On 1 October, it is World Vegetarian Day. Promoting the goodness of vegetables and its benefits, Khandani Rajdhani restaurant came up with a thali fest to satisfy the palate of its patrons.
Located at Velacheri, inside Phoenix Market City, the restaurant had richness not just in its food but also its decor. Complete with black and gold hues, the restaurant was in a festive mood and the bearers made sure the guest were not kept waiting.
It was a pleasant surprise when they brought a jug and bowl to wash our hands. The warm scented water gave us a pampered feel.
The thali plates were already kept at the table and as soon as we sat, they started to serve us. First came garlic dhokla. The fluffy, bite-sized delights were yummy with the red and green chutney accompaniments.
Then a salad of diced beetroot and apples was served. One can choose drinks like rose milk lassi, mango lassi, jaljeera and lemon juice to accompany the dishes.
The special item of the day was dal bhati churma, where five types of dal are cooked together and must be eaten with small balls of bread cooked in an oven. Rava laddoo is crushed and sprinkled on top of the dish to give a sweet touch.
The vegetable dishes were soon filled up. There were four gravies and three dals. The paneer Kashmiri chaman was mildly spiced. The cottage cheese was soft and the masalas were well infused. The name suggests that its origin is from Kashmir. The word chaman means tomato in Kashmiri and it is one of the main ingredients for cooking this dish along with a generous dose of fennel powder.
The aloo subzi, called Batata Tamatar, from Gujarat, was tasty and went well with the rotis.The water-rich Tindola Gol curry, commonly known as ivy gourd, was satisfactory and minimal usage of spices kept their flavour in tact.
The final subzi, Chawli Masala, cooked with black-eyed beans, was similar to the dals.
Coming to the simple lentil dishes, there were three varieties, namely Tadka Dal, Surati Dal and Kadhi. Among them, Tadka Dal was the most flavourful and Punjabi fare is incomplete without it.
Kadhi is a thick gravy made mainly with chickpea flour and yogurt to give it a sour taste. Sometimes, the natives add pakoras to give a slight twist to the dish.
Surati Dal is prepared from tuvar dal. This dish has both sweet and sour taste because of the addition of jaggery and lemon juice.
We were served three types of rotis of different sizes. The Phulka was more than the size of the palm while Aloo Paratha, one of my favourites, was small and served with a dollop of fresh butter. The Bajra Roti was medium-sized and served with a sprinkling of sweet-smelling ghee.
Then came the rice. The mixed vegetable Kichdi was tasty and sticky while the Kesar Pulao was light in taste.
We rounded off the dinner with hot strings of jalebi, served with rabri.