Experiences at 2 different Moti Mahal Deluxe restaurants

Moti Mahal Deluxe runs a chain of restaurants in Delhi and NCR, with some of these located inside Malls. For example, there is a Moti Mahal Deluxe located in the Pacific Mall, Crossriver Mall and V3S Mall, all located in East Delhi (Pacific Mall is located in Kaushambhi, just next to East Delhi). Moti Mahal Deluxe provides Indian Mughlai type of food, with rich vegetables and non-veg along with naan, roti, kulcha, etc. There were 3 of us, who had the chance to go to 2 of these restaurants within the space of 3 days. Neither of these 2 serve alcohol.
First went along with the spouse and a friend to the Moti Mahal Deluxe Restaurant located in the Crossriver Mall. The restaurant is located just next to the McDonald's at the left end of the Mall, and is fairly new. The restaurant seats 52 people. We went around 10:30 PM, so this was probably one of the last restaurants open in that area. As soon as we entered, it seemed like the whole of the restaurant had a smoky air inside (maybe the kitchen was not separated from the rest of the restaurant properly enough). Anyhow, braving the smoke, we sat down and ordered some food. We ordered veg dishes, raita, and naan + Keema kulcha. In addition, there was a drink - jaljeera type. Overall the quality of the food was disappointing, with the taste a bit off. The drink was not good either, missing the tang that you would normally get. Overall, the food was disappointing, and we will evaluate as to whether we would go again. The food cost around Rs. 800 (including tax).
2 days later, we headed over to the Moti Mahal Deluxe located in the V3S Mall, in Laxmi Nagar, next to PSK. This is located on the first floor, just next to the entrance to the movie hall, on the left side. This Moti Mahal Deluxe was a much better experience; we had ordered starters, 2 veg dishes and one non-veg dish. The 'matta methi malai' and the 'murg bemisaal' were good, and the naan were hot, overall, this was more of finger-licking food and some over-eating also happened. The starter of stuffed potato was great, and after this meal, we really did not try and evaluate the desserts. The food cost around Rs. 1200 (including tax) and included a Mango lassi that was full and heavy.

Address of the various Moti Mahal Deluxe Outlets:

12,V3s Mall,Vikas Marg
Lakshmi Nagar, Delhi, 110092
+91 11 32478975‎
+91 9313827549

30,B-7,Lsc Vasant Arcade
Vasant Kunj, Delhi, 110070
+91 11 32993302‎
+91 11 41783301‎
+91 9871411554‎

Shop No 26,Commercial Centre
Saket, Delhi, 110017
+91 11 41764411‎
+91 11 41764422‎
+91 11 41764400

M-30 G K 1
Greater Kailash Part-Ii, Delhi, 110048
+91 11 29230480‎
+91 11 29232467‎
+91 11 29240480

11 Defence Colony Market
Lajpat Nagar-2, New Delhi, 110024
+91 11 24330263‎
+91 11 24330265‎
+91 11 24330266

37, Central Market
Punjabi Bagh (W), New Delhi, Delhi 110026
+91 11 25225566‎
+91 11 25225577‎
+91 11 65488232

31, L.S.C
New Friends Colony, New Delhi, Delhi 110065
+91 11 65475958‎
+91 11 26915439‎
+91 9312270395‎ - Mobile
+91 9811920920‎ - Mobile

Diplomatic Enclave,20/48,Malcha Marg Market
Chanakya Puri, Delhi, 110021
+91 11 26118698‎
+91 11 26872760‎
+91 11 26118693

Opposite D S D College
New Railway Road, Gurgaon, 122001
+91 124 2321109‎
+91 124 2327218

Website of Moti Mahal Deluxe is at this link.

