28 October,2011 07:30 AM IST | | Promita Mukherjee
Stirring up passions, is what this food promotion does, quite literally. More so, because the dishes are born out of passion. The chef who cooked up quite a thali-full of lip-smacking dishes from the southern state of Andhra Pradesh was once a documentary filmmaker who gave in to his passion for cooking and joined the restaurant.
The start was quite impressive. As I sat down at a table that overlooked the glittering road outside (this is festive time, remember?), comfortable with a drink in hand, inside what is shaped like a houseboat (think houseboats on Kerala rivers and you will get the drift), life couldn't have been happier.u00a0u00a0u00a0
I was in Zambar's Vasant Kunj outlet to check out the thalis, which are a part of their Andhra Delights promotion. They have cooked up three thalisu00a0-- vegetarian, non vegetarian and seafood. Rasam, Sambhar, Pappu tomato and Carrot beans vepudu are common to all the thalis. The fun begins after that.
I ordered a non-vegetarian thali along with my favourite Baileys Irish Cream (shocked? Well, I discovered that the mildness of the liquor goes quite well with the spicy curries).While the Rasam was tasty and refreshing, I concentrated on the non-vegetarian items (being the Bong that I am). I especially enjoyed the Kodi vepudu (Andhra chicken fry) which was a spicy dry chicken which was so delicious that I wiped clean the entire bowl.
The Kodi Kurra (coastal chicken curry best had with Methu vadas) was also quite tasty. Along with this was lemon rice (nice and tangy) and also long grained plain rice. The Mamsam Pulusu (mutton in a pungent tangy curry) was not as spicy as I expected it to be. By now I was so full that there was no space for the Andhra egg curry. I rounded off the meal with some very sweet Tiyya Pongali (sweet rice).
At: Zambar, 3rd floor, Ambience Mall, Vasant Kunj and Gurgaon
Till: October 31
Timings: Noon to 11.30 pm
Cost: Rs 450 onwards + taxes per thali
