The USP of this restaurant is generously portioned, authentic Punjabi gastronomical brilliance suited to contemporary tastes, writes GITA HARI.
After pampering palates in Juhu, the famous Indian restaurant Punjab Grill is set to sizzle at its Morya Landmark, Andheri venue. Buffet lunch and dinner are on too but we preferred to settle for a la carte. Tasty Mini Chesse Kulchas, Pappad platter of fryums in varied shapes and sizes with chutneys, relishes and a glass of Cranberry juice infused with cinnamon appear in the pause period before starters arrive.
Helmed by the young and affable Chef Pradeep Khullar, Punjab Grill’s signature appetizers such as Dahi ke Kebab – a delicate kebab of yoghurt cheese, blended with cardamom and coriander with an attractive almond topping, mildly grilled Malai Broccoli served as a bouquet of broccoli with three cheese stuffing, Chicken Kurkuri in which golden fried wonton skin rolls rolled in savoury sevian are filled with chicken, juliennes of mushroom, celery, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts and Tandoori Duck consisting of roast duck cured with an orange marinade with a delicate hint of saffron, were a revelation amongst the regulars. The mundane Harra Barra kebab turned out to be resplendent as a delicate melt-in-the-mouth pan fried patty grill of spinach, green peas, cottage cheese, spiced with herbs.
Chef Pradeep’s culinary skills dazzled us in the main course too with Malai Chena Pedas – homemade chena balls, simmered in a methi malai pyaz gravy were incredibly soft and said a lot for Chef’s accuracy in getting them done to perfection and while plating without disintegrating the dainty chena balls. Palak Paneer sported cubes of paneer simmered in rich creamy spinach and fenugreek sauce. We loved Chef’s version of Kadai Veg where bell peppers, baby corn and other vegetables were not smothered in gravy but stood out in minimum masalas rendering it with a nice crunch. Go for Saunfiyan or Masala Lachcha parathas. The barman in his innovative best has come up with Paan Mojitho, a mocktail with meetha paan straw holding its condiments and letting out the paan flavour as you sip it.
Mutton and chicken delicacies are hugely popular here with Meat Punjab Grill – house specialty of shanks, culled from the shoulder of goat, cooked the old fashioned way over extremely low heat on an angeethi and Murgh Lababdar – chicken cubes cooked in tomato masala accompanied by aromatic flavours of authentic Indian spices topping the list of sell-out dishes. Must try is Guchchi Pulao of jumbo morels stuffed with cumin-spiced malai and basmati, dum cooked to exude a subtle flavor some rice dish.
We wound up with lip smacking Litchi ki Tehri, a fruit mosaic of watermelon and musk melon, Bengal’s famous Langda mango slices and a bowl of saffron flavoured Ras Malai – this entire mélange was temptingly served on a bed of crushed ice. The USP of this restaurant is generously portioned, authentic Punjabi gastronomical brilliance suited to contemporary tastes – all in a happy, positive space and attentive service. No wonder it sees a lot of repeat guests. Recipes by Chef Gurpreet Singh, Brand Chef, Punjab Grill.
Method
Mix all the ingredients properly except Almond and Oil. Make sure that all the lumps are mashed (using palms) & mixture is evenly mixed. Refrigerate the mixture for an hour to chill properly. Make the patties out of it, stud it with halved almond & fry it in medium hot oil till light brown colour.
Method
Heat Milk till it boils and allow it to cool till lukewarm. Add vinegar and curdle the milk. Hang the curdled milk in muslin cloth for 15 minutes and let the whey drain out. Mash Chhena (curdled milk) with palms and mix fenugreek leaves, ginger, coriander roots and some salt. Make balls out of it and blanch in boiling water carefully so that it does not disintegrate. Keep aside. In a pan, heat ghee, add ginger, green chillies and sliced onions. Add tomato puree and tak-a-tak gravy after a while. Add rest of the spices and finish the gravy with cream. Top the Chhena pedas with hot gravy without handling too much.
Ambiance: ***½
Food: **** ½
Service: ****
Pricing: ****
Overall: ****½