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Meat shop in Noida Sector 53

For non-vegetarians, getting access to their regular supply of meat makes for a satisfying meal. This can either be in the form of getting cooked stuff (which implies either eating out at a food joint, or getting it delivered at home), or getting raw meat at home and then cooking it. It is the getting hold of this raw meat that can be a problem sometimes. Many times, the butcher shop can seem unhygienic, and seeing big chunks of raw meat hanging from hooks may be unpleasant. Further, there are a wide variety of stuff that you can make from raw meat such as different types of kebabs, chicken items (drum sticks, boneless, etc), and sea food (especially prawns and different types of fish). Some of these are available as frozen food that can be bought at malls, but there is no beating getting access to the raw stuff.
Well I came across a shop in Noida that sells all this, and even delivers to your home (if within 3 km of their Sector 53 shop). It has a clean environment, and a wide variety of raw materials (different types of meats available, including sausages). The shop is located at the Kanchanjunga Shopping Center, around 200 m away from the Shoprix mall (the immediate market when you move from Shoprix towards NTPC. Some of the items available are: Mutton, Mince, Brain, Liver, Chicken Breast, Fillets, Wings, Fish Fillets, Turkey, Country Chicken, Lobster, Prawns, Chicken Spring Roll, Nuggets, Cutlet, Keema, and many others.
Address: Lazzez's, K-001-2-3, Kanchanjunga Shopping Complex, Noida
Sector 53
Contact: 2584222, 2585584, 9811608901

They also have a shop in E-04/15, Sector 56, Noida, Sector 56
Contact: 2588056, 2588057, 9811212758

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Ghantewala sweets shop in Chandni Chowk

Ghantewala (link) is one of the oldest and most famous eateries and sweets shop in Delhi. It went into business in 1790. There's an interesting story behind how it got its name, Ghanta actually means a big clanging bell in Hindi Legend goes that whenever the royal procession moved down this road, the emperor was in the habit of stopping here for a snack - a habit that his elephant acquired too. Well, we all know how passionately fond of sweets elephants are, so of course came the day when he found the way to the shop himself. Apparently he refused to budge and kept on shaking its head until people rallied around with assorted sweets. The bells hanging from the elephant's neck would tinkle whenever the animal went into stubborn mode and shook his head and from there came the shop's name - beat that! (Another story is: A school used to exist near this shop and whenever the caretaker of the school would hit the hammer on the clanger, the sound would echo to the ramparts of the Red Fort. Whenever he felt like tasting some sweets, Shah Alam used to tell his flunkies to go to the `Ghanta Niche Halwai' -- the shop under the clanger. Hence, the name `Ghantewala.') The Ghantewala Halwai is celebrated for its sohanhalwa, a sweet made from dry fruits, sprouts and sugar.
Some of the products of Ghantewala are: Kaju Sweets, Desi Ghee Sweets, Badam Sweets, Petha Sweets, Bengali Sweets, Aloo Lacha, Dalmoth Kaju, Dalmoth Plain, Dalmoth Spl., Moong Dal, Kashmiri Mixture, Badam Mixture, Mongra, Chana Kabuli, Chana Dal, Aloo Wafers, Kaju Fried, kaju Masala, Kaju Roasted, Badam Roasted, Badam Fried / Masala, Sem Seeds, Sitaphal Beej, Kharbooja Beej, Mera Mixture, Mathri Gol Kali Mirch, Mathri Methi, Mathri Tikoni, Namakpare, Mathri Karela, Bakarwadi, Biscuits, Snacks, Papad.
Contact details:
Ghantewala Confectioners
1862-A, Chandni Chowk,
Delhi-110006
Phone : +91-11-23280490
Telefax : +91-11-23241851
Email : sweets@ghantewala.com

