Kebabs and tikkas. That too vegetarian. And, an entire food fest built around them. These drew us to Comfort Hotels on D.B. Road, where a kebab and tikka food promotion is on till October 21.
The fest features 31 kebabs and tikkas and is part of a series the hotel has planned through the year. “Kebabs are primarily considered non-vegetarian, and we are a family of vegetarians. We wanted to explore what we could offer other vegetarians in the city,” says M. Sanjeev of Comfort Hotels. The fest is on in its 54-cover ground floor restaurant and is an a la carte affair.
The meal starts with a juicy achari paneer tikka served with two green chutneys — coriander and green tomato-garlic-mint. There’s crunchy vegetable relish on the side too.
Next up is Mughlai Paneer, a whopper of a tikka — a huge square of paneer is stuffed with cashew and spice paste, marinated in cream and served, still sizzling. In all the quest for novelty, though, the paneer seems to have lost a bit of its softness.
The Hariyali Gobhi is shocking green, courtesy a palak and mint marinade, but makes for a pleasant surprise. The juices have soaked right through. Add to it a mild smoky flavour, some crunch and softness, and you have a winner on your plate.
Paneer and mushroom share a plate in Mushroom Surprise, where plump mushrooms are stuffed with paneer and cashew paste and roasted. The seekh kebab comes draped with a ribbon of cheese to make the cheesy seekh kebab. There’s Shikampuri kebab too, studded with whole peppercorns, and spicy baby corn tikka.
Other kebabs on offer include channa kebab, moong dal kebab, karela seekh kebab and corn and potato kebab.
Fruits make their presence felt in the form of the sweet-tangy-and mildly spiced Hawaiian tikka, featuring pineapple and apple marinated and skewered in the tandoor.
I leave the best for the last, actually second last. Methi aloo tikka. The tikka with simple flavours is crumbly, creamy and spicy. You just can’t stop with one.
Rounding off the meal is a scoop of vanilla ice cream, served with a drizzle of chocolate sauce and crunchy cashewnuts. The taste and the serving bowl remind me of another time, another ice cream shop. As if reading my thoughts, Sanjeev says: “Yes, the ice creams are from the same people who used to manufacture Richie Rich ice creams.”
