahadi chicken. The pahadi chicken tasted like concoction of chicken tikka and tandoori chicken but with a little coriander seeds added to it and served along with mint chutney. The taste felt very much like a chicken tikka.


After the neat round of starters, the veggie finally got their gravy to go with the cheese naan. They had ordered the Stuffed Capsicum curry. I had a sample of the naan along with the capsicum curry, I must say it was quite nice. I really liked the mild flavor it had.


We non-veggie (Warriors) had ordered Chicken Chettinadu, Butter Chicken Masala and a Bread Basket to feed the lot. Since they had a big selection of biryani, we ordered a Mutton Biryani. The Mutton biryani was the first to arrive. This biryani can pass off as a masala rice with hard and uncooked mutton pieces.


The Butter Chicken Masala was all right, but I felt it lacked  richness. The pieces of chicken too, were small. The Chicken Chettinadu on the other hand, was spicy and oily. The mixture of both the gravies along with the roti was delightful. Somehow it seemed to compensate the error in flavor of both the dishes. Just when we were about to be done, we decided to have a Tandoori Chicken. Tandoori chicken was a little over  cooked, with edges of the pieces being charred. Overall, the food,  in-spite of not being authentic and true to its name, was delicious. Then coming to the final factor - the price, which is the most important factor to consider when you have to dole out money to  treat to a group of ten, is pocket friendly

Ambiance:
The place is located in an off shoot road in Valasarvakkam. Parking as such, is very limited. The place had neat white interiors. But at the time we had gone in, the place lacked electricity and when we had inquired, the waiter reported to us that they had power shutdown between 12 & 2pm. The restaurant  has been open for 6months and it still lacks a current generator  which seems a sore point.

Service:
The waiters were knowledgable, and knew the right dishes to suggest to the group. They also had the right idea about the portions of each dish.

Price:
As I had said earlier, the entire meal was pocket friendly. The meal for ten cost the birthday boy Rs 3140/-, which works about Rs 314/head.

Food - 6.5/10
Ambiance - 6/10
Service - 8/10
Price - 8/10

Triana is located in Valasarvakkam next to TMB bank ATM. It can be a little hard to locate the restaurant.

Many North Indian Fine Dining Restaurants have sprung up all over Chennai. Most of these places have been able to capture the richness and authenticity of the North Indian Food to a certain extent. I was recently at a restaurant chain which has managed to stand the test of time for over a period of 80 years, and touted to be the inventors of the famous and delicious dishes-Tandoori Chicken and Butter Chicken Masala (BCM).  I was born into a family of foodies and my grand parents thought that the best way to indulge their grand children was to serve them with delicious Non-veg food. I have been told that I had my first sample of butter chicken masala at a tender age of 2 or even earlier. So this gave me great pride to dine at the restaurant which invented the BCM.





Next we had ordered Kadai Panner for the veggie and Butter Chicken Masala for us. And we had gone in with both Missi Roti and Butter Naan. We preferred the Butter naan since it was soft, while the missi roti though good, it was a little hard. I sampled a minuscule portion of Kadai Paneer and I loved it. I served myself a lot more of it. The Paneer was really, really tender. I have never had such a tender paneer before in my life. It was soooooo soft! The dish - Heavenly. It worked great with the butter naan. The BCM was great, but I am very sure I had a better version than this in Delhi.


After the scrumptious main course we settled in on Paan Ice Cream. Though I have had only a few experiences with Paan as a Ice Cream. I am pretty sure this was the best I have had. The paan taste was a little over powering, nevertheless it was fabulous. If you are a sucker for paan ice cream, you need to try this. Once you are done with the ice cream, it leaves a nice minty aroma in the mouth. Loved it!

Ambiance:
Since this is a fine dining place, you do expect the ambiance to stand out and woo you. But thats not the case here. It is very subtle. If you need great ambiance look else where.

Service:
The service seemed really quick, with waiters being attentive and having a watch over your  water glasses.

Price:
The meal for five cost us Rs 2450/- but we used the 15% discount which is applicable if you use a CitiBank Credit Card, which brought the grand total to Rs 2134/-. I would not say it is value for money considering the ambiance, but it is worth the dine.

Food - 7/10
Ambiance - 7/10
Service - 8/10
Price - 7/10

Moti Mahal Delux is located in Jaganathan Road, in the same building as Sam's Pizzas.