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Asola wildlife sanctuary

I wonder how many people know that there is actually a wildlife sanctuary inside Delhi; people know about the large parks, about the Ridge, but an actual sanctuary ?
It is the Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary, spread over 6,800 acres near Tughlakabad fort in south Delhi. Occupying an area of 6874 acres, the Wildlife Sanctuary is considered the breathing lung of the cosmopolitan city of Delhi. It was established in 1992 with the aim to protect the wildlife in the area between Delhi and Surajkund (Delhi-Haryana border).
The sanctuary is located on the Southern Ridge which is part of the northern terminal of Aravalli Hills (the weather beaten Aravallis are one of the oldest mountain system of the world). The reason for the biodiversity significance of the Ridge lies in its merger with IndoGangetic plains. The legal Status of the Southern Ridge was considered uncertain till 1986 when the community land of villages Asola, Shapur & Maidangari (4707 Acre) were notified & land of Bhatti (2167 Acre) was notified in 1991 as Sanctuary.
The Asola wildlife sanctuary is actually located in South Delhi Distt, all along Delhi Haryana Faridabad & Gurgaun. The approach is from Tughlakabad (Mehruali Badarpur Road) to Surajkund Road (2 Km) near Karni Singh shooting Range or from Mehruali via Chattarpur Temple 6 Km near Sanjay Colony(Bhatti Area).
Distance from I.G.I. Airport is 25 Km
The sanctuary is covered by dense forest with varied fauna and flora. It protects common mongoose, small Indian civet, small Indian mongoose, jungle cat, flying fox, porcupine, palm squirrel, spiny tailed lizards, rufus tailed hare and monitor lizards. Major birds at Asola Wildlife Sanctuary are bee-eaters, cormorants, egrets, grebes, falcons, partridges, quail, peafowl, lapwings, sandpipers, woodpeckers, doves, parakeets, cuckoos, owls, nightjars, barbets, swallows and shrikes. The best time to visit this sanctuary is from November to February.

Attractions

* Nature trail 2 Km exposing floral & faunal element, topography of area.
* Good patches of Anogeissus,Balanite & riparian belt representative of Aravali.
* Large worked out minepits of Bhatti area in process of reclamation & establishment likely to be developed wetland habitat.
* Historical place around sanctuary are surajkund(Haryana), Tughlakabad & Adilabad ruins (N.Delhi), Chattarpur Temple

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Sona Sweets, Nehru Place

Post courtesy Akshaya (link)

I remember Sona Sweets from my days while working near Nehru Place. Nehru Place has lots of wonderful small eating places - Sona Sweets is surely one of the best there. It is a small eatery joint which offers nearly everything in India fast food - from Chhole Bhature to Aloo Parantha, from Chaats to Pao Bhaaji, from Idli to Dosa and much more.

It has a large (as per Nehru Place standards) open kitchen area where there are large stoves and large flat tawas. You can actually watch your paranthas or dosas being made right there (it is not a good experience watching though). The place is nearly filled each day during the lunch hours and you may have to squeeze yourself first to make an order (do payment and take a coupon) and then squeeze yourself more to get the food at your table. In the meantime, I forgot, you need to watch for a table as well. But let me tell, all this hardship is worth it. Truly amazing food at reasonable cost, especially the Aloo Parantha is tasty and filling - one is enough for me. But the best thing is Lassi there - served in a large (Punjabi) style glass, it is one of the best I ever had till now.

So, go there for Aloo Parantha and finish off with Lassi. Just make sure that you do not rush into lunch hours.

Contact Info:
Sona Sweets
G 1, 27 Saraswati House,
Nehru Place
New Delhi - 19
Ph: 91-011-26426777

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Eden bar and restaurant

After a bad experience at the String restaurant, we could have taken even a so-so experience at another restaurant, and we really did not want to travel too much, so we all went to just one level below (to the first floor) of the Shoprix Mall in Noida, went to the Eden restaurant. The lady at the entrance looked at us a bit hesitatingly, after all, there were 10 of us; when we told her that we had already almost made a booking (we had not confirmed the reservation), she smiled a bit and then told us in 2 minutes that space had been made for us. The whole place was packed (which on a Friday evening at 7:15 says something about the popularity of the place), and we managed to sit down at a table that would have seated 8 with comfort (and sat 10 packed).
The lighting was a bit dim (somewhat like a bar), except that with such a mixed cloud of girls and boys, one would have expected some more lighting to be there and be more like a resto-bar rather than a bar type of environment. It took some time for them to get us the menus and all, the staff was friendly. We patiently waited for them to give up attention, although it was a bit hard to talk in all that noise. Finally, we placed our orders for snacks and drinks. Happy hours last till 7:30 PM (although cocktails are not covered under the happy hours), and drinks cost in the range of Rs. 200 - 300 for cocktails. The place is moderately prices and the quantity of snacks that we got was adequate, they did not do that strange thing that many places do, giving small quantity of snacks.
The drink was decent, although the Mojito I had ordered was much better in Fluid (but then there is plenty of difference between Fluid and Eden, so one should not use that criteria). The snacks were decent, and you get plenty of veg and non-veg snacks, with a mixture of Indian and Chinese snacks. The main course was also good, we had got Indian food (dishes and rotis) and they were decent to taste. The service was overall decent, and this is a place that you can take the spouse or close friend, and easily go with office colleagues.

