Ziya, The Oberoi

The art of dining well is no slight art, the pleasure not a slight pleasure - Michel de Montaigne

 

Restaurant week is back. And we were back to Oberoi. And after a hiatus (which much be apologized for) the blog is back too.

My entry this time is peppered with opinions from my fellow non-vegetarian at the table (in red)

Ziya, the Indian specialty restaurant at the Oberoi,  with its celebrity chef  Vineet Bhatia, complete with his 2 Michelin stars, was undoubtedly an experience – but I could not say it blew my mind.

Expectations were a tad bit high, given the chef's reputation and reviews.

We started our dinner with a chicken duo, a Chicken seekh kebab crusted with sesame seeds and chicken tikka-smoked cashew puff with tomato-fennel chutney. The puff simply melted in the mouth.

The puff pastry was perfect. In every way. Although the kebabs didn't melt in my mouth. Presentation was interesting but I was already wanting to move on to the next dish. Maybe I should have tried the Tawa Dahi Kebab.

Our other appetizer, a banana leaf wrapped grilled fiery fish resembled the Parsi patra ni machhi but tasted like tandoori chicken – a tiny portion but undoubtedly scrumptious. The garlic tempered vataana chaat it came with was definitely odd, a little bit of an eye sore and quite rough on the palate too.  

Onto the mains...

The Nariyal-Mirch Jhinga infused with kaffir lime leaves & lemon grass, was presented as coastal style shrimps  – but we wondered which coast. It reminded us of the red Thai curry at Joss – not that we are complaining – it was delicious but if the chef was going for fusion seafood he may have gone overboard.

The plating of the Jhinga was extremely disappointing. Plain white rice with the deep orange gravy seeping into it. Looked rather plain simply saved by the beautiful colour. It was delicious, but definitely not Indian. 

The Matka Chicken, a braised chicken in masala-chilli rice, on the other hand was presented beautifully. The chicken was cooked to perfection, soft and succulent. The portion I must say was extremely large and towards the end one could feel too overwhelmed. The raita was as expected. The rice though was mildly spicy but definitely filled with the masala it promised. Mathi sticks on the side I'd reckon were included to add a crunch relief to the otherwise melting dishes on the tray.

I quite enjoyed the desserts - a selection of homemade ice creams, each very distinct and unique – a rose petal-vanilla bean, a roasted peanut-jaggery, and a saffron-cardamom.

The ice creams were refreshing and beautifully flavoured. Those I would go back for.  

The Mango Panna Cotta was flawless. Was a delight to slice into and good to taste. I was expecting more mango. The lychee ginger ice cream I couldn't get enough of. Again the baby gulab jamuns did their job.

The ambiance, despite the gold work on the walls, comes off as a little coffee-shopesque and lacking in personality - but we were seated at an excellent table with a view.

I'd have to agree on the decor - too old. The view of the Queen's necklace saved it, almost. We got lucky. 

And the deciding question: Would we go back here?

My answer: Only at restaurant week prices.

All in all, the food was good, did its job. But didn't make me want to go back for more. I would have expected more interesting varieties and mixes of ingredients being Indian 'fusion'. I can't think of another word to describe the food except - good. 

Strictly Good.