A great meal can make or break your Diwali experience, and whether you're looking to try something new or want to go for a traditional meal, restaurants are offering a variety of menus to satisfy the customer's wants Diwali is no longer a festival of just hanging up lights, making rangolis or bursting firecrackers. Everyone knows the best part of any holiday is the food, and restaurants are getting creative as they cater to these expectations. Many have tweaked their menus and introduced dishes inspired by the traditional elements of Diwali, while others have presented their own versions of Diwali cuisine. Read on to see some preparations by restaurants to give customers a delicious Diwali experience.
Tweaking Indian dishes"These days, Diwali has become a global festival, so we've infused Indian elements into our otherwise global menu. For instance, we have seekh tikka with masala-coated chickpeas, gun powder potato stew with fig puri and regenerated mattar-paneer. We're also mixing it up with sambuca flambe gulab ja mun with toffee cream sauce on cholai slabs and hickory wood-smoked moong daal halwa crumble with melted vanilla ice cream," says Vikrant Batra, owner, Terminus 1. The menu also includes nimbu anar shikanji and smoky tamarind margarita, all of which will be served till October 23.
Cafe Delhi Heights has spiced up its drinks to give it a patakha kick. With options like Diwali pataka punch, bijli bomb, chocolate and chilli kiss and Diwa-Hot Chocolate, the restaurant aims to give customers an `explosive' experience. "We have added spices and chilli to the drinks to give customers the desi patakha feel. We also have desserts like the flaming gulab jamun and sitafal, and cashew and raisin-flavoured kulfi, till Octob er 23," says Vikrant from Cafe Delhi Heights.
Going the traditional way"Our buffet is completely Indian because that is what Diwali food is - completely desi.And, of course, we have mithai as India is all about mithai," says Zorawar Kalra, owner, Made in Punjab. The restaurant is offering eight-ten types of mithai, including milk cakes and three-four types of kaju katlis. And how are Delhiites liking this food bonanza?
"The festive buffet was supposed to be only for the Diwali week. But now we are planning to continue with this concept even after the festive season is over," adds Zorawar.
If you are a kebab fan, then head over to Kababo Ke Nawab - the Diwali kebab festival at Radisson Blu in Paschim Vihar. "Diwali is about family time, and for us, this translates into a kebab fiesta. The festive menu will be on till the end of October," says chef Dhiraj from Radisson Blu. The restau rant is offering specials like chooza pe shawari, nawadi roti, gilawafi seekh kabab, khade masaale ka paneer tikka, achaari phool and rajma ke shaahi galoti. Desserts too have traditional options like moong daal ka hal wa, phirni, kulfi and sewayi.
Cafe Turtle is offering a Diwali thali, which is inspired by Indian street food. A mix of sweet and savoury snacks, the thali comprises amritsari chola kulcha, tawa aloo tikki,dahi papdi chaat,khasta samosa,meethi khoj and a special masala tea served in a kul har. To seal the yummy deal, it is served with pickle and tamarind chutney on the side. "Our thali plays on the nostalgia of In dian street food, and we want to give people a taste of that," explains Priyanka Malho tra, owner, Cafe Turtle.
A modern take on Diwali dishes
Somerset mushroom soup, leek and potato soup or chicken pancakes florentine hardly sound like Diwali cuisine. But Roost Bistro has come up with these dishes, staying loyal to the type of cuisine it generally serves."We see Diwali as an indication of the changing of seasons. It reminds us of the onset of autumn and winter.So, in our special menu, which will be served till the end of the month, we have incorporated special soups and spicy dishes," says Pranav Kumar from Roost Bistro. Its menu also includes ginger honey hunter chicken, grilled corn fed thyme lemon chicken and saadiya samak.
Summer House Cafe has given Diwali food new meaning by tweaking their portions for the festive season. "Diwali means family time, so we've decided to increase the size of the servings and are giving discounts as well," says Anchit from Summer House Cafe. The restaurant also has some festive specials like sweet paprika chicken breast with creamy pesto sauce, crusted cottage cheese steak with chunky tomato sauce and traditional meat loaf with BBQ sauce and hot BBQ ranch beans. For those with a sweet tooth, the cafe is offering a mega-brownie Diwali mug till October 27.
Burger joint's Diwali shake
Who would have guessed Johnny Rockets, which opened recently in the capital, would catch the Diwali bug as well? The restaurant has come up with a Diwali shake, which will only be served on chotti and badi Diwali (October 22 and 23). "Diwali is the biggest festival in India. We wanted to do something special, so we picked up all the traditional elements - almonds, kesar and pistachio - and blended them for our signature badam, kesar and pista shake," says chef Dean from Johnny Rockets.
Dessert pizzas and French mithai
Some restaurants focus all their Diwali attention on their desserts, as they feel that Diwali is quintessentially about sweets. But eating a pizza for dessert is something we'd never have imagined. La Vie in Khan market has baffled Delhiites with its range of Diwali dessert pizzas. "We didn't want something completely Indian this Diwali, so we are offering dessert pizzas. It has a hint of tradition in its own way . It's made with the same dough as normal pizza, but is topped with almonds, dates and praline nuts, as Diwali is all about dry fruits and something sweet," says Anirudh from La Vie. Chocoburst pizza, banana crumble pizza, blueberry cheese pizza and apple crumble pizza are some options you can choose from till the end of the month.
If you have ever wondered what the French version of a badam barfi tastes like, then you'll find your answer at Le Bistro du Parc. The restaurant has added a French twist on the traditional badam barfi with almonds. Available from Monday till Diwali, the jugalbandi dessert comprises almond pastry, almond cream and fresh roasted almonds. "We have fused pistacchios, almonds and elements of Indian sweets in a traditional French recipe," says Naina from Le Bistro du Parc.
Everyone loves gulab jamun, but how many people can say they've eaten a flaming gulab jamun? Barrels' flaming gulab jamun is made from Bailey's rabri, which is rich in dry fruits and forms the base of the diya, atop which rests the rum-dipped gulab jamun. The diya is lit before it's served.
Diwali pretzel, anyone?
Germany and Diwali had no connection until Zu Tisch in GK came up with a Diwali home-made bakery box, which consists of apple strudel, black forest, red velvet and chocolate almond cake, pumpernickel bread and pretzels. It will be offered till the end of the month. "People are actually buying these hampers as gifts instead of dry fruits and sweets," says Mayank, the owner of the restaurant.
Motichoor and kaju katli donuts
Going the desi way is donut chain Mad Over Donuts, which started offering gulab jamun, motichoor and kaju katli-flavoured donuts last week. Tarak Bhattacharaya, COO, MOD, told us, "During Diwali, everyone is looking for something innovative instead of the standard mithai and now, even chocolate boxes. So we launched these Indian flavours to add a festive touch to our donuts."
With inputs from Aanchal.Tuli@timesgroup.com