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Strings restaurant in Shoprix

We had completed a long delayed project, and the team was in a mood to party. It was decided that there would be bowling and then dinner; the Great India Place Mall next to sector 18 in Noida was ruled out since we had been there a few time before - it was decided that it was better to go to the Shoprix Mall in Sector 61, Noida; after all, that place also has a bowling alley and has some restaurants and a food court, seemingly enough choice that we could go there.
SO off we went, and had a good time in the bowling alley on the top floor of the Shoprix Mall, and then it came to take time for dinner. Well, there is a restaurant cum bar called Strings right next to the bowling alley, and after some internal discussion we all agreed that we could eat here. The place had a low level of lighting as suits a bar, and there was the usual 2-3 groups of middle aged men sitting at different tables and drinking.
Now comes the interesting part; we asked for the drinks menu and it seemed to have some variety; there were different types of vodkas, cocktails, rums, and so on. It seemed a nice place to enjoy, so after some thought, many of us ordered cocktails. And then the fun starts, there were actually no cocktails available (and the waiter refused to tell us why); out of the 4-5 different types of vodka, only 1 was available and the same was true for the rum.
When the waiter was asked as to why all these things were listed, he said a trifle rudely that it is not fair to expect everything written over there to be available; and by this time we were getting angry (since we wanted to have a drink and food, and it looked like a drink was doubtful). On asking him more questions, he got even more rude.
At this point of time, we were worried that this party should not end up as a disaster, so we decided to leave the place. And this was the most interesting part, given that there were 10 of us, nobody bothered to ask us as to why we were leaving, what the problem was, and so on. In fact, it seemed the on-duty supervisor was smiling too much, with a slightly sweaty face, a good chance that he was drunk. If this kind of behaviour puts you off, then avoid this place.

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Rajdhani Rajasthani restaurants in Delhi

Post courtesy Akshaya (link)

To get over the Nirula's experience, we headed to Great India Place again to celebrate. This time we did advance booking for Pind Baluchi but once again we were not supposed to eat there. Just as we reached there, we found out that it was filled with women kitty parties:) It was like sitting in between firing across the border with tambola numbers flying through our ears. Since, it was just not the setting we would have liked, we decided to move on to Rajdhani restaurant nearby. And, this time it was a good move.

Khandani Rajdhani is a chain of restaurants which offer the traditional thali concept. They offer unlimited thalis with different items each day on a reasonable cost. The decor and ambience is calm and serene here - no frills and no fuss. So, do not expect luxury here but do expect wonderful food. The thalis consists food items mostly from Rajasthan, Gujrat and Maharastra. Just as you settle down the server will come with warm water to wash your hands - tradition style. And then you are served with welcome drink - in our case it was skimmed milk and aampanna. Then came the starters (Farsan) - White Dhokla and Aloo Tikki. Next in line was main course - a lavish spread of nearly 2-3 chutneys, 5-6 dishes, 2-3 types of breads, and 2 types of rice. So we had, potatoes with gravy, dal, Rajasthani kadi, bhindi rajasthani style and more in main course dishes. While there were green chutney, imli chutney and mirchi chutney along with roasted papads as accompli. Apart from this they had Rajasthan speciality - Dal, Batti and Churma. In the sweet dish, they offer Aamras, Aam Rasmalai and Moong Dal Halwa.

Overall, a truly wonderful experience - all traditional home style food. Meal for two would cost less than Rs.400 here.

Contact Info:-
Rajdhani - Noida
The Great India Place Mall,
3rd Floor,
Sector 38A Noida - 201301
Ph:- 91-9311759990, 91-0120-6488933/4

They have branches all over the country. Some of the others that are in the Delhi region:

Rajdhani Delhi
P - 1/90, Daulatram House
Opp. Rivoli Cinema,
Connaught Place
New Delhi-110 001
91-011-23346300/23346400

Rajdhani Gurgaon
M.G.F., 3rd Flr, Metropolitan Mall,
M.G.Road,Mehrauli,
Haryana, Gurgaon - 122001
91-0124-4379001/2

Rajdhani - New Delhi
V3S Mall East Centre Mall
3rd floor, Food Court,
Laxmi Nagar -
New Delhi-110 001
91-011-43097886/7

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Kuki, the trendy bar in Greater Kailash 2

Kuki suddenly came into the celebrity news when it got reported that Karishma's husband had taken Kareena and Saif Ali Khan to the pub, and when a photographer tried to take their photos, his camera had all the photos deleted. But leaving aside this juicy tidbit, Kuki has gathered some name as a trendy place to be in, a welcome addition to Delhi's nightlife; it now brings in a fair number of the rich and famous, and the happening people. Most people find the decor of the club - large butterflies (in red) suspended from the ceiling, and not limited to that; they are like the motif for the club, being imprinted on the uniform of waiters, present on the walls, and even on the coasters.
Like many other places (or maybe to give competition), Wednesday is the ladies night at Kuki, and like most other nightclubs, the weekends are the most busy. The good part is that this is a 3 storey establishment, so if you can't squeeze in on the ground floor, then move to the first floor. The DJ console is also located on the first floor, and is manned by the owner, DJ Rummmy on Thursday.
The place can be a bit on the expensive side, with the excellent cocktails costing around Rs. 300-450 (but not too expensive when you consider that most places with a similar reputation and decor would cost around the same or maybe more). The place itself has got good service, and maintains an air that would keep you coming back for more.

Location: Greater Kailash- next to Smoke House Grill and Imperial Garden
E 7, Greater Kailash II,
Masjid Moth Commercial Complex
Phone: 29225241

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China Kitchen at the Hyatt Regency

A lot of Indians enjoy Chinese food; however, it is also a fact that most of the Chinese food that we eat is actually food cooked with an Indian flavour - after all, a true Chinese chef would not actually enjoy addition of things such as Indian spices, paneer (cottage cheese); in fact, the feel of authentic Chinese food is most enhanced when the ingredients are genuine. There are a number of restaurants who claim the virtue of having an authentic Chinese experience, and some of them are not genuine. The China Kitchen on the other hand feels like the genuine experience.
The restaurant is located next to the pool at the Hyatt Regency, and the experience starts right at the entry. There are Chinese type motifs on the wooden doors that mark the entrance to the restaurant, and inside, you find the restaurant spread into different areas - there are the open kitchens, 5 private dining areas, the wine / tea area and the overall dining area. But even the dining area has tables that give you some feeling of privacy since there is some distance between the tables, and there are many corners. The whole getup of the place gives a wooden look (the elegant type), with a dark varnished wooden floor, wooden pillars and teak logs making up the roof. The windows give a good view of the pool. As you might expect, such an interior can give a great feeling of luxury, and the service is well along these lines. All this can be expensive, and you can easily run up a charge of over Rs. 1000 per person in the meal.
The restaurant is most famous for its 2 specialties, Peking Duck (made on a wood fired oven to give the classical taste), and Beggar's Chicken (chicken wrapped in lotus leaves inside a clay shell). In addition, there are a number of other mouth-watering delicacies (in addition to the chef's complimentary offering (some kind of starter, but normally very delicious), vegetable dumpling soup, Steamed spinach with mustard-sesame sauce, crispy prawn spring rolls, Sichuan poached chicken with crushed peanuts, vegetable and bean curd, Wok-fried premium vegetables with garlic, Fried Crab Claws, Pancakes with Sauteed Lamb, Sichuan Chilli Crabs, Fried Coriander Buns (my mouth was watering just from reading this entire list).
Thus, you can get a variety of excellent dishes based on vegetarian, poultry, fish, and other such sections, most of them being very good. The dessert is also a not-miss section. You get a good variety of wines and excellent alcohol to go along with this.

Hours: Lunch: 12:00 noon to 2:30 pm
Dinner: 7:00 pm to 11:30 pm
Reservations: Please dial +91 11 6677 1334

